Dan Capps Insects
Our History
Dan Capps
Dan Capps started collecting insects in 1958 at the age of 8 years old. He has traveled the world to collect these insects. Some of these expeditions have taken him to Australia, Cuba, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, and Jamaica as well as other countries. He graduated from Madison East High School and also attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He is a self taught student of the natural sciences. His expertise in the field of entomology is recognized throughout the world. Dan has held memberships in the Wisconsin Entomological Society, Lorquin Entomological Society, International Lepidopterists Society, Young Entomologists Society, and other organizations.
Dan has presented exhibits and lectures in hundreds of schools, shopping malls, and other venues since 1970. He has addressed a variety of groups and organizations and has been featured on many television shows, news programs, newspaper articles, and magazine articles. He has also been the featured exhibitor for Disney World at the Epcot Center, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, the Detroit Science Center, the Museum of Natural Science in Raleigh, North Carolina, the Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin, the University of Illinois, Purdue University, Penn State University, and for the Entomological Society of America's National Convention in Nashville, Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia as well as many other venues.
While attending an event at Purdue University many years ago Dan Capps also became involved in spitting crickets for distance. He is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world record holder indoors at 32 feet and 1/2 inch. This record was set on national television in 1998. Guinness is very particular about this record so all attempts to break this record must be done indoors to avoid any influence from the wind and the judges must weigh the crickets. Many venues have held this event outdoors, and although he has been beaten outdoors by his son, the official record still belongs to Dan to date.
Jeff Capps
Jeff Capps is the son of Dan Capps. He is a graduate of LaFollette High School in Madison, Wisconsin and has attended business school at the University of Phoenix. Jeff has spent his entire life around his father’s collection and travelled to many venues throughout his lifetime listening to Dan give lectures. Jeff has been speaking to the public about the insects at these venues since a very young age. Although Jeff has not been doing these presentations as long as his father, Jeff is well educated and enthusiastic about carrying on in his father's footsteps.
Jeff, like his father, has been shown on both news programs and in many news articles for his involvment in this display as well as for challenging his father in outdoor cricket spitting resulting in beating his fathers world record unofficially with a distance of 42 feet 9 inches at the Jefferson County Fair in Wisconsin.