Bugs & Insects Facts for Kids
Creepy-crawly facts about insects and bugs
Spider silk is one of the strongest materials known — weight for weight, it is stronger than steel and more flexible than nylon.
A worker honeybee lives for only about six weeks in summer, during which time she will produce about one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her entire lifetime.
A caterpillar has more than 4,000 muscles in its body — about six times more than a human — which is why they can grip branches and bend so flexibly.
Termite mounds can stand up to 9 metres (30 feet) tall and are built by millions of blind workers using soil, saliva, and droppings — no blueprint required.
Moths navigate at night using the moon as a compass, keeping it at a constant angle as they fly; artificial lights confuse them because they try to maintain the same angle to a much closer light source.
Ladybirds are brightly coloured red and black to warn predators that they taste nasty — this is called aposematic colouring, and it works even on birds that have never seen a ladybird before.
An ant can carry up to 50 times its own body weight. If a human were as proportionally strong, they could lift a car over their head.
Butterfly wings are covered in thousands of tiny overlapping scales made of the same material as insect shells — the patterns and colours are formed by differently shaped or pigmented scales.
Honeybees communicate the location of flowers through a 'waggle dance' — the direction and duration of the dance tells other bees exactly where food is and how far away.
Stick insects are masters of disguise — they look almost exactly like the twigs and branches they live on, making them nearly impossible for predators to spot.