Insects are some of the most mysterious creatures on Earth, possibly the earliest inhabitants of our planet. Despite the fact that they live next to us, we know almost nothing about them (except, of course, specialists). Meanwhile, they have many amazing properties, according to the British newspaper The Mirror, which in one of its publications cited 25 interesting facts from the life of insects. We suggest that you familiarize yourself with them.
1. Insects appeared on Earth more than 400 million years ago and proved to be the record holders for survival. They managed to outlive the dinosaurs, and possibly the first human civilizations.
2. There are more than 26 billion insects for every square mile on Earth. But, according to scientists, there are another 5-10 million species unknown to science on our planet.
3. About a third of all insects are carnivores, but most of them prefer to hunt for other living creatures, rather than feed on carrion.
4. To produce 500 g of honey, one bee needs to collect the nectar from one flower 10 million times.
5. Bees have five eyes. Three of them are located at the top of the head and two are located in the front. Honey bees buzz and flap their wings at 11,400 times per minute.
6. A cockroach can live without a head for nine days, and its female lays more than 2 million eggs per year.
7. Now in the world there are about 35 thousand known species of spiders and entomologists are constantly discovering more and more new species.
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8. The weight of small insects eaten by spiders per year exceeds the total weight of all people living on our planet.
9. Amarobia spiders have the ability to eat each other. So, after birth, their cubs eat their mother, and females devour males in the process of mating in order to provide a supply of food for future offspring.
10. The blood of snow scorpions contains antifreeze, so they can live in temperatures up to 6 degrees below zero. However, such scorpions do not tolerate heat - if you take an insect in your hand, it will die from the heat.
11. Male earwigs are born with two penises, each of which is larger than his body length. However, both penises are very fragile and break easily, so nature has provided for a spare penis.
12. There are 9000 species of birds and 8800 species of ants in the world. But, unlike birds, ants never sleep.
13. In butterflies, taste buds are located on the hind legs. And their wings are so beautiful and colorful because they are covered with tiny scales that reflect light.
14. The writer Vladimir Nabokov personally discovered several new species of butterflies, and one of them was named after him.
15. The largest moth in the world is Attacus Altas. It is often mistaken for a bird, as its wingspan is 30 cm.
16. There are about 400 thousand known species of beetles in the world, and the size of the largest of them, the titanium beetle, reaches 17 cm.
17. Dragonflies fly the fastest of insects. Their flight speed reaches 57 km per hour.
18. A grasshopper can jump more than 40 times its body length, and a flea can jump 130 times its length.
19. Biting fish flap their wings at a speed of 62760 times per minute.
20. House flies usually live in the places where they were born, but under the influence of the wind they can move up to 45 km.
21. In crickets, the auditory organs are located on the front legs. By the way, you can determine the air temperature by crickets: for this you need to count the number of chirps per minute, divide by two, add nine and again divide by two. The resulting number is the temperature in degrees Celsius.
22. A swarm of locusts can be made up of 50 billion insects and eat up to four times more food than all New Yorkers.
23. Inhabitants of many countries willingly eat various insects, since they contain all the necessary supply of nutrients. For example, fried crickets and locusts are considered a delicacy in Thailand.
24. Ten large "witchetti" larvae contain all proteins, fats and carbohydrates necessary for an adult. But at the same time they are recommended to be eaten … alive.
25. Aboriginal people eat witchetti tree larvae by dipping them in hot ash. This dish tastes very much like an omelet.
Margarita Troitsyna