Bug Wheel
Press Spin to get one bug out of 64. The buttons under “Choose a list” narrow it to one group.
No spins yet. Each pick is listed here in order.
Bugs on the wheel, group by group
Beetles (13)
- Ladybug
- Firefly
- Stag beetle
- Rhinoceros beetle
- Hercules beetle
- Goliath beetle
- Dung beetle
- Japanese beetle
- Tiger beetle
- Ground beetle
- Click beetle
- Longhorn beetle
- Weevil
Butterflies and moths (13)
- Monarch butterfly
- Swallowtail butterfly
- Painted lady
- Gulf fritillary
- Mourning cloak
- Zebra longwing
- Glasswing butterfly
- Owl butterfly
- Luna moth
- Atlas moth
- Hummingbird hawk-moth
- Cecropia moth
- Peppered moth
Bees, wasps and ants (12)
- Honey bee
- Bumblebee
- Carpenter bee
- Mason bee
- Paper wasp
- Yellowjacket
- Hornet
- Mud dauber
- Carpenter ant
- Leafcutter ant
- Army ant
- Weaver ant
Other insects (14)
- Dragonfly
- Damselfly
- Grasshopper
- Cricket
- Katydid
- Praying mantis
- Stick insect
- Cicada
- Housefly
- Mosquito
- Earwig
- Cockroach
- Termite
- Mayfly
Not insects (12)
- Tarantula
- Jumping spider
- Wolf spider
- Orb-weaver spider
- Scorpion
- Emperor scorpion
- Tick
- Mite
- Harvestman
- Centipede
- Millipede
- Pill bug
About the bug wheel
The full wheel holds 64 bugs. Under “Choose a list” it splits into 5 groups: “Beetles” (13), “Butterflies and moths” (13), “Bees, wasps and ants” (12), “Other insects” (14) and “Not insects” (12). Press a group and only its names stay on the wheel. All 64 names are also printed lower on the page under the same groups, for a teacher or a parent who wants to read them first.
This page uses “bug” the everyday way, for insects and other small crawling creatures. Not everything on the list is an insect: spiders, scorpions, centipedes and their relatives are kept apart under “Not insects”. The names were written for this site, not lifted from a book, an app, a game or another website, and each one was then checked against an encyclopedia that has an article on every creature here.
The result window gives a name and no picture, which is all a drawing game or a guessing game needs. For a nature-walk checklist, switch on “Remove the winner after each spin” and spin five times. The Results tab then lists your five bugs in order, ready to copy onto paper before you head outside.
Uses for the bug wheel in class and outdoors
- Draw the bug that comes up as large as the page allows, then look up a photo and compare.
- Start a research project: every student spins once and finds three facts about that creature.
- Play a guessing game where the spinner gives clues and everyone else names the bug.
- Bug of the week: spin on Monday and keep the name on the board until Friday.
How to use the wheel
- Type or paste your options, one per line. The wheel redraws as you type.
- Press Spin, click the wheel, or press Ctrl+Enter while you are in the list.
- Read the pick. Remove it from the wheel if nobody should be picked twice, then spin again.
How the pick is made
Before the wheel moves, your browser draws one slice at random with crypto.getRandomValues, the same generator browsers use for security keys. Every slice has the same chance. The spin you watch only plays that result out.
Nothing about the animation changes the outcome: not how hard you click, not how long the wheel turns, not the size of your screen. The pointer always stops inside a slice, never on a line.
Your list stays in your browser. A link you copy carries the list inside the link itself, so nothing is uploaded.
Questions about the bug wheel
- Why is the ladybug under “Beetles”?
- Because it is a beetle, and so is the firefly. Every bug sits in the one group it belongs to, whatever its name suggests.
- Can I leave the spiders out?
- Yes. Spin on one of the insect groups, or open the full wheel and delete the lines you do not want before the first spin.
- Are worms, slugs or snails on the wheel?
- No. The list stops at insects, spiders and their relatives. To include one, type it on a new line and it gets a slice the same size as every other bug.
- Can two students get the same bug?
- Yes, unless “Remove the winner after each spin” is switched on. With it on, a picked bug leaves the wheel, so the full list covers a class of up to 64 with no repeats.