Bioluminescent insects certainly look like they have more fun than other bugs – but don’t most bright things bedazzle human eyes? To many, they’re poetic examples of nature’s spectacular qualities, though if you were a more humble critter you might think fireflies and glow worms just a bit too flash. So are lightning bugs and their like all show and no go, or do they have the substance to back up all that style? And how do you tell who’s who amidst all the glitz?
Continue reading...Monday, July 20, 2009
It's a trap! The famous line, spoken by the admirable Admiral Ackbar, will bring a smile to the face of many a Star Wars fan. But what if the speaker weren't a fish-like, high-ranking officer in a galaxy far, far away, but a crawling little critter minding its own beeswax in the macro-scopic universe? Then a trap sprung by certain villains in the arthropod Evil Empire would have a more instant deadly impact. Read on for more traps – and more Star Wars references too.
Continue reading...Monday, June 15, 2009
Everyone’s dreamed of being a fly, right? Well maybe not everyone. But if you were to be a fly for a day, there are quite a few dangers you’d have to watch out for. Fly swats and sprays would seem pretty obvious ones; predatory insects and spiders too; but a plant with gaping jaws? It wouldn’t hurt to land on that juicy looking sucker for a quick rest would it?
Continue reading...Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Insects make perfect movie monsters. There’s something about the mix of cruel claws, impenetrable exoskeletons and bulging compound eyes that has continued to chill audiences for decades. It’s easy to conclude that mankind’s lot would be a pretty poor one if insects were much bigger than they are. But on a scientific level, how plausible are they?
Continue reading...Thursday, January 8, 2009
Finding your kitchen infested with insects would ordinarily put most people off their food and have them straight on to pest control, but not if they’ve been let loose by designer Sayaka Yamamoto. One of the design duo BCXSY, Yamamoto created the useful metal bugs to resemble everyday kitchen utensils as part of a project called Little Wonders.
Continue reading...Friday, September 19, 2008
While out for a stroll in the UK’s Peak District, Mark Manders discovered this happy-looking dragonfly and quickly snapped some shots on his camera phone (good advert for the phone, eh – and no, we don’t know what make it was).
Continue reading...Tuesday, August 26, 2008
It’s not often you have the chance to view insects up close, they usually fly, jump or scurry away – either that or they get swatted, squashed or stamped on. So when we came across these unbelievable images of insects we just had to share them with you. These photographs by German photographer Martin Amm are taken in macro, highlighting the wonderful color and detail we very rarely see in our creepy crawly friends.
Continue reading...Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Those of us dedicated to sustainable development and engaging new sources of food– especially those of us in America, where a Dollar won’t go as far as a Yen used to (yuk, yuk)– might want to get on the next plane to Dubai. Image by Yerffej9 on Flickr Yes, [...]
Continue reading...Friday, March 21, 2008
What would you do if your home was filled with bees? It’s like this, but in their friggin’ walls! Image by Chas Redmond Would you freak out, call the exterminator, run screaming from the building?
Continue reading...Monday, March 17, 2008
For many people, insects are extremely frightening. Ants eating. Image by Fir0002 I myself have different fears, but I completely understand the terror that shoots up your spine when a spider darts unexpectedly across your skin. That’s not to say I’m not frightened by insects at all, it just [...]
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Thursday, September 17, 2009
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