Bugs & Insects Facts for Kids
Creepy-crawly facts about insects and bugs
Ophiocordyceps fungi infect carpenter ants and chemically control their bodies, forcing them to climb to a precise height, grip a leaf, and die — the fungus then erupts from the ant's head to spread spores.
Velvet worms, ancient relatives of insects, hunt by shooting twin jets of sticky slime from glands near their head, entangling prey that may be many times their own size.
Robber flies are aerial predators that catch other insects in mid-flight, inject them with a paralysing saliva that liquefies their insides, and drink the resulting soup.
Army ant swarms of up to 200,000 ants surge across the forest floor, killing and consuming every insect and small animal they encounter — they can strip a large animal to the bone overnight.
Water striders walk on the surface of ponds and streams using water surface tension — tiny hairs on their legs trap air, keeping them from sinking even if you push them under.
Male stag beetles have enormous antler-like jaws used only for wrestling rival males; despite looking fearsome, they are too weak to bite hard enough to break human skin.
Leaf-cutter ant colonies maintain a precise temperature inside their nest by choosing specific materials for each chamber, opening or closing tunnels, and positioning themselves as living air-conditioning.
Young spiders travel long distances by ballooning — they climb to a high point, release strands of silk, and are carried on air currents, sometimes landing thousands of kilometres from where they started.
Most bee species are solitary rather than social — they nest alone in small holes in wood or soil, and bee hotels provide them with artificial nesting spaces to help their populations survive.
Because an insect's hard external skeleton cannot stretch or grow, insects must shed it in a process called moulting, temporarily exposing their soft, pale new skin before it hardens.