Dino is an entomologist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer. He studies pollinators and how they interact with the environment. Pollinators are animals, objects, or forces such as wind that transfer pollen from one plant to another, allowing seeds to develop.

Most of Dinos work focuses on bees and other insects that are responsible for pollinating plants from almonds to zucchini.

Dino grew up in Eldoret, Kenya. Today, Eldoret is one of the fastest-growing cities in Kenya, but Dino says it was a farming town when he was growing up. The rural area surrounding Eldoret meant there were always plenty of bugs, Dino says.

In fact, my earliest memories are of insects, Dino says. His interest may have been sparked by watching the eruption of color near local streams as hundreds of brightly colored butterflies ascended after taking a drink.

Dinos family didnt have a television, and watching insects became his after-school entertainment. He says praying mantises, ants, and butterflies were among the first insects he informally studied. I tried to catch any insect I could.

Some of the insects Dino wanted to bring home for study were dangerous, like scorpions, or found on roadkillanimals killed by vehicles on busy roadways. Still, his parents were both naturalists and encouraged his interest in bugs and the outdoors.

In high school, Dino volunteered with the National Museums of Kenya. The organization supports natural science and ecotourism as well as art and culture. Dino volunteered with the entomology department, of course.

After high school, Dino went to the United States and graduated with degrees in anthropology and biology from Indiana University in Bloomington.

Dino returned to Kenya and briefly abandoned his work with bugs to pursue what he thought of as more serious work in anthropology.

Ultimately, he decided to return to his passion and earned his PhD from Harvard University.

Kenya, National geographic, Entomologist, Insects