AFTER more than six years of searching, the National Institute of Entomology (NIOE) has found a permanent home in Kilmore inside the vacant town hall building.
The NIOE has been temporarily based in Woodend where it runs the National Insect Expo each year but will now relocate the operations and research programs of the organisation to Kilmore.
For those less bug-savvy, entomology is the scientific study of insects, including butterflies, bees, flies, beetles and other bugs.
The chairman of the NIOE, Dr Bert Candusio was ecstatic to find out his years of hard work looking for a permanent location have paid off and hopes the people of Mitchell Shire will benefit from it too.
“Think of it as a natural history museum and hub for the entomological sciences,” he said.
“It now means that all your regional students can come down and do practical work experience in the field of entomology if they’re interested in it.
“I guarantee that there are a lot of students that are interested in science, but essentially they have had, up until now, nowhere to go.
“Now they have a central hub of entomological sciences right on their doorstep.”
The search began six years ago when the NIOE found out that the Central Victorian Regional Insect Collection was due to be discarded during the redevelopment of the La Trobe University Applied Science Buildings in Bendigo where it was housed.
Although Bert was already deeply entrenched in finding a new home, the search became even more pressing as the NIOE’s courses and programs became more popular in recent times.
Needing a base for a quarter of a million specimens and to accommodate the increasing size of classes, Bert told the Review that he and fellow members of the NIOE looked high and low for a suitable home.
“Essentially, we ran out of options here in Woodend and Macedon Ranges Shire,” Bert said.
“Then we learned that the Kilmore Town Hall was available, so we immediately looked at it, had an inspection, and jumped on board straight away.”
That brings us to the present where a rejuvenated Bert is keen to get back in the classroom to teach the next generation of entomologists.
He said that the new site will become the only facility in the country that “specialises in delivering entomological-based courses”, and with roughly 180 students already on standby, it has the capacity to grow even further.
“(Based on) the enthusiastic response that we got from council, we could immediately tell that they were fully on board because they saw the potential,” Bert said.
“They saw the fact that we would be bringing in not only national students, but international students as well.
“So straight away, they could foresee the boost to the economy of the Shire of Mitchell.”
The new home for the NIOE won’t just be for aspiring entomologists, anyone can become a member which allows them to get involved with research or simply expand their knowledge on the wonderful world of insects.
The institute also runs the extremely popular annual National Insect Expo. They currently operate out of Woodend’s Buffalo Stadium, but Bert said he expects that it will be on the move in the coming years, with Wallan’s RB Robson Stadium the frontrunner at this stage.
“We have to relocate because I’m knocking back exhibitors every year. We just can’t accommodate them if we stay in Woodend,” Bert said.
“Currently we’re running between 80 and 100 exhibitors now. Once we relocate to Wallan, that’ll go to about 250-300 exhibitors.”
Macedon Ranges Shire Mayor Councillor Kate Kendall weighed in on the impending move of the expo, saying that although they tried to work with the NIOE to find a solution in the shire, there wasn’t a suitable home that met the needs of the Institute’s collections.
“We’re pleased to have supported and hosted the National Insect Expo in Woodend in recent years, and also pleased to hear that the intention is for it to remain in the shire for several years to come,” Cr Kendall said.
“We wish the National Institute of Entomology all the best in its future endeavours.”
This year’s expo will remain in Woodend, and will be the host for the official opening of ABC National Radio’s Insect of the Year Awards.
