Portal:Arthropods/Did you know
![]() | This page is an archive of the facts that have been selected to appear on Portal:Arthropods. |
Did you know 1
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![A rhomboidal crab with long legs on a black background.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Goneplax_rhomboides.jpg/120px-Goneplax_rhomboides.jpg)
- ... that symbiotic moss animals live on setae on the antennae, mouthparts and legs of the crab Goneplax rhomboides (pictured)?
- ... that millipedes in the genus Desmoxytes give off an almond-like smell as they produce hydrogen cyanide to ward off predators?
- ... that the extinct arachnid Attercopus was once considered as the world's oldest spider?
- ... that the extinct sandfly species Lutzomyia adiketis is host to the Paleoleishmania species P. neotropicum?
- ... that all species of the fruit fly genus Zaprionus have the same characteristic white stripes over the head and thorax?
- ... that the invasive crayfish Orconectes immunis can outcompete the earlier invader O. limosus?
Did you know 2
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![A brown spider carrying an egg sac over water.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/D.plantarius_female_with_eggs.jpg/120px-D.plantarius_female_with_eggs.jpg)
- ... that the European great raft spider (pictured) eats small fish and tadpoles?
- ... that Vespula flaviceps larvae are considered a delicacy in Japan?
- ... that the newly named extinct prawn Aciculopoda is the third unambiguous fossil decapod from before the Mesozoic?
- ... that the extinct spider Eoplectreurys is the oldest described genus of Haplogynae, pre-dating spiders from Cretaceous amber in Jordan and Lebanon?
- ... that with a forewing length of only 3.36 millimetres (0.132 in) Microberotha is one of the smallest known beaded lacewings to have been described?
- ... that Mary J. Rathbun described over 1000 new crustacean taxa, but never attended college, and received a Ph.D. only after she retired?
Did you know 3
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![A red-and-yellow striped hermit crab leans out of a cone shell.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Ciliopagurus_strigatus.jpg/120px-Ciliopagurus_strigatus.jpg)
- ... that a Halloween hermit crab (pictured) may attack a snail in order to take its shell?
- ... that Leptotrombidium is a genus of harvest mites that are able to infect humans with scrub typhus (Orientia tsutsugamushi infection) through their bite?
- ... that Petalura hesperia dragonflies lay their eggs along stream margins because their larvae are semi-aquatic?
- ... that the five-eyed predator Alalcomenaeus is one of the most common fossils in the Cambrian Burgess shale?
- ... that the beetle Typhaea stercorea has been found in grain storages dating all the way back to the Iron Age?
- ... that the extinct crab Metacarcinus starri from Washington state is related to the graceful rock crab?
Did you know 4
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![An medium-sized orange-brown butterfly with darker brown wing margins and a few wing spots.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Oeneis_nevadensis.jpg/120px-Oeneis_nevadensis.jpg)
- ... that due to its long life cycle, the adult Great Arctic (pictured) is only seen every other year?
- ... that killer shrimp have invaded Western Europe and could soon invade North America?
- ... that Arthropleuridea is an extinct class of myriapods which includes, at over 2 metres long, the largest terrestrial arthropods that ever lived?
- ... that Euprenolepis procera is the first ant discovered that harvests and feeds on mushrooms?
- ... that before a population crash due to overfishing, the annual catch of Bering Sea tanner crab was as much as 332,000,000 pounds (151,000,000 kg)?
- ... that Centruroides limbatus and Centruroides bicolor are Central American bark scorpions belonging to the same species group?
Did you know 5
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![False-colour SEM of a citrus yellow mite.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Yellow_mite_%28Tydeidae%29%2C_Lorryia_formosa.jpg/120px-Yellow_mite_%28Tydeidae%29%2C_Lorryia_formosa.jpg)
- ... that female yellow mites (pictured) are produced from unfertilised eggs, a process called thelytoky?
- ... that the bigheaded ant, Pheidole megacephala, protects the source of its food supply, green scale insects, by removing predatory larvae that might eat them?
- ... that the pill bug Armadillidium vulgare can reach population densities of 10,000 per square metre?
- ... that despite being known from many specimens, the fossil Fuxianhuia remains one of the most controversial Cambrian arthropods?
- ... that three partial cross veins in the wings make D. appendiculata a unique fruit fly among the more than 1500 species of Drosophila?
- ... that until 1962, a salt-water crab lived in the Texas Panhandle, 500 miles from the sea?
Did you know 6
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![A brown-bodies scorpion with paler appendages.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Mesobuthus_martensii_%28283%29.jpg/120px-Mesobuthus_martensii_%28283%29.jpg)
- ... that the venom of a Manchurian scorpion (pictured) contains an anti-epilepsy peptide?
- ... that the fungus Entomophthora muscae makes flies climb upwards before killing them, so they are better able to release a shower of spores for the next cycle of infection?
- ... that Hyalella azteca is the most abundant amphipod in North American lakes?
- ... that the tick Ornithodoros erraticus spreads the African swine fever virus in the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal)?
- ... that the bee Anthidium manicatum scrapes fur from leaves to line its nest?
- ... that the fairy shrimp Branchinecta brushi lives at 5,930 m (19,460 ft) in the Chilean Andes, higher than any other crustacean in the world?
Did you know 7
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![A slender red insect with yellow and black stripes, long wings, and an ovipositor as long as its body.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Megarhyssa_greenei_female.jpg/120px-Megarhyssa_greenei_female.jpg)
- ... that the wasp Megarhyssa macrurus (pictured) paralyzes her prey by injecting it with an ovipositor 4 inches (10 cm) long?
- ... that the U.S. government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that during an outbreak of an itch mite in August 2004, 54% of Crawford County, Kansas suffered from bites?
- ... that the oriental mole cricket, Gryllotalpa orientalis, can not only dig a burrow a metre deep but can also swim?
- ... that Chirocephalus diaphanus is the only species of fairy shrimp to occur in Great Britain?
- ... that the spread of red palm mite is the biggest mite explosion ever observed in the Americas?
- ... that the slipper lobster Scyllarus pygmaeus is too small for fishing?
Did you know 8
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![A grey woodlouse on the parched earth of the Tunisian desert.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Hemilepistus_reaumuri_02_crop.jpg/120px-Hemilepistus_reaumuri_02_crop.jpg)
- ... that the woodlouse Hemilepistus reaumuri (pictured) can only survive in the desert because it looks after its young?
- ... that adult males of the parasitic wasp Encarsia perplexa can only develop when a virgin female lays eggs in a fully developed larva of her own species?
- ... that millipedes in the order Sphaerotheriida roll up into balls the size of a cherry, a golf ball, or even a baseball when disturbed?
- ... that male spiders, scorpions and mantids have special strategies to avoid sexual cannibalism?
- ... that anywhere from 60 million to 1 billion monarch butterflies spend the winter at the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in central Mexico?
- ... that the Reverend Thomas Roscoe Rede Stebbing, who became a strong supporter of Darwinism, was ordained by Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Oxford, one of its greatest opponents?
Did you know 9
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![A black pill millipede, with white borders to each segment.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Glomeris_marginata_1.jpg/120px-Glomeris_marginata_1.jpg)
- ... that Glomeris marginata (pictured), a pill millipede, is often confused with the woodlouse Armadillidium, because they both roll themselves up into a ball when disturbed?
- ... that Mimoides phaon was the first swallowtail butterfly of the genus Mimoides to stray into the United States?
- ... that the meat of the slipper lobster Ibacus peronii is considered inferior to that of the Moreton Bay bug because it sometimes tastes of garlic?
- ... that when analyzing relationships of the harvestmen it is found that they are not true spiders, as often believed, but are in fact more closely related to scorpions?
- ... that the "orchid dupe wasp", Lissopimpla excelsa, ejaculates visible amounts of semen as it tries to copulate with flowers of the leafless, large and tartan tongue orchids, which it mistakes for a female wasp?
- ... that Tanymastix stagnalis is the only species of fairy shrimp to occur in Ireland?
Did you know 10
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![A mass of pale, pinkish thin-shelled crustaceans with flattened white claws.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Mbea_tow%C3%A9_%28_crevette%29.jpg/120px-Mbea_tow%C3%A9_%28_crevette%29.jpg)
- ... that Cameroon is named after the crustacean Lepidophthalmus turneranus (pictured) which Portuguese settlers observed swarming in the Wouri River in the 15th century?
- ... that Cyrba spiders are said to be primitive because they retain characteristics that other jumping spiders lost?
- ... that Austroplatypus incompertus forms colonies in the heartwood of some Eucalyptus trees and was the first beetle recognized as eusocial?
- ... that the porcelain crab Pisidia longicornis is sometimes found among mussels and oysters in European fish markets?
- ... that molecular phylogenetics suggests that Pthirus gorillae jumped from gorillas to early humans about 3.3 million years ago and speciated into the present day pubic louse?
- ... that although American entomologist Harry Hoogstraal was an authority on ticks and tick-borne diseases, organisms bearing his name include a squirrel, a gerbil, a snake, and 200 other species?
Did you know 11
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![A spider's web stretches across a small river running through a tropical forest.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Caerostris_darwini_web.png/120px-Caerostris_darwini_web.png)
- ... that Darwin's bark spider makes the longest known spider web (pictured), spanning distances of up to 25 metres (82 ft), using the toughest known biomaterial, that is ten times as tough as Kevlar?
- ... that sponge crabs of the species Dromia dormia carry sponges on their back as camouflage, and have even used the sole of a shoe for that purpose?
- ... that the extinct Protosialis casca is one of only two known alderflies from the West Indies?
- ... that the fairy shrimp Branchinecta gaini is the largest freshwater invertebrate in Antarctica?
- ... that the pantropical jumping spider Plexippus paykulli is highly agile, and can cover many times its own body length in a single jump?
- ... that the bone skipper came back from the dead after 160 years to feed on rotting bones?
Did you know 12
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![A hermit crab, whose shell is hidden by three large sea anemones on it.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Dardanus_pedunculatus_%28Hermit_crab%29.jpg/120px-Dardanus_pedunculatus_%28Hermit_crab%29.jpg)
- ... that the shrimp Periclimenes dardanicola lives on sea anemones on the shell of the hermit crab Dardanus pedunculatus (pictured), in one of the few associations between two decapods?
- ... that the mite Aceria anthocoptes is a potential biological control agent of the invasive Canada thistle?
- ... that the Philippine hornet Vespa luctuosa has the most lethal venom by weight of any known wasp species?
- ... that Canada's Federated Co-operatives partnered with SeaChoice to promote sustainable seafood, like the spiny lobster, through its co-operatives?
- ... that amber fossils of ants carrying the extinct mealybug genus Electromyrmococcus represent the oldest record of symbiosis between mealybugs and Acropyga ants?
- ... that the spider Tetragnatha extensa can walk on water, where it can move faster than it can on land?
Did you know 13
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![Pogonomyrmex californicus (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae)](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Pogonomyrmex_californicus_casent0102895_profile_1.jpg/120px-Pogonomyrmex_californicus_casent0102895_profile_1.jpg)
- .. that Milton Levine founded Uncle Milton's Toys, best known for its ant farm, with ants from the species Pogonomyrmex californicus (pictured)?
- ... that, in female bedbugs, the spermalege reduces the wounding costs caused by a male's needle-like penis?
- ... that Acromis spinifex is one of the few tortoise beetles that shows maternal care of its young?
- ... that the population density of Moroccan locust nymphs can reach several thousand individuals per square metre (11 sq ft)?
- ... that the beetle Caryobruchus gleditsiae is named after the legume Gleditsia triacanthos, although it lives exclusively on palms?
- ... that picnic beetles are attracted to beer?
Did you know 14
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![Mottled wingless insect with large mandibles and numerous setae.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/2010_-_08_-_10_Bastavales_6.jpg/120px-2010_-_08_-_10_Bastavales_6.jpg)
- ... that the larvae (pictured) of the common green lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea usually consume aphids, but when food is scarce they will eat each other?
- ... that the snail Pittieria aurantiaca feeds on honeydew produced by the lantern bug Enchophora sanguinea, the first recorded trophobiotic interaction between a gastropod and an insect?
- ... that Hemioniscus balani is called a "parasitic castrator" although its barnacle host remains a functioning male because the barnacle can no longer also function as a female?
- ... that Callipogon relictus is the largest beetle of Russia, reaching a length of 110 mm (4.3 in)?
- ... that Leach's spider crab lives with the snakelocks anemone, eats the anemone's food and mucus and is protected from predators by the anemone's stings?
- ... that mass strandings of the squat lobster Pleuroncodes planipes occur in California during El Niño years?
Did you know 15
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- ... that the mutualism between hermit crabs and the sea anemone Calliactis parasitica (pictured) may require the presence of an octopus?
- ... that Edward L. Kessel assembled the world's most comprehensive collection of Platypezidae flat-footed flies?
- ... that in the north, the North American paper wasp Polistes annularis has rust-red markings on a predominantly black thorax, but in the south, the thorax is mostly rust-red with black markings?
- ... that the California Bay pea crab is one of only two marine crustaceans to be included on the IUCN Red List of endangered species?
- ... that the ground beetle, Lebia grandis, can eat about 23 eggs or three larvae of the Colorado potato beetle every day?
- ... that the weevil Hylobius transversovittatus has been introduced into the United States and Canada to help control the invasive wetland plant purple loosestrife?
Did you know 16
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![Two dark red fleshy growths are attached to the gills of a fish.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Lernaeocera_branchialis.jpg/120px-Lernaeocera_branchialis.jpg)
- ... that a young Lernaeocera branchialis is an ectoparasitic crustacean on the gills of a flounder or lumpsucker, and it moves on to cod or related fishes after it has matured and mated (infested gills of a whiting pictured)?
- ... that the black-margined loosestrife beetle was introduced to North America for biological pest control against the invasive purple loosestrife?
- ... that the type specimen of the extinct whip scorpion Graeophonus carbonarius was originally identified as a species of dragonfly?
- ... that the coral reef crab Zosimus aeneus contains deadly poisonous neurotoxins?
- ... that the extinct Phlebotominae sandfly Pintomyia falcaorum is known only from Miocene age Dominican amber found on Hispaniola?
- ... that although true bugs eat aphids, they help the aphids by eating another predator, young lacewings?
Did you know 17
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![A pink segmented animal with extensive black shading with its head inside a snail's shell.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Alecton_discoidalis_and_Oleacina.png/120px-Alecton_discoidalis_and_Oleacina.png)
- ... that larvae of Cuban endemic firefly Alecton discoidalis attack land snails (pictured)?
- ... that the only known specimen of the extinct planthopper Glisachaemus jonasdamzeni is preserved with a parasitic mite?
- ... that cycloids are believed to have been driven to extinction when crabs spread across their territory?
- ... that the extinct trapdoor spiders Baltocteniza and Electrocteniza were both identified from specimens in Baltic amber?
- ... that the only known specimen of the extinct spider Palaeoperenethis is in the Royal Ontario Museum?
- ... that the extinct planthopper Tainosia quisqueyae was named for the Taíno people and Hispaniola?
Did you know 18
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![A small, black winged insect with a long neck, encased in amber.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Brevivulva_electroma_%28dorsal_habitus%29.jpg/120px-Brevivulva_electroma_%28dorsal_habitus%29.jpg)
- ... that the extinct Eocene parasitic wasp Brevivulva electroma (pictured) was named from the Greek words meaning "short amber wrapper"?
- ... that in the burrowing wolf spider Allocosa brasiliensis, males often eat older, less fecund females that they lured into their burrow using pheromones, while preferring to mate with virgins?
- ... that the extinct parasitic wasp genus Aspidopleura is known from only two fossils found in Baltic amber?
- ... that only one side of the extinct parasitic wasp Neanaperiallus is visible in its sole fossilized specimen?
- ... that the queen ant of the Acropyga acutiventris carries a mealybug Xenococcus annandalei in her jaws on her nuptial flight?
- ... that a species of crab, Tumidotheres maculatus, has been found living on an asteroid?
Did you know 19
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![A small, brown earwig on a leaf.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Lesser_earwig.jpg/99px-Lesser_earwig.jpg)
- ... that a typical Labia minor (pictured) is chocolate brown, up to 7 mm long, and is equipped with pincers?
- ... that the extinct parasitic wasp Metapelma archetypon is thought to have preyed upon wood-boring beetles?
- ... that the possibly extinct wall crab spider species Garcorops jadis was named for C. S. Lewis' Jadis, the White Witch?
- ... that the extinct trilobite Bumastus was named after its resemblance to large grapes?
- ... that the larva of the Texas beetle, Brachypsectra fulva, can live for over two years without feeding?
- ... that the extinct mason bee species Anthidium exhumatum and Anthidium scudderi are known from the Eocene Florissant Formation in Colorado?
Did you know 20
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![Fossil of a giant ant, with a rufous hummingbird, showing the similar size of the two.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Titanomyrma_lubei_02.jpg/120px-Titanomyrma_lubei_02.jpg)
- ... that the discovery of the fossil giant ant Titanomyrma (pictured with rufous hummingbird) in Wyoming indicates that warmth-loving fauna spread through the north between Europe and America during hot spells in the Eocene?
- ... that size matters when the jumping spider Phidippus clarus selects mates?
- ... that the iridescent metallic hues of some jewel bugs are caused by structural colours instead of pigmentation?
- ... that the rodent Voalavo gymnocaudus and its parasitic mite Andreacarus voalavo are known only from two massifs in the Northern Highlands of Madagascar?
- ... that Dinochelus ausubeli, a deepwater lobster discovered during the Census of Marine Life expedition, was named in honour of its sponsor, Jesse H. Ausubel?
- ... that spiderlings of Crossopriza lyoni can catch mosquitoes four times their own size barely one week after hatching?
Did you know 21
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- ... that a fossil of the extinct sea scorpion Eurypterus (restoration pictured) was once thought to be a catfish?
- ... that Phaeacius, a very lazy jumping spider, waits motionless until prey walks almost into its jaws?
- ... that Geograpsus severnsi is the first crab species known to have become extinct?
- ... that males and females of the jumping spider Maevia inclemens were once considered different species?
- ... that a fungal pathogen Beauveria bassiana has been released along with a parasitic wasp Tetrastichus planipennisi in the United States as a biological control agent of the emerald ash borer?
- ... that the California spider species Pimoa cthulhu was named after H. P. Lovecraft's fictional deity Cthulhu?
Did you know 22
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![A large green shield bug with black and yellow marginal markings.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Pycanum_rubens_%28adult%29%2C_night_trail%2C_gunung_mulu_national_park%2C_sarawak%2C_malaysia%29.jpg/90px-Pycanum_rubens_%28adult%29%2C_night_trail%2C_gunung_mulu_national_park%2C_sarawak%2C_malaysia%29.jpg)
- ... that some species of giant stink bugs (pictured) are edible?
- ... that the extinct giant ant genus Formicium is known only from forewings found in Dorset and Tennessee?
- ... that a new species of decim periodical cicada was discovered by studying the songs of Brood XIX, now re-emerging in 2011 after 13 years underground?
- ... that the Australian jumping spider Portia fimbriata plays a deadly game of hide-and-seek with its favourite prey, Jacksonoides queenlandicus, another jumping spider?
- ... that the fossil sawfly species Eriocampa tulameenensis was found along the Canadian Pacific rail line near Princeton, British Columbia?
- ... that Aenigmastacus, a fossil crayfish from Canada, belongs to a family only otherwise known from the Southern Hemisphere?
Did you know 23
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![Dorsal and ventral views of firefly Photinus carolinus.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/PhotinusCarolinus.jpg/116px-PhotinusCarolinus.jpg)
- ... that June mating displays of Photinus carolinus (pictured) create moving bands of light and darkness that draw crowds one firefly scientist calls "obscene"?
- ... that the wasp Dinocampus coccinellae can turn a ladybird into a "zombie bodyguard"?
- ... that the New Zealand lobster was incorporated into the country's Quota Management System after a parliamentary corruption scandal?
- ... that the moose botfly Cephenemyia ulrichii shoots its larvae into people's eyes, perhaps because human eyes and moose nostrils both face forward?
- ... that, during the breeding season, the male blueband hermit crab carries the female around for up to a day?
- ... that despite writing many scientific papers at Yale University and having the time limit waived, the carcinologist Martin Burkenroad never submitted a dissertation?
Did you know 24
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![Engraving of a butterfly, showing colour bands on all four wings, and clubbed antennae.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Prodryas.png/120px-Prodryas.png)
- ... that the extinct Eocene butterfly Prodryas persephone (pictured) from the Florissant Fossil Beds is the best preserved fossil lepidopteran discovered to date?
- ... that Balanus perforatus is a barnacle shaped like a volcano?
- ... that musician David Rothenberg appears in a YouTube video playing jazz with cassini periodical cicadas, insects noted for their synchronised rhythm?
- ... that the fontanellar gun is a type of specialised weapon used by the North American termite to ward off enemy insects?
- ... that females of the jumping spider Portia labiata use silk draglines as territory marks, and use these to avoid females of higher fighting ability and spend more time around less powerful fighters?
- ... that the penis of the lesser water boatman Micronecta scholtzi creates mating calls of 99.2 decibels, making it the loudest animal on earth, scaled for its size?
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![Emerita analoga (Decapoda: Hippidae)](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Emerita_analoga_cropped.jpg/120px-Emerita_analoga_cropped.jpg)
- ... that although the Pacific sand crab can only crawl and burrow backwards (pictured), it can also tread water?
- ... that when the extinct forester moth Neurosymploca? oligocenica was described, a second fossil was known but unavailable for study?
- ... that the extinct Hydriomena? protrita was the first geometer moth to be described from the American fossil record?
- ... that Praunus flexuosus, the first mysid shrimp ever to be described, may have been transported to North America during World War II?
- ... that the seeds of the European sedge Carex pilulifera may be dispersed by the ant Myrmica ruginodis?
- ... that the family placement for the fossil moth genus Dominickus was not noticed until entomologist Norman Tindale was looking at pictures of modern moths from Australia?
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- ... that fossils of extinct giant cicadas (pictured) were once misidentified as the oldest known butterflies?
- ... that some species of the stick insect genus Timema have not had sex for over a million years?
- ... that scientists first discovered the biological screw joint in the Papuan weevil Trigonopterus oblongus?
- ... that Calcinus tubularis is one of only two known species of hermit crab whose males and females inhabit different types of shell?
- ... that the oldest known member of the mayfly family Neoephemeridae is the Eocene species Neoephemera antiqua?
- ... that Sphecius grandis, the Western cicada killer wasp, paralyzes cicadas for its offspring to eat after hatching?
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- ... that, despite its name, the freshwater crab Potamon ibericum (pictured) does not live in Iberia?
- ... that tiny Paederus beetles may have caused some of the ten Plagues of Egypt?
- ... that with a 150-millimetre (5.9 in) wingspan, Sinomeganeura is small for the griffenfly family Meganeuridae, known for species with spans over 700 mm (28 in)?
- ... that Petrolisthes eriomerus, when trying to escape from a predator, can cast off limbs as a diversion, with the claws of a cast limb still gripping vigorously after separation?
- ... that the discovery of the extinct golden silk orb-weaver species Nephila jurassica extended the fossil record of the genus by 130 million years?
- ... that the extinct moth Epiborkhausenites is noted for having very similar colour patterning to the living species Tubuliferola josephinae and Hofmannophila pseudospretella?
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![Mesobuthus eupeus (Arachnida: Buthidae)](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Mesobuthus_eupeus_in_human_hand.jpg/104px-Mesobuthus_eupeus_in_human_hand.jpg)
- ... that the venom of the "lesser Asian scorpion", Mesobuthus eupeus, (pictured) contains proteins that are toxic to Plasmodium falciparum, a parasite that causes malaria in humans?
- ... that the extinct griffenfly genus Bohemiatupus inhabited peat-mires?
- ... that the extinct hangingfly genera Formosibittacus, Jurahylobittacus, and Mongolbittacus are only known from the Middle Jurassic of China?
- ... that of the three described species in the Eocene bulldog ant genus Avitomyrmex, one species is known only from worker caste individuals?
- ... that one species of the extinct Eocene bulldog ant Ypresiomyrma reached up to 25 millimetres (0.98 in) in length?
- ... that when the sea anemone Adamsia palliata grows on the exterior of a gastropod shell, it is capable of enlarging the shell to better accommodate the hermit crab Pagurus prideaux inside?
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![A tiny black insect with feathery wings; the entire body is around 0.5 mm long.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Myanmymar_aresconoides.jpg/102px-Myanmymar_aresconoides.jpg)
- ... that the Albian 100-million-year-old fossil wasp Myanmymar (pictured) is only half a millimetre long?
- ... that the type specimen of the extinct bulldog ant Macabeemyrma ovata is the fossilized remains of an adult queen preserved in shale?
- ... that the type specimen of the extinct tortoise beetle Denaeaspis is only 6.04 millimetres (0.238 in) long?
- ... that the extinct snakefly Agulla protomaculata is the only snakefly described from the Green River Formation?
- ... that the nearest living relatives of Eosacantha, a fossil tortoise beetle from Colorado, are found in Africa, tropical Asia, and Australia?
- ... that the extinct sweat bee Halictus? savenyei was the first fossil bee from Canada to be described?
Did you know 30
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![A tiny light brown insect with feathery wings; its body is around 0.4 mm long.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Arescon_%28fairyfly%2C_Thailand%29.jpg/100px-Arescon_%28fairyfly%2C_Thailand%29.jpg)
- ... that fairyflies (example pictured) include the smallest known insects, smaller than a single-celled Paramecium?
- ... that the extinct planthopper Emiliana was described from a single 47 million year old wing?
- ... that the only fossil of the extinct moth Baltimartyria sat on a paleoentomologist's desk for a number of years before being described in 2011?
- ... that the extinct wasps Dryinus grimaldii and Dryinus rasnitsyni are distinguishable by the modified claws on their front legs?
- ... that Jurellana tithonia, dating from the Jurassic, is the earliest known porcelain crab?
- ... that the extinct buthid scorpion Uintascorpio was first placed in the family Vaejovidae?
Did you know 31
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![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Lepas_anserifera.jpg/120px-Lepas_anserifera.jpg)
- ... that the goose barnacle Lepas anserifera (pictured) is found attached to driftwood, flotsam and even whales?
- ... that the extinct planthopper Ordralfabetix is named for a character from The Adventures of Asterix?
- ... that the rove beetle Diochus electrus is the first definite member of the subfamily Staphylininae from the fossil record?
- ... that species in the fossil ant genus Myrmeciites are named for Hercules, Goliath, and a river?
- ... that Euploea alcathoe, the common crow butterfly, may pass through several generations in a year?
- ... that the spiny lobster Jasus caveorum lives only on one of the Foundation Seamounts in the southern Pacific Ocean?
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- ... that until the discovery in 1975 of the "living fossil" Neoglyphea inopinata (pictured), glypheoid crustaceans were thought to have been extinct since the Eocene?
- ... that the shrimp-like 510-million-year-old arthropod Waptia fieldensis was named after two mountains?
- ... that the horse fly Scaptia beyonceae was named after singer and actress Beyoncé Knowles because of its striking golden behind?
- ... that the female sand wasp Ammophila sabulosa digs burrows in sandy ground, provisioning each burrow with a food supply of paralysed caterpillars, always laying one egg on the first caterpillar?
- ... that several pelagic gooseneck barnacles were once found attached to an American crocodile?
- ... that the Cape Verdean spiny lobster Palinurus charlestoni is named after a French fishing boat?
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![Several large goose barnacles, covered in large white scale-like plates.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Pollicipes_polymerus_3.jpg/120px-Pollicipes_polymerus_3.jpg)
- ... that the gooseneck barnacle Pollicipes polymerus (several pictured) will become sterile if there are no others within 20 cm (8 in)?
- ... that in 1781 both a Danish zoologist and a Swedish naturalist described the transverse ladybird?
- ... that the clawless lobster Tricarina is known from a single fossil, obtained from an oil well 3,852 m (12,638 ft) below ground in western Iran?
- ... that Japanese skeleton shrimp are invading the coastlines of North America, Europe, and New Zealand?
- ... that the crab Dyspanopeus sayi may have lived in the Venetian Lagoon for 15 years before it was discovered?
- ... that Polybius henslowii has more swimming legs than other swimming crabs?
Did you know 34
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![A metallic green blowfly.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/93/Lucilia.bufonivora.-.lindsey.jpg/120px-Lucilia.bufonivora.-.lindsey.jpg)
- ... that larvae of the toadfly (adult pictured) make their way through the nostrils of the common toad and eat its flesh?
- ... that the boxer crabs Lybia tessellata and Lybia edmondsoni carry a sea anemone such as Triactis producta in each claw for protection from predators?
- ... that the barnacle Megabalanus tintinnabulum travelled from the tropics to the Netherlands by ship in 1764 and reached Western Australia in 1949?
- ... that carcinologist Isabel Pérez Farfante and her family were blacklisted by the Cuban government because her husband refused to travel with Che Guevara?
- ... that the long-nosed spider crab, Libinia dubia, disguises itself by sticking bits of unpalatable seaweed and invertebrates on its carapace?
- ... that swarms of Japanese soldier crabs of the species Mictyris guinotae, named after French biologist Danièle Guinot, can be used in place of the billiard balls in billiard-ball computers?
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![A black and cyan dragonfly.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Tropical_Rockmaster_-_Cairns_Australia.jpg/120px-Tropical_Rockmaster_-_Cairns_Australia.jpg)
- ... that the male Diphlebia euphoeoides dragonfly (pictured) can be distinguished from the male Diphlebia coerulescens by the size of the blue spots on the underside of its abdomen?
- ... that a young spider crab, Libinia ferreirae, often lives inside the bell of the jellyfish Lychnorhiza lucerna?
- ... that the sea anemone Calliactis tricolor is often attached to shells occupied by the hermit crabs Dardanus venosus and Clibanarius vittatus?
- ... that the rice stink bug, a major pest of rice kernels, can possibly be ignored when found on standing maize?
- ... that colour markings, considered rare among fossil crabs, have been found on Avitelmessus?
- ... that Trachysalambria curvirostris, one of the most important species of fished prawns, is abundant around Australia but is considered too small to be commercial there?
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![A medium-sized crab, with claws outstretched, with a yellow body, grading to black in the centre of the carapace.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Guinotia_dentata.jpg/120px-Guinotia_dentata.jpg)
- ... that the freshwater crab Guinotia dentata (pictured) prefers shady rivers to sunny ones?