Insektengeflüster – Über das verborgene Leben auf sechs Beinen. Book presentation & talk with Dominique Zimmermann

Insektengeflüster – Über das verborgene Leben auf sechs Beinen. Book presentation & talk with Dominique Zimmermann

Thu 22.05.2024, 19h l MQ Summer Stage, Main Courtyard l Free entry

To mark Biodiversity Day, Dominique Zimmermann will be reading from her book "Insektengeflüster. About the hidden life on six legs". She will be accompanied musically by double bass player András Soskó. Afterwards, there will be a drink at the wild plant meadow "Versuchsfeld1" by Anita Fuchs on the forecourt of the MQ.

More about the book:
We usually only notice insects when they bother us: the wasp that steals our juice or the mosquito that robs us of our sleep. But in reality, insects are much more than that: they are the rulers of the largest and most diverse kingdom on our planet. It is the realm of superlatives, in which life is possible under extreme conditions, whose inhabitants are endowed with seemingly supernatural powers of perception and which has evolved over enormous periods of time. Dominique Zimmermann takes us on a fantastic journey through this world, which is populated by breeches bees, compass termites, golden wasps and many other insects. She shows us the vital tasks they fulfil and the crucial importance they have for our ecosystem.

This book is a declaration of love to all six-legged creatures and a manifesto for recognising insects as living beings, protecting their habitats and preserving the planet's biodiversity as best we can. There is only one world for all living creatures: Let's preserve it!

Dominique Zimmermann, born in Vienna in 1981, is an entomologist and curator at the Natural History Museum in Vienna. Her research focusses on wild bees and other stinging insects, in particular the decline in species and its causes. She also teaches at the University of Vienna. Zimmermann is co-author of the Insect Manifesto, which has been immortalised in 13 floor panels in front of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences since 2023 as part of the "Walk of Insects" artwork by Austrian artist Edgar Honetschläger. Science communication is a particular concern of hers, which she pursues as a board member of the GoBugsGo association, among other things.

Photo: © Minitta Kandlbauer