Extreme Insects. Richard Jones

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       Introduction

      Insects are the most extreme organisms on Earth, and despite their diminutive stature, they wield inordinate power. With the exception of the polar ice caps, every terrestrial ecosystem on Earth is colonised by insects and to some extent controlled by them (and they have made inroads onto the open ocean, too). They dominate the middle ground of virtually every terrestrial food chain or food web.

      Insects are extreme in numbers. A single leaf-cutter ant nest, the size of a large camper van buried in the soil, may contain 8 million individuals working together as a single giant super-organism. In the tropical rainforests, termites can reach densities of 10,000 per square metre, a higher density of animal mass than in the largest wildebeest herds of the Serengeti. To produce such numbers, insects are extreme in their fecundity. Egg loads can be counted in thousands and generation times in days. If conditions are right, plagues of biblical proportions can appear as if spontaneously.

      Insects are extreme in diversity. Even the experts cannot agree whether there are 3 million different species of insect on the Earth, 10 million, 30 million or 80 million. Compare that to the mere 5,400 known species of mammal. About four-fifths of all the animals yet discovered on our planet are insects: that’s over 1 million species at the last count. And there are many times that number out there awaiting discovery.

      Insects are extreme in form. Evolved into the most peculiar shapes and colours, with strange structures and beautiful patterns, even the smallest of these wonderful creatures is magnificent under the microscope. Each has adapted to solve the extreme pressures that arise in the struggle to survive in a world that is dangerous, competitive and unforgiving.

      Extreme Insects is divided into three chapters, exploring the nature of the insect universe and looking at some of the most extraordinary creatures in existence.

      Extreme Form. In addition to the biggest, smallest, and largest wingspan, we take a look at extreme shapes: spikiest, furriest, shiniest, flattest. Why have such forms evolved? What benefit do they give to the insects that possess them?

      Extreme Evolution. Some parts of insect anatomy can appear completely СКАЧАТЬ