Six-year-old Lyra loves catching frogs in her backyard in summer.
"We have lots of [frogs] in the summer, they have a secret hiding spot at the back of the pond," says Lyra, who lives in Ontario, Canada.
"We just put a bucket in and try and scoop up the frogs."
Lyra has loved frogs, bugs and spiders since she was very young, says her mum Julie.
"Lyra's been picking up spiders since she was 11 months old, I can't get her to stop.
"She was just crawling and I stepped into the other room and I came back and she was holding something and giggling up a storm.
"She had a wolf spider crawling all over her."
But when Lyra started coming home from school saying, "girls shouldn't like catching frogs" or "catching bugs is only for boys", Julie became concerned.
"You can't help think that it's coming from her peers as her teacher is really trying to support her love of science," she says.
"I'm a mum in Canada that has very limited people that know about science.
So Julie emailed Dr Ann Jones, presenter of ABC Science's What the Duck?! podcast, asking for some encouraging words and inspiration for her young daughter.
Dr Jones contacted women scientists around the world to share their stories about their love of bugs, frogs and spiders, and how they broke through barriers and carved out successful careers in science.
Here's what they'd like Lyra and other children to know.
'You will find your people'
Jodi Rowley is often knee deep in mud in jungles studying frogs and runs a whole department at the Australian Museum.
The amphibian biologist, who grew up in the city, says there's no "type" of person who can become a scientist.
"It wasn't instilled in me that I should be outdoors and exploring, but I managed to get there eventually," Dr Rowley says.
She wants Lyra to know that she's not alone.
"There are people across the world who are passionate about spiders, snakes, and all types of things … we need more people with passion and care.
"You will find your people and you will find your place, and the world will be better off for it."
'Don't compromise on being yourself'
Amber Beavis is one of those people who just loves staring at spiders up close.
While she now works in science policy in the office of Australia's chief veterinary officer, she says her fascination for spiders won't ever go away after a career working as an academic and spider scientist at the Western Australian Museum.
Dr Beavis's mother was a geologist in a typically male field, so she grew up with strong messages about girls going into science, yet she still experienced academic theft and glass ceilings in her career.
Dr Beavis said an older male academic told her she didn't "look how a scientist should look".
She said it was important not to compromise on the need to be herself.
"If folks aren't comfortable with that, then it says more about them than it does about you. "
Dr Beavis said she was incredibly sad to hear Lyra's story.
"Lyra, if you are interested in bugs and creepy crawlies and have that talent for observation, then just get to it.
"Enjoy it, ask questions, and be curious."
'Stay confident'
Maydianne Andrade also loves spiders. Her lab at the University of Toronto has around 1,500 deadly black widows.
That might sound scary, but Dr Andrade says spiders are the least of her worries as a female scientist and woman of colour.
"I did my field research on redback spiders, which are neurotoxic, by myself overnight and people would say 'weren't you terrified?'
"I rode my bike to and from the field site and I was scared of humans. If people drove by then I would hide in the bushes.
Dr Andrade says young women are sometimes treated differently to men so they need to stay confident.
"[Being treated differently to men] can erode your self-esteem and your confidence because it often involves questioning you much more than someone else would be questioned; questioning your ideas and not in a good scientific, rigorous way, but in just an 'I don't respect your intellect' way."
'Don't care about what other people say'
Entomologist Tanya Latty loves all sorts of insects and is at home exploring the world and its strange bugs and creatures.
She said she'd hoped we'd moved past assumptions around women in science by now.
"I hope that [Lyra] learns that she shouldn't care what people say.
Dr Latty, who works at the University of Sydney, says she plays up her nerdiness with clipboards and shirts with insects on them so that other people don't think she's doing anything illegal while working in the field.
"When you're a non-white biologist in the field, [you're] very aware that people will see you creeping around and just make assumptions about what you are actually doing there."
'You're not alone Lyra'
Other women from Australia and Canada also wanted to encourage Lyra, and sent in videos.
Julie and Lyra joined Dr Jones in an online chat from Canada and shared their excitement about the videos made just for them by scientists from around the world.
"That's just amazing. If this is something she truly does love, then we are going to do what we can to make that happen for her," Julie says.
