Entomology

GENERAL RULES

Southern Plains Extension Unit County Fairs

ALL DEADLINES WILL BE ENFORCED.

      The shows and events of the Nuckolls & Thayer County Fairs will be under the direction of the designated Extension staff and superintendents. The Extension staff and superintendents will make all on-the-spot decisions necessary for the operation of the shows. In case of a complaint or a disagreement with the show, the exhibitor should discuss it with the Extension staff and the superintendent within one hour after the show.  If an agreement cannot be reached, then the exhibitor and/or the Extension staff and superintendent should request a grievance committee meeting. Grievance must be submitted in writing. The grievance committee will consist of two 4‑H Council members, two Fairboard members and one neutral superintendent. The decision reached by this committee is final. 

Rules: 

1. Eligibility Requirements- Competition in the county 4‑H Fair is open to youth who are enrolled in Nuckolls or Thayer County 4‑H projects in which he/she is exhibiting. The youth must be 8 years old on January 1 of the current calendar year and under the age of 19 years of age on January 1 of the current calendar year. CloverKid members are 5-7 years old on January 1 of the current calendar year.

2.  Pre-Entry- Pre-entries are required for ALL fair exhibits.

PRE-ENTRY DEADLINES:

Nuckolls – Paper Entries Only – July 11^th - 4:00 PM

Thayer – Online Entries Only- July 17^{th –} Midnight 

        Absolutely NO late entries accepted!

*Subject to the 4‑H Council policy committee.

3. Number of Entries Allowed.

    Nuckolls County ONLY- Unlimited entries per class numbermay be made per exhibitor with the exception of a limit of two entries per class in Horticulture. 

    Thayer County ONLY- Limit of two entries per class.

    See General Animal Rules for livestock entries.

4. Entry Tags- Exhibits other than livestock contest must have entry tags attached to the exhibit at the time of entry. Tags are printed through your local Extension office.

5. Exhibits Released-See fair schedule. All fair exhibits are expected to be at the fair during scheduled times. Premium and support/booster payments will be forfeited for early removal of show animals with the exception of animals released for the animal’s welfare by written approval from a veterinarian or for legitimate reason with written approval from the species’ superintendent and a representative of the 4‑H council livestock committee. In case of emergencies, contact the office staff. The Extension staff is not responsible for items left at the fairgrounds after scheduled times.

6. Exhibit Space- Space will be assigned by the department superintendent(s). All possible care will be used to prevent loss or injury to articles or animals exhibited, but fair management will in no way be responsible should loss or injury occur. 

7. Disclaimer of Responsibility- All persons participating in the Thayer or Nuckolls County Fairs, either as exhibitors or as spectators, agree to make no claim against said Thayer or Nuckolls County Fair Association/Board, its officers, employees, volunteers, or any other exhibitors for any loss or damage to persons or property in connection with the activities of the Thayer or Nuckolls County Fair and said participants agree to hold said Association and persons harmless from any such claims. Individuals will be held personally responsible for his or her actions and the Fair Association will not be accountable or responsible for any injury. Exhibitors are responsible for the health of their animals.

8. Ribbons & Premiums Awarded- All exhibits will be divided into groups according to merit. 

Purple…………… Excellent             Blue……………………...…Good

Red……………….Fair                     White………Needs Improvement          Rainbow……..Non-Competition

Equal exhibits will be given ribbons of the same color in each class. Only worthy exhibits will be awarded ribbons and/or premium money. Trophies/banners/medals will only be awarded to purple & blue-ribbon exhibits. NO red or white ribbon entries will earn trophies. Unused trophies will be recycled.  In case there are insufficient funds to pay premiums in full, they will be prorated and paid accordingly. 

9. State Fair Eligibility-An exhibitor must be a 4‑H member enrolled in the county which she/he represents and must be 8 years old by January 1, with the exception of program specific age requirements for Shooting Sports and First Lego League. 

10. State Fair Exhibits- The Extension staff deliver many exhibits to the State Fair as a courtesy to exhibitors. However, exhibitors may be asked to arrange transportation of some articles that are large or heavy.

11.  State Fair Rules will apply when County Fair Rules are not adequate.  In case the general rules conflict with department rules, the department rules govern.                      

12. Interview Judging- Clothing Judging- See interview information involving Clothing and Fashion included with the Clothing & Fashion show rules. Static Exhibit-Interview judging is encouraged but not required for all other static exhibits. 4‑Hers can interview once per project for a total of 5 interviews. Sign up for interview judging will occur at exhibit check in, in each of the project areas. Interviews will be scheduled according to the project and class. If the 4‑Her can’t make a certain time, we will try to work with them, but we cannot guarantee that they will get to interview with all the projects they want.   

13. Exhibits entered by 4‑H members with special needs will be marked for the judge’s information only. Families will provide this information.

14. Identification- In addition to entry tag, a label with the exhibitor’s name, item’s department, division, and class should be attached to each separate piece of the exhibit.

15. Scoresheets- Scoresheets used for classes in divisions are listed by the corresponding division or class. PLEASE NOTE: County Fair scoresheets are denoted with CF numbers whereas State Fair scoresheets are denoted with SF numbers. Many county classes will use state fair scoresheets. For example: Heritage scoresheets begin with letters SF therefore will be found on the scoresheet website listed above. If any entire division uses the same scoresheet, the scoresheet number will be listed under the division title.

16.* Classes- All classes with a star (*) after the class number are not eligible for state fair competition.

ENTOMOLOGY

Entomology exhibits give 4-H members the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge about insects and insect displays. This division has multiple projects that allow 4-H members to progress over numerous years.   

Department Rules:

Specimens in display collections should be mounted properly and labeled with location, date of collection, name of collector, and order name. Follow mounting and labeling instructions in the Nebraska 4-H Entomology Manual. Boxes are preferred to be 12" high X 18" wide, and landscape orientation, so they fit in display racks. Purchase of commercially made boxes is allowed. All specimens are to be pinned and labeled by the exhibitor. No purchased specimens allowed. No projects over 50 pounds allowed.

Dept H  Division 800

Classes

1    Entomology Display-First-Year Project- Scoresheet SF186- Collection to consist of 25 or more different kinds (species) of insects representing at least 6 orders. Limit of one box.

2    Entomology Display-Second-Year Project- Scoresheet SF186- Collection to consist of a minimum of 50 kinds (species) of insects representing at least 8 orders. Replace damaged or poorly mounted specimens. At least 25 species must be present from after July 1 of the previous year. Limit of 2 boxes.

3    Entomology Display-Third-Year or More Project- Scoresheet SF186- Collection to consist of a minimum of 75 kinds (species) of insects representing at least 10 orders. Replace damaged or poorly mounted specimens. At least 25 species must be present from after July 1 of previous year. Limit of 3 boxes.

4    Special Interest or Advanced Insect Display- Scoresheet SF187- Educational display developed according to personal interests and/or advanced identification capability. This also is an opportunity to highlight favorite insects in a creative arrangement.  Insects should conform to pinning and mounting standards as in Classes 1-3 and be protected in an insect box.  Each specialty display should include the names of the insects, interesting information about them, and why the display was made.  Advanced identification collections should have insects grouped with labels that correspond with identification level (e.g., family, genus, species). A specialty collection may consist of insects by taxonomic group (e.g., butterflies, grasshoppers, dragonflies, scarab beetles) or by host, subject, or habitat (e.g., insect pests of corn, aquatic insects, insect mimicry, insect galls, insects from goldenrod, insect pollinators, etc.).         

5    Insect Habitats- Scoresheet SF188- Habitats consist of any hand-crafted objects, made of natural or artificial materials, placed outdoors, which promote or conserve insects in the environment. Insects may include bee pollinators, butterflies, beneficial insects, etc. A one-page report describing activities must accompany the exhibit. The report should include placement, target insect, why materials were chosen, functional design, and indicators of success.  See the following resources for reports:

      a. Nebraska Extension NebGuide: Creating a Solitary Bee Hotel (G2256)

      b. University of Minnesota: Wild Bees and Building Wild Bee Houses.

      c. National Wildlife Federation: How to Provide Water in Monarch Gardens.

6    Macrophotography- Scoresheet SF189- Subjects should be insects, spiders or other arthropods, or any nests, webs, or constructions they make. All exhibit prints should be 8” x 10”, 8½” x 11” and mounted on rigid, black 11” X 14” poster or matt board. Either orientation is acceptable. No frames or mat board framing is allowed. A caption of a few sentences should explain the subject and be printed on white paper and glued below the print on the poster board. 

7    Insect Poster/Display Exhibits- Scoresheet SF190- Exhibits can be posters or three-dimensional displays, and artistic creativity is encouraged. Posters should be no larger than 22” x 28”. They should be instructional and can be attractive and have pictures, drawings, charts, or graphs. Posters and displays may show any aspect of insect life, habitat, or related conservation or management. Examples include life history and other facts about an insect; insect anatomy; how to manage insects in a farm, home, lawn, or garden setting; experiences rearing one kind of insect; survey of an important insect; insect behavior (ex. nesting, finding food, mobility, defenses, etc.); habitats (e.g. forests, grasslands, wetlands, rivers, or lakes) and what insects are found there, etc. Three-dimensional displays, such as dioramas, sculptures, models, or decorative boxes should have a page of explanatory information accompanying them and fit within a 22” x 28” area.

8    Reports or Journals- Scoresheet SF191- Reports and journals should be in a 3-ring binder. A report may be informational, that is, an original article about a favorite insect, a history of insect outbreaks, diseases caused by insects, insects as food, etc. Or it may be a research report about an investigation or experiment done in a scientific manner. It then should have a basic introduction of the insect studied, methods used, observations, and results of the project.  Tables, graphs, and images are helpful to include. A journal is an observational study over a period of time with personal impressions.  It may cover watching changes in kinds of butterflies over the summer, rearing a specific insect from an egg to adult, managing a beehive, observations of insects in a specific habitat, accounts of insect behavior in a forest or flower garden, etc.