Insects
The Moth That Drinks Tears From Sleeping Birds
In the forests of Madagascar, a unique insect has developed a startling method for survival: feeding on the tears…
Filed in the Field Guide
Category: Insects
Insects
The Insect With Working Mechanical Gears in Its Legs
Explore the science behind the juvenile planthopper, the only known animal to use a functional set of interlocking gears…
Insects
The Ants That Amputate Injured Nestmates to Save Their Lives
Learn about the fascinating Florida carpenter ants that perform life-saving amputations on their injured peers.
Insects
The Bombardier Beetle Fires Boiling Chemicals at 500 Pulses per Second
Inside the two-chamber combustion system that lets a half-inch insect detonate a controlled explosion in its own abdomen —…
Insects
Periodical Cicadas Count to 17 Using Prime Numbers
Thirteen and seventeen are both prime, and that is almost certainly not a coincidence. What is still unresolved is…
Insects
When Insects Hunt Birds: The Reality of Praying Mantis Predation
Discover the unsettling but documented reality of how and why these formidable insects can successfully prey on small birds…
Insects
The Diabolical Ironclad Beetle’s Armor
Learn how one of nature's toughest insects is providing a blueprint for creating stronger, more resilient materials.
Insects
Anatomy of a Wasp’s Lair: The Cicada Killer’s Underground Home
Discover the complete process behind how and why the large cicada killer wasp builds its intricate underground nursery in…
Insects
The Worm That Can Split Into Pieces and Still Escape
Discover a bizarre sea creature that can regenerate from pieces and hunts with a horrifying, extendable harpoon.
Insects
Why the Diving Bell Spider Is Nature’s Creepiest Scuba Diver
Explore the science behind the only spider that spends its entire life underwater using a bubble as a personal…
Insects
The Fly That Turns Ants Into Living Doorways
Discover the macabre life cycle of a parasitic fly that turns its ant host into a headless nursery for…
Insects
The Insect That Looks Like Bird Poop on Purpose
Discover the bizarre world of caterpillars and other animals that have evolved to look exactly like bird waste to…
Insects
The Beetle That Drinks Fog With Its Own Back
Learn about the bizarre and brilliant method this insect uses to harvest water from thin air in one of…
Insects
The Moth That Jams Bat Sonar Like a Tiny Fighter Jet
Learn how a seemingly ordinary insect engages in sophisticated acoustic warfare, using biological sonar jamming to outsmart one of…
Insects
The Caterpillar That Wears Dead Ant Heads as a Helmet
Discover how the lacewing larva, a tiny predator, constructs a gruesome shield from its dead enemies to survive in…
Insects
The Spider That Builds a Fake Spider to Scare Enemies
Learn about the creepy and clever spider that constructs a lifelike puppet of itself to survive in the wild.
Insects
The Spider That Throws a Net Like a Tiny Gladiator
Explore the chillingly precise hunting methods of a unique arachnid that crafts and throws a silken trap.
Insects
The Ant That Explodes Its Own Body to Save the Colony
Learn about the bizarre insect that literally blows itself up to protect its family from danger.
Insects
The Worm That Shoots a Sticky Death Web From Its Face
Discover the strange world of an ancient predator that uses a biological glue cannon to hunt its prey.
Insects
The Caterpillar That Tricks Ant Colonies Into Raising It
Learn about a parasitic larva that infiltrates ant nests by faking its identity and even mimicking the queen.
Insects
The Insect That Turns Tree Sap Into a Fortress Wall
Discover a bizarre insect that constructs a formidable defensive wall using nothing but tree sap and masterful engineering.