Heroic beetles and butterflies: The moral alignment of insect-themed characters in American superhero comic books

The public perceives animals through a negative to positive framework, and these views can have wide-ranging implications including conservation program investment and success. Media can change public perception, and one media form that has been largely ignored in this regard is comic books. Within superhero comic books, characters are defined by use of animal aliases, traits, or resemblances. Superhero comic books are also a unique medium due to characters existing on a hero to villain dichotomy. Examining animal representation on this hero/villain dichotomy has the potential to reveal public perceptions of various taxa. For this study, a total of 121 invertebrate themed characters were categorized as heroes, villains, or morally ambiguous. Eight insect orders emerged with Coleoptera and Lepidoptera themed characters more frequently portrayed as heroes. Additionally, within the class Arachnida, female spider characters were more often heroes, while male spider characters were more often villains. Investigating animal depictions in media, such as superhero comic books, can help reveal where public perceptions originate and add further context to existing species bias research.