How Creativity is Transforming Our Relationship with Unpopular Animals
Spiders
Bats
Nematodes
Insects
Imagine a world where the most critically endangered animal is a porpoise so small it could fit in your bathtub. The vaquita, a shy, elusive creature of the Gulf of California, is precisely that. With an estimated 10 individuals remaining, it is the rarest marine mammal on Earth 5 . Yet, its plight is overshadowed by the charismatic appeal of pandas and polar bears. This disparity in our concern reveals a profound truth: the fate of Earth's creatures is often tied not to their ecological importance, but to human perception.
10
Individuals remaining
Many of the planet's most vital and misunderstood animals—spiders, bats, nematodes, and countless unnamed insects—are what scientists call "dark taxa" 1 . These are the anonymous millions that form the nuts and bolts of our ecosystems, pollinating crops, producing soil, and feeding larger animals. Scientists estimate that for every species science has discovered, at least nine remain unknown, meaning around 90% of life on Earth is unidentified 1 3 . How can we protect what we don't know, or worse, what we actively fear?
This article explores a revolutionary approach to conservation: changing perceptions of unpopular animals not just with facts, but through the power of creativity. By blending science with poetry, crafts, and puppet plays, we can build new bridges of empathy and understanding, forging a future where every creature, no matter how small, slimy, or strange, has a fighting chance.
From a young age, humans display stable patterns in their attitudes toward animals. Children tend to love pets, value beautiful animals, and fear snakes and spiders 4 . But where do these biases come from? Developmental psychology research shows that children grant animals a high moral standing early in life, often placing them in their innermost "circle of concern" alongside family and friends. However, this innate empathy undergoes a significant shift.
As children grow into adolescence and adulthood, their "moral circles" typically become more human-centric. They begin to focus their moral concern more narrowly on humans, pushing many animal species to the outer boundaries of concern 4 . This narrowing of empathy has profound implications for conservation, particularly for animals that lack traditional charisma.
Yet these "little things"—the insects, mites, crustaceans, and microorganisms that form the foundation of our ecosystems—are precisely the ones we understand the least and value the least. This perception problem creates a vicious cycle: we don't care about what we don't know, and we don't bother to learn about what we don't care about. Breaking this cycle requires going beyond traditional science communication to engage people's emotions and imagination directly.
Reshaping deep-seated perceptions requires a multi-faceted approach. Each method—scientific, poetic, artistic, and theatrical—engages different parts of our consciousness, creating a composite picture that can override initial aversion with fascination and care.
Illuminating the "Dark Taxa" with scientific discovery
Creating emotional connections through language
Making the unfamiliar tangible through creation
Giving voice to the voiceless through performance
The discovery process itself is a form of poetry. Modern DNA sequencing has revolutionized species identification, allowing scientists to barcode thousands of specimens at once and revealing that we are living in a "Golden Age of discovery" 1 . Consider these extraordinary findings:
Scientists setting up bug traps in Los Angeles backyards discovered 43 new species in just one year 1 .
In Singapore, researchers collecting fungus gnats found 120 species, all but four or five unknown to science 1 .
A recent analysis found only about 20% of genetic codes from ectomycorrhizal fungi matched known species 1 .
These facts do more than expand our catalogs—they reveal a planet teeming with mystery right under our noses, transforming our backyards into frontiers of discovery.
| Animal Group | Common Misperception | Creative Intervention | Desired Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spiders | Dangerous pests | Puppet show about silk engineering and pest control | Appreciation as ecosystem helpers |
| Bats | Disease carriers | Craft: Build bat houses; Poetry: Sonnets about night navigation | Value as pollinators & insect controllers |
| Soil Nematodes | Unseen, unknown | Fact: A single rotting apple can contain 90,000 nematodes 1 | Awareness as foundation species |
| Fungus Gnats | Irrelevant flies | Fact: Potential 1.8 million species globally 1 | Wonder at biodiversity |
A groundbreaking project at the University of Portsmouth offers compelling evidence for the power of puppetry to transform complex science into engaging narrative. Researchers from the Centre for Enzyme Innovation collaborated with young people from the community to use puppetry to communicate innovative science about plastic-degrading enzymes—a topic as complex and potentially abstract as it sounds 8 .
Six co-creation workshops brought together 13 engineers and young people from underserved communities, including those having difficulties with mainstream education.
Scientists learned puppetry techniques including shadow puppetry, scrap puppet-making from waste materials, and collage. Each scientist received a sketchbook to develop ideas individually.
Together, the groups developed accurate but accessible narratives about enzyme science, rejecting overly complex concepts like "chimera enzymes" in favor of core messages about plastic recycling.
The co-created puppet shows were performed for broader audiences, with engineers using puppets made from scrap materials to explain their work.
The outcomes were measured through both quantitative surveys and qualitative observation:
| Outcome Measure | Pre-Workshop | Post-Workshop | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Young people's understanding of what engineers do | Not measured | 86% showed deeper understanding | Significant gain |
| Understanding how engineering improves lives | Not measured | 79% showed improved understanding | Significant gain |
| Engineers' confidence using arts-based engagement | Baseline | Majority felt more confident and motivated | Notable increase |
The project demonstrated that puppets serve as effective "engineers of the imagination," creating equitable spaces where power dynamics between scientists and the public are leveled. As one study noted, "Puppetry as a pedagogy holds much promise... It can cross various ethical scientific boundaries and provoke discussions that lead to the development of scientific communication skills" 8 .
Implementing these creative approaches requires both practical materials and conceptual frameworks. The following toolkit provides essential components for launching your own perception-changing initiatives:
Showing children DNA sequences of local insects to demonstrate uniqueness and biodiversity.
Perspex, light source for acting out the life cycle of a mosquito or the engineering of a spider web.
Cardboard, fabric scraps, waste plastic for creating animal puppets while promoting upcycling.
Visual tools for mapping caring priorities and tracking how circles expand through intervention.
The challenge of protecting Earth's biodiversity is not merely scientific—it is profoundly human. As we face what many experts call the "biodiversity crisis," with more species becoming at risk each year, we must acknowledge that conservation cannot succeed through science alone 5 . The vaquita, the northern river terrapin (one of the most endangered freshwater turtles with just 12 individuals found in a 2008 emergency search), and the Albany adder (one of the world's rarest snakes with only 17 known records) need more than protection plans—they need a paradigm shift in human perception 5 .
Vaquita porpoises remaining
Northern river terrapins found in 2008
Albany adder records worldwide
The research is clear: while children begin life with expansive moral circles that include many animals, this innate empathy often narrows as we age 4 . The good news is that this process is not inevitable. By strategically employing facts, poetry, crafts, and puppet plays, we can actively work to expand our circles of concern throughout our lives.
These creative approaches do more than make science accessible—they rewire our relationships with the natural world. A child who fears spiders might still shudder at the real thing, but if she has lovingly crafted a puppet spider and voiced its story of catching flies, her fear will be tempered with understanding. A community that views bats as pests might reconsider when they've heard a poem celebrating their spectacular sonar abilities.
In the end, changing perceptions of unpopular animals is about more than saving them—it's about saving a fundamental part of our own humanity: our capacity for wonder, empathy, and connection to the extraordinary tapestry of life with which we share this planet.