In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, there are three ongoing collection tasks that you’ll be continually working through as the seasons pass in the game.
There are 80 species of fish to catch around the year, and you’ll be tasked with digging up as many fossils as you can each day in an attempt to compile all 35 complete fossil specimens in the museum.
The third quest set by Blathers, much to their detest, is for you to collect every species of bug on the island.
Much like with the island’s native aquatic life, there are 80 different species of invertebrates for you to catch, with the species available to find being dependant on the time of year and time of day.
Here’s how to go about catching bugs and a complete list of all bugs in ACNH.
How to get a net in New Horizons
The net, or rather, the Flimsy Net, is one of the first items that you learn to craft in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
After completing the opening tutorial day on your new island, Tom Nook will allow you to use his workbench, teaching you how to craft a flimsy fishing rod and a flimsy net.
The recipe for a flimsy net is as simple as it gets: all you need is five tree branches.
It is also possible for you to buy a Flimsy Net and superior forms of bug-catching nets from the item shop, Nook’s Cranny, as the game progresses.
As you can see in the image above, a Flimsy Net costs 400 Bells, while the other example of net on sale here, the Star Net, costs 2500 Bells.
How to use a net in New Horizons
As is the case with all tools in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, using a net is as simple as pressing the A button.
However, there is a knack to using the net perfectly so that you don’t scare away or miss any bugs that you wish to catch.
When you see an invertebrate that you want to catch, you’ll first need to equip your net by either pressing Left or Right on the d-pad, via your inventory (X), or from the tool wheel (which you can unlock with Nook Miles).
With your net equipped, you’ll need to line-up the front face of your character’s body with the insect.
As your character pulls the net directly over their head in its swing, you need to be facing the bug while also in range.
Particularly with bugs like beetles, which fly off when startled, you’ll want to approach them slowly.
Fast movement will scare off some bugs, so be sure to walk slowly and turn slowly towards them before pressing A to cast your net.
Some bugs will require you to be very quick not just to catch them, but also to avoid being bitten or stung. For example, when you disturb a wasp nest, you can avoid getting a wasp sting by netting the wasps.
However, if you’re too slow, you’ll get an unsightly wasp sting that you’ll want to heal.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons invertebrates fishing list
Whenever you catch a bug in Animal Crossing: New Horizons and give it to Blathers for examination and to be displayed, you’ll learn all of the key details about the invertebrate (see above).
So, you can always go back into your NookPhone (ZL) and consult the Critterpedia to find where and when to catch the bug again.
There are 80 species of bugs to catch regardless of if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere or Southern Hemisphere, but the seasonality of most invertebrates is different between the regions.
Unlike catching sharks in ACNH, you’ll invariably be able to see the exact species before you swing a net at the bug, making it easier to keep track of what you’re hunting.
To unlock the seasonally-locked invertebrates, you can use the time-travelling technique to collect bugs in the past and future.
| Invertebrate | Find | N. Hemisphere Seasonality | S. Hemisphere Seasonality | Time of Day |
| Common Butterfly | Flying | September-June | March-December | 4am-7pm |
| Yellow Butterfly | Flying | September-June | March-December | 4am-7pm |
| Tiger Butterfly | Flying | March-September | September-March | 4am-7pm |
| Peacock Butterfly | Flying | March-June | September-December | 4am-7pm |
| Common Bluebottle | Flying | April-August | October-February | 4am-7pm |
| Paper Kite Butterfly | Flying | All Year | All Year | 8am-7pm |
| Great Purple Emperor | Flying | May-August | December-March | 4am-7pm |
| Monarch Butterfly | Flying | September-November | March-May | 4am-5pm |
| Emperor Butterfly | Flying | June-September December-March | June-September December-March | 5pm-8am |
| Agrias Butterfly | Flying | April-September | October-March | 8am-5pm |
| Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing | Flying | April-September December-February | October-March June-August | 8am-5pm |
| Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing | Flying | May-September | November-March | 8am-4pm |
| Moth | Flying (around light) | All Year | All Year | 7pm-4am |
| Atlas Moth | Tree Trunks | April-September | October-March | 7pm-4am |
| Madagascan Sunset Moth | Flying | April-September | October-March | 8am-4pm |
| Long Locust | On the Ground | April-November | November-May | 8am-7pm |
| Migratory Locust | On the Ground | August-November | February-May | 8am-7pm |
| Rice Grasshopper | On the Ground | August-November | February-May | 8am-7pm |
| Grasshopper | On the Ground | July-September | January-March | 8am-5pm |
| Cricket | On the Ground | September-November | March-May | 5pm-8am |
| Bell Cricket | On the Ground | September-October | March-April | 5pm-8am |
| Mantis | On Flowers | March-November | September-May | 8am-5pm |
| Orchid Mantis | On White Flowers | March-November | September-May | 8am-5pm |
| Honeybee | Flying around Flowers | March-July | September-January | 8am-5pm |
| Wasp | Shaken from Trees | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Brown Cicada | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 8am-5pm |
| Robust Cicada | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 8am-5pm |
| Giant Cicada | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 8am-5pm |
| Walker Cicada | Tree Trunks | August-September | February-March | 8am-5pm |
| Evening Cicada | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 4am-8am 4pm-7pm |
| Cicada Shell | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | All Hours |
| Red Dragonfly | Flying | September-October | March-April | 8am-7pm |
| Darner Dragonfly | Flying | April-October | October-April | 8am-5pm |
| Banded Dragonfly | Flying | May-October | November-April | 8am-5pm |
| Damselfly | Flying | November-February | May-August | All Hours |
| Firefly | Flying | June | December | 7pm-4am |
| Mole Cricket | Digging Underground (follow the sound and shovel) | November-May | May-November | All Hours |
| Pondskater | On Pond Surface | May-September | November-March | 8am-7pm |
| Diving Beetle | On Pond and River Surface | May-September | November-March | 8am-7pm |
| Giant Water Bug | On Pond and River Surface | April-September | October-March | 8am-7pm |
| Stinkbug | On Flowers | March-October | September-April | All Hours |
| Man-Faced Stink Bug | On Flowers | March-October | September-April | 7pm-8am |
| Ladybug | On Flowers | March-June October | September-December April | 8am-5pm |
| Tiger Beetle | On the Ground | February-October | August-April | All Hours |
| Jewel Beetle | Tree Stumps | April-August | October-February | All Hours |
| Violin Beetle | Tree Stumps | May-June September-November | November-December March-May | All Hours |
| Citrus Long-Horned Beetle | Tree Stumps | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Rosalia Batesi Beetle | Tree Stumps | May-September | November-March | All Hours |
| Blue Weevil Beetle | On Palm Trees | July-August | January-February | All Hours |
| Dung Beetle | On the Ground (snowball rolling) | December-February | June-August | All Hours |
| Earth-Boring Dung Beetle | On the Ground | July-September | January-March | All Hours |
| Scarab Beetle | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 11pm-8am |
| Drone Beetle | Tree Trunks | June-August | December-February | All Hours |
| Goliath Beetle | Tree Trunks | June-September | December-March | 5pm-8am |
| Saw Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | All Hours |
| Miyama Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | All Hours |
| Giant Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 11pm-8am |
| Rainbow Stag | Tree Trunks | June-September | December-March | 7pm-8am |
| Cyclommatus Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Golden Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Giraffe Stag | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Horned Dynastid | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Horned Atlas | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Horned Elephant | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Horned Hercules | Tree Trunks | July-August | January-February | 5pm-8am |
| Walking Stick | Tree Trunks | July-November | January-May | 4am-8am 5pm-7pm |
| Walking Leaf | Near Trees (disguised as an item leaf) | July-August | January-March | All Hours |
| Bagworm | Shaken from Trees (hangs down) | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Ant | On Food (if left out) | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Hermit Crab | Beach | All Year | All Year | 7pm-8am |
| Wharf Roach | Rocks on the Beach | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Fly | On Rubbish (if left out) | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Mosquito | Flying | June-September | December-March | 5pm-4am |
| Flea | On Residents | April-November | October-May | All Hours |
| Snail | On Rocks, while Raining | All Year | All Year | All Hours |
| Pill Bug | Rocks (after hitting) | September-June | March-December | 11pm-4pm |
| Centipede | Rocks (after hitting) | September-June | March-December | 4pm-11pm |
| Spider | Shaken from Trees | All Year | All Year | 7pm-8am |
| Tarantula | On the Ground | November-April | May-October | 7pm-4am |
| Scorpion | On the Ground | May-October | November-April | 7pm-4am |
Whenever you venture out, be sure to have a couple of Flimsy Nets or one trusty net on you so that you can capitalise on all of the bugs of the season.
Looking for more Animal Crossing New Horizons Guides?
Animal Crossing New Horizons: Complete Fossil List and Guide
Animal Crossing New Horizons: Complete Fishing Guide and Top Tips
Animal Crossing New Horizons: Complete Controls Guide and Tips
Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Cure a Wasp Sting and Make Medicine
Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Time Travel, Skip Days, and Change the Season
