Freelance Writing Jobs | Today's Articles | Sign In

Articles
Writers
 
Browse Sections
Home Plants & Animals Insects/Spiders

Insects/Spiders

Insects/Spiders Feature Writer: Albert Burchsted

With between 4 and 6 million species, insects are the most common animals on Earth. They populate almost every habitat from Antarctica to deserts, rain forests, lakes, mountain tops, glacier snow, and deep underground. A few live in the ocean.

Where there are insects, spiders feed on them. Ranging in size from just a few hundredths of an inch to giants with leg spans near thirteen inches, spiders are the ultimate insect hunters: stalking or building webs to catch them.

Animals with jointed legs are arthropods. Of these, only the insects have wings to fly, but air travel is an important method of dispersal used by other arthropods.

Suite101 articles bring new information on insects, spiders, and other invertebrates. Please comment on the articles and share stories of invertebrates on my blogs.


Feature Writer Articles in Insects/Spiders

 		Bola Spiders Lure and Eat Moths
Bola spiders release sex pheromones of moths to lure males. When one arrives, the spider swings a silk strand with a sticky ball on the end to capture the moth.
Why Insects Migrate
Prior to the Pleistocene, animals had little need to migrate. Glaciation events and concurrent droughts forced insects (and others) to develop seasonal movements.
Web Manipulation Explains Spider Behavior
Hungry spiders build webs with sticky fibers while sated spiders remove these insect traps. An elegant experiment demonstrates the value of this manipulation.
One Spider's Method to Prevent Overeating
Some spider brains are hard wired to kill and eat prey when it is captured. Replacing sticky threads with non-sticky ones prevents overindulgence.
Matricide and Infanticide in a Spider
Some baby spiders eat their mothers and second mates kill eggs of former mates. These behaviors carry severe penalties for the female while the babies and males benefit.
All feature articles in Insects/Spiders Subscribe to feed

Contributing Articles in Insects/Spiders

 		How to Make a Bedbug Trap
In some bedbug infestations, the bugs are so rare that they are hard to detect. Anyone can make a bedbug trap to prove the bugs are there, and even remove some of them.
Bedbug Symptoms – Do Bedbugs Spread Disease?
Though many people don't react to bedbug bites, a rash may be the first obvious sign of a bedbug infestation. Fortunately, bedbugs don't spread diseases.
The Mystery of Bee Colony Collapse Disorder
Industrial agriculture, insecticides, mites or mobile phones; no one knows the true cause of bee colony collapse disorder. It would be a fruitless world without bees.
The Red Imported Fire Ant
Red Imported Fire Ants are an imported pest that have thrived in the US, causing agricultural damage and human health hazards.
Endosymbiosis in Aphids and Other Insects
Aphids are an annoyance to gardeners and cause damage to crops worldwide. Without symbiotic bacteria, their ability to grow and reproduce would be greatly impaired.
All contributing articles in Insects/Spiders Subscribe to feed