Page 28 - World of Animals - Issue #28 Magazine

Amazing arthropods

Giant water bugs

attack moving

prey bigger than

themselves

Giant water bugs have evolved an amazing
attack ability that involves them patiently
awaiting a victim and seizing it with
enormous pincers. They will then inject
poisonous digestive juices via its piercing
rostrum. Once the enzymes have broken
down the insides of its prey, the giant water
bug is able to suck out the liquified remains.

Researchers have observed this in action
many times over. The aquatic insect has been

observed eating pond turtles, snakes, fish and
frogs but it doesn’t only spend its time near
water. It is attracted to electric lights and
often appears around streetlights and houses.
However, one of the giant water bug’s
party tricks is an ability to survive underwater
for relatively long periods. It does this either
by storing air within a dedicated space
beneath its wings or by poking its lengthy
respiratory tube out of the water to draw in GIANT WATER BUG
fresh air, like a built-in snorkel. Belostomatidae
Class Insecta
“The aquatic insect has
been observed eating Territory Worldwide

pond turtles, snakes, Diet Invertebrates, fish,
amphibians
Lifespan One year
fish and frogs” Adult weight Unknown

Conservation status
ABOVE Giant water bugs are
usually found in ponds and NOT EVALUATED
freshwater streams

Male scorpionflies give
gifts to females to avoid

being gobbled up

Love is a life-or-death endeavour when you’re a male scorpionfly. These

insects are able to attract females with a pleasant courtship display
using their scorpion-like tails, but if they don’t do enough to distract their
chosen lady then they tend to become her next meal.
As gruesome as it sounds, the females like to eat their partner after
mating, which is why the male offers up a nuptial gift, typically involving
secretions of his own saliva. A measly quantity may not save him, since
the more he offers, the more attractive he becomes.
The size of the gift correlates with the nutritional condition of the male
and is an indicator of how strong his genetics are, and his suitability as a
father. Those unable to produce enough may offer a gift in the form of a
dead insect instead.

ABOVE Males of the species “The male offers up a nuptial gift,
can be distinguished by their
typically involving his own saliva”
enlarged, scorpion-like tails

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