Know what gives lightning bugs that special glow? We’ll enlighten you. It’s produced from processes that occur in the lower abdomen of the bug to create fuel. Once this fuel reaches the reflector cells in the bug’s rear end, the bug gives off its characteristic glow. Scientists are intrigued by the bugs’ light production because, unlike light bulbs, the bugs don’t lose any energy to heat in the process. Finding a way to mimic their process could increase the efficiency of energy production. So next time you catch a lightning bug, remember that you may be holding the solution to the energy crisis in your hand!
YOU’RE TOAST, FLY
Swallow a fly? You might think that’s pretty gross, but people around the world munch on bugs like they’re potato chips. Popular recipes in South America call for toasted white beetles and fried lemon ants. In Africa, freshly dug-up grubs are considered a mouth-watering delicacy.
THE BEETLES HAVE INVADED
…and no one’s singing their praises. After all, these guys are tree killers.
We’re talking about the Asian long-horned beetles found recently in the Chicago area.U.S. officials have traced the beetles to wood crates from China. The crates are usually destroyed when they first hit the U.S., but some beetles obviously have survived. And look at it like this: If one male and one female beetle find a tree and mate, that tree is a goner. They’ll lay their eggs in the tree, and the beetles that come out of those eggs will chew their way out, killing the tree.
While U.S. officials try to figure out how to keep out these destructive bugs, Illinois residents are encouraged to keep their eyes peeled for the critters, which are about 1 1/2 inches long, and black with white dots. Trees they find tasty include maple, poplar, willow, elm and mulberry. Anyone who spots an Asian long-horned beetle should call the state Department of Agriculture at 800-641-3934.
BOWLED OVER
Gotta hand it to these folks at the Bug Bowl – they’re buggy but brave!
“If you get to a party and someone finds out you’re an entomologist, everybody has a question,” complains Tom Turpin. He’s a professor of entomology, or insect science, at Purdue University in Indiana.
Actually, Turpin loves to talk about bugs – so much so that he created the Bug Bowl, an annual spring event at Purdue. Nearly 10,000 visitors turn out for a cricket-spitting contest, insect petting zoo and bug bake-off. On the menu: meal worm spice cakes.
THE BUZZ ON BUGS
To call yourself an insect – and there are about a million species of insects on this planet – you must have: six legs and three distinct body segments: the head (for eyes, ears and antennae), the thorax (for wings and legs) and the abdomen (for stingers and a digestive system). Caterpillars, by the way, are insects because they really have only six legs (the rest are just bumps). On the other hand, a spider has eight legs (too many) and only two body segments. That makes it an arachnid, a cousin to insects and crustaceans.
IT’S NOT NATURAL!
Insects the size of dinos have landed at the Chicago Botanic Garden. But don’t start shakin’ – they’re sculptures, from a 75-pound butterfly (right) to a 700-pound ant (above). See ’em for yourself through Oct. 25; parking is $5 per car and includes the price of admission. For more info, call the Chicago Botanic Garden, on Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, at 847-835-5440.
REVVED-UP ROACHES
We almost forgot to tell you about a big bug event at Purdue University’s Bug Bowl: It’s a cockroach race called “Roach Hill Downs.” Don’t know if we could outrun a roach (usually we just squish ’em).
GOOD GRUB!
Don’t say you’ve never eaten bugs. Insects or insect parts are in much of what we eat. Food often comes from a farmer’s field, where it’s impossible to keep pests away. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says it’s OK for food to have a certain amount of harmless “unavoidable defects.” For instance, peanut butter can contain about 30 insect fragments and one rodent hair per 100 grams (no, that’s NOT why we have “chunky” products). Actually, the FDA says the defect levels set maximum limits for manufacturers; the averages are much lower in our food. (Oh. Whew.)
