Is there life on Mars? Who cares?
One sunny Sunday in 1969 I was participating in a leapfrog competition when my mother popped out of the house and made her way across to us bouncing children. I
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invertebrates
Spiders by post – that’s got to be cruel, hasn’t it?
In a bizarre news item, the BBC reports: A man has admitted sending a rare venomous spider in a package to a colleague at work. Mahlon Hector, 22, of Leicester
Read moreChrysis inaequidens, the jewelled cuckoo wasp
Look at this gorgeous North American solitary wasp (click the image for a bigger version if you like). Now wonder about its name – why is it named after a
Read moreNice legs! The world’s leggiest animal is rediscovered.
Last seen in 1928, the colobognath millipede Illacme plenipes is thought to have more legs than any other animal on earth – one female was found with 750 legs, while the males
Read moreIs Eresus the cutest spider on earth? Send me to find out.
The worlds’s cutest spider. It’s a hard-fought contest, with the jumping spiders invariably on the podium. But I’ve got a soft spot for another family altogether, the eresids or Velvet
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Why are there no really big insects any more? Blame birds.
It’s no secret that 300 million years ago, the largest insects were a lot bigger than they are now. The largest known insect that ever lived is an ancient griffenfly Meganeuropsis permiana.
Read moreThe Wasp Piñata
Wasps! Urgh! What are they good for? Absolutely nothing! Well, you’d think so by the amount of cursing they get around this time of year. People really don’t like wasps,
Read moreCheck out this massive fly
This weekend The Ranger discovered that the biggest fly in the UK was much bigger than he’d previously thought. Yes, we heard you wanted to see a picture of a
Read moreBuglife squished
If you’ve been following the story of small charity Buglife on this blog you will recall its legal challenge intended to prevent development on West Thurrock Marshes, a former industrial
Read moreBuglife case heard, but not decided
The invertebrate charity Buglife is moving to new offices in Peterborough, whilst in the midst of a legal tussle that could see the little charity faced with a bill of
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