Hey, Fedi. I have a favour to ask you.

stevenlawsonphotography@mastoart.social

@ShaulaEvans The Scorpion fly has a tail that looks exactly like the stinger of a scorpion but there is no sting in this tail - only two claspers for use when mating.

foo__@mastodon.social

@ShaulaEvans Maybe ZeFrank on youtube (fun facts about ...)

thijs_goverde@mastodon.nl

@ShaulaEvans Follow @futurebird (if you don´t already do that)
(do ants count as bugs?)

cheeseness@mastodon.social

@ShaulaEvans I have a bunch of "true bee facts" in my game Hive Time's in-game Beepedia that cite real-world research.

I think my favourite ones are stuff like Loukola, et al observing possible cooperative behaviour in Bumblebees https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2024.0055

Or Howard, et al's research looking at numeracy in honeybees
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aav0961

oblomov@sociale.network

@ShaulaEvans this is a task for @futurebird

kats@chaosfem.tw

@growfediverse @ShaulaEvans

spiders have been found to communicate with each other via drumming

Huntsman spiders (the famously large ones in Australia) do this by holding on with their front two pairs of legs and waving their body to flail the rear two pairs against the ground - or whatever surface they're on. IIUC, this is done as a mating call.

This produces a disconcerting sensation when they're doing that on the inside surface of the plastic bowl you're carrying them outside in.

kay@mastodon.nz

@ShaulaEvans I'm in New Zealand where we have 27 species of native bees and 1 indigenous bee species, as well as the regular imported variety. I love occasionally finding solitary burrowing bees either coming out of holes in the ground or leaving behind old molts, a bit like snake skins.

More details
https://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2021/02/01/new-zealands-native-bees-quiet-lives-of-desperation/

derthomas@metalhead.club

@ShaulaEvans not directly a bug fact, but there's a "Bug Lake" in New York and I drew Bugman Mike* in it... https://wplace.live/?lat=43.772553771896&lng=-74.73049837822268&zoom=13.784198648491882

*by @bestiaexmachina

helgenug@digitalcourage.social

@ShaulaEvans

Earwigs use their pincers for a variety of actions, among those: unfolding their wings. Yes, earwigs can fly.

shaulaevans@zirk.us

@forse Amazing!

murmelthier@climatejustice.social

@ShaulaEvans

I'm not sure if millipedes count, but if so:
In Japan there exists a species that lives in 8-year cycles, similar to cicadas. And when all the milipedes emerge at once they even stop trains.

hryggrbyr@fedia.social

@ShaulaEvans probably well known but butterflies taste through their feet and crickets have ears on their front legs

dazzr@social.tchncs.de

@ShaulaEvans Insects rock! Learn how bugs race on the water surface. Here we go:

21.08.2025 ... A new study explains how tiny water bugs use fan-like propellers to zip across streams at speeds up to 120 body lengths per second.

https://coe.gatech.edu/news/2025/08/tiny-fans-feet-water-bugs-could-lead-energy-efficient-mini-robots

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adv2792

anautieatuni@beige.party

@ShaulaEvans

Not strictly “bugs”, but if broader entomology is their thing…

CW: spiders

Jumping spiders are some of the most intelligent of all spiders, but sadly their lifespans are shorter than their less intelligent relatives. It is thought that it might be due to the energetic demands of not only jumping but their evolution in developing this intelligence.

Bold jumping spiders (Phidippus audax) are named because of how they will happily (and peacefully) investigate a human if the human offers out a hand or something to explore. Other species are usually more cautious. They also have absolutely stunning iridescent chelicerae. And the white marks on the upper side of some individuals’ abdomens can look like a happy face, like this:

These spiders can also be trained and learn quickly. This is probably due to their style of attacking prey by jumping being very risky, so they use all their eyes, each pair being adapted to take in different information like distance or movement, and calculate how, where and when to jump… and whether it is safe! Some of their prey species use Batesian mimicry - where a harmless species evolved to look like another species that has dangerous defences, without actually evolving the dangerous defences.

These spiders are adorable (this is coming from me, a lifelong arachnophobe), especially when they make hilariously bad errors in their jumps, or turn to look at you when you’re around and talk to them. They’re not always “bold” as their name suggests, but just curious, and can often be very cautious and even get scared by their prey!

Lucas the Spider is a cartoon spider based on jumping spiders and goes a long way to show the cuteness and the trials and tribulations of these smol but impressive spoods.

shaulaevans@zirk.us

@JubalBarca This is one of those "Is a tomato a vegetable or a fruit" situations, isn't it?

If people would commonly refer to the critter in question as a "bug", that's good enough for me for this purpose.

connynasch@mastodon.social

@StevenLawsonPhotography @ShaulaEvans this is an amazing insect! Made my morning brighter, thanks

pixdigit@layer8.space

@ShaulaEvans Beds are filled with mites that feed off of dead skin cells. This prevents harmful mold to grow and means there is no hygienic reason to wash your bed. Unless you're allergic to dust mites that is.

karalg84@dragonscave.space

@stevegis_ssg @ShaulaEvans Something I've wondered for ages now is why do only certain insects buzz? Housefly's can be annoyingly loud whereas butterflies don't make a sound.

shaulaevans@zirk.us

Thank you for these cool replies -- I'm so glad I asked!

I'm trying to get to bed so I will reply properly tomorrow.

And my friend is okay -- not in distress, just a full plate at the moment. No cause for alarm. I didn't mean to worry you all! xo 2/n

benroyce@mastodon.social

@ShaulaEvans

there is the gall wasp, a parasite of oak trees

it manipulates the oak to make galls, growths that its larvae eat and grow in

but there is a parasite, of this parasite

tiny and trippy looking

its larvae consume the gall wasp larvae, and when it is ready to leave, it convinces its host to chew almost out of the gall, just the tip of its head exposed, then the parasite of the parasite chews through the head, and emerges

the crypt-keeper wasp

ghoulish

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euderus_set

Abspeckgeflüster – Forum für Menschen mit Gewicht(ung)

Hey, Fedi. I have a favour to ask you.