WE’RE SPIN AND NIPS, AND WE TRAVEL THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE TO SEE AND LEARN AMAZING AND EXTRAORDINARY THINGS. TODAY WE'VE FOUND OURSELVES IN THE MIDST OF SWARMS OF TINY CREATURES. THEY HAVE WINGS, LEGS, AND MOUTHS. THEY FLY, JUMP, AND WALK. THEY’RE BLACK, GREEN, AND MULTICOLORED. HERE ON EARTH THEY’RE CALLED “INSECTS.” AND NOW WE WANT TO MEET THEM!
WELCOME!
I DIDN’T KNOW THERE ARE SUCH AMAZING CREATURES ON EARTH!
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, NIPS? THEY LOOK A BIT LIKE YOU!
THE HEAD IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF AN INSECT’S BODY BECAUSE THAT’S WHERE THE ANTENNAE AND EYES ARE. ANTENNAE ARE LIKE A NOSE. INSECTS WAVE THEM IN THE AIR TO PICK UP THE SMELL OF FOOD OR OF MEMBERS OF THEIR OWN SPECIES.
I CAN SMELL A PICNIC.
WHERE? WHERE?!
INSECTS CAN HAVE 1, 10, OR 100 EYES ON THEIR HEADS! OUR BIZARRE FRIEND HERE HAS TWO EYES, BUT THEY ARE COMPOSED OF LOTS OF MINI-EYES PACKED CLOSELY TOGETHER. COLOR ALL THE HOVERFLY’S EYES IN THE CORRECT COLORS (THE DOTS WILL GUIDE YOU). HOVERFLIES ARE CURIOUS INSECTS THAT FEED ON POLLEN AND FLOWER NECTAR.
HOVERFLIES HAVE BLACK AND YELLOW STRIPES TO MIMIC WASPS, WHICH MANY PEOPLE ARE AFRAID OF.
MOUTHS FOR ALL TASTES
THERE ARE MILLIONS OF INSECTS . . . AND EACH HAS ITS OWN TASTE! THERE ARE THOSE THAT LOVE FRUIT, AND OTHERS THAT LOVE LOGS. THOSE THAT PREFER SUCKING FLOWER NECTAR, AND OTHERS THAT PREFER HORSE POOP! EACH INSECT HAS ITS OWN SPECIAL MOUTH! COMPLETE THE INSECT HEADS WITH STICKERS.
HUMMINGBIRD MOTH
A STRAW TO SIP NECTAR
A PREDATOR’S JAW
STRONG JAWS FOR
BIG JAWS FOR EATING FRUIT AND FIGHTING WITH MEMBERS OF ITS OWN SPECIES STAG BEETLE A BLOOD-SUCKING SYRINGE MOSQUITO
IF YOU COULD CHOOSE, WHICH TYPE OF WINGS WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE? DRAW THEM AND WRITE DOWN THEIR MOTTO.
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO GROW NOW?
INSECTS LEAD VERY BUSY LIVES. THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES, THEY CHANGE BEHAVIORS AND APPEARANCE. HERE, FOR EXAMPLE, IS THE LIFE CYCLE OF A CICADA
NYMPH
The egg hatches into a nymph, which lives underground.
I’M TOO BIG NOW! I NEED SOME NEW ARMOR.
COLOR THE ARROWS AND THE ADULT CICADA IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CIRCLE.
EGG
The females lay eggs on branches, which then fall to the ground.
EXUVIAE
The nymph no longer needs its old armor.
REPRODUCTION
Males “chirp” and call females to mate.
MOLTING
Once grown, the nymph molts and becomes an adult.
ADULT INSECTS Now that it has wings, the cicada can live in the trees!
AT ONE POINT IN A CICADA’S LIFE SPAN, IT MOLTS. THE SKIN IT SHEDS IS CALLED THE EXUVIAE, AND IN SUMMER YOU CAN FIND THEM ON TREES IN PARKS. IN JULY AND AUGUST, CICADAS MAKE A LOT OF NOISE, BUT IT ISN’T EASY TO SEE THEM. HOW MANY EXUVIAE ARE ON THE TREE TRUNK? NOW FIND THE SAME NUMBER OF CICADAS HIDDEN IN THE CANOPY!
HOW MANY DID YOU COUNT?
EXUVIAE: . . . . CICADAS: . . . .
NOTE: CICADAS ARE REALLY GOOD AT CAMOUFLAGING THEMSELVES!
THERE ARE INSECT LARVAE EVERYWHERE. LET’S LOOK FOR THEM!
YOU WILL NEED:
- AN ENTOMOLOGIST KIT - A GARDENING TROWEL
- A GARDEN OR PARK - A CREEK CLOSE TO YOUR HOUSE
LARVAE UNDERGROUND… GO INTO THE GARDEN OR TO A PARK. LOOK FOR SOFT EARTH AND FOLIAGE UNDER A TREE OR IN A FLOWERBED. USE A TROWEL TO DIG WHERE THE EARTH IS SOFTEST, AND WATCH WHAT COMES OUT.
REMEMBER THAT EARTHWORMS ARE NOT LARVAE, AND THEY ARE NOT INSECTS, EITHER!
LARVAE UNDER TRUNKS.
GO TO THE WOODS AND LOOK FOR AN OLD FALLEN TREE TRUNK. GET SOMEONE TO HELP YOU MOVE THE TRUNK. ANYONE WHO DOESN’T LIFT STONES AND LOGS IN NATURE IS MISSING OUT ON ALL THE FUN! YOU MIGHT FIND AN ANTHILL. BUT BE CAREFUL: YOU COULD ALSO FIND SCORPIONS DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU LIVE!
LARVAE UNDERWATER
GO TO A CREEK AND TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES OR PUT SOME RUBBER BOOTS ON. ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT, TAKE A FEW STEPS INTO THE WATER. TRY LIFTING A ROCK AND SEE IF ANYTHING MOVES. IF YOU PAY ATTENTION AND ARE LUCKY, YOU MAY FIND SOME AQUATIC LARVAE, LIKE THOSE OF A DRAGONFLY.
LARVAE ON TREES
GO TO THE PARK AND LOOK AT THE TREE TRUNKS. IF IT’S SUMMER AND YOU CAN HEAR THE LOUD SOUND OF CICADAS, YOU MIGHT FIND 1, 10, OR 1,000 EXUVIAE!
NOTE! AFTER YOU’VE CAPTURED AND OBSERVED THE INSECTS, ALWAYS REMEMBER TO PUT THEM BACK WHERE YOU FOUND THEM.
THERE ARE INSECTS THAT INSTEAD OF GOING TO SLEEP AT NIGHT . . . WAKE UP! THE CRICKET SINGS, AND THE COCKROACH TRIES TO EAT. THE GROUND BEETLE GOES HUNTING, AND THE MOTH FLIES. THE FIREFLY LOOKS FOR ITS SOULMATE. BUT SOMETIMES THEY CAN GET CONFUSED. SOMETIMES THE MOTH MISTAKES THE LIGHT OF A STREET LAMP FOR THE MOON, CAUSING IT TO LOSE ITS SENSE OF DIRECTION.
COLOR THE MOTHS AND DISCOVER HOW A MOTH FLIES IN THE LIGHT OF THE MOON, AND HOW CONFUSED ITS FLIGHT GETS UNDER THE LIGHT OF A STREET LAMP.
LA FALENA FA CONFUSIONE!
MOTH, WHERE ARE YOU GOING?
CREATE A BIODIVERSITY OASIS TO GIVE INSECTS FLOWERS, TALL GRASS, AND A COMFORTABLE PLACE TO BE IN!
- 4 POSTS - ROPE
- TWO PIECES OF CARDBOARD AND TWO CLEAR FOLDERS
- A PERMANENT MARKER - A FIELD, THE WOODS, OR A GARDEN (OR AT SCHOOL)
INSTRUCTIONS
• CHOOSE A CORNER IN YOUR GARDEN OR A FIELD, PREFERABLY CLOSE TO A BUSH OR A HEDGE. WITH THE HELP OF AN ADULT, SET 4 POSTS IN THE GROUND TO FORM A SQUARE.
• CORDON OFF THE AREA WITH A ROPE.
• ON THE CARDBOARD, WRITE THAT IT IS AN OASIS OF BIODIVERSITY AND A REFUGE FOR OUR INSECT FRIENDS. PLACE THE CARDBOARD IN THE CLEAR FOLDERS AND HANG ON THE ROPE.
• REMOVE THE POSTS IN SEPTEMBER. REASSEMBLE THE OASIS IN EARLY SPRING THE FOLLOWING YEAR!
RESULTS:
THE GRASS WILL START TO GROW, THE SOIL WILL BECOME WETTER, FLOWERS WILL BLOOM, AND LOADS OF INSECTS WILL APPEAR .
WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE A GARDEN OR A PARK I CAN USE? EVEN A BALCONY ON A BUILDING CAN BE AN OASIS OF BIODIVERSITY—JUST MAKE IT BLOOM. WITH SOME POTS AND A FEW SEEDLINGS, YOU CAN CREATE A REFRESHMENT POINT FOR BEES AND BUTTERFLIES THAT LIVE IN THE CITY.
THERE ARE A MULTITUDE OF INSECTS, AND SOME ARE TRULY EXCEPTIONAL HERE ARE SOME RECORD-BREAKING ONES. COMPLETE THE PHRASES WITH THE CORRECT STICKERS
THE INSECT WITH THE LARGEST WINGS EVER RECORDED IS THE ATLAS MOTH. ITS WINGSPAN CAN MEASURE UP TO 1 FOOT (30 CM), THE SAME AS A...
THE GOLIATH BEETLE CAN WEIGH UP TO 4 OUNCES (113 G)! IT WEIGHS THE SAME AS A...
THE LONGEST STICK INSECT EVER FOUND MEASURED 2 FEET LONG (60 CM). LONGER THAN A...
THE SMALLEST INSECT IN THE WORLD IS A MICRO-BEETLE MEASURING 0.3 MILLIMETERS LONG, AS SMALL AS A ...
SOMETIMES INSECTS CAN DO AMAZING THINGS CONNECT EACH INSECT WITH THE PICTURE THAT DEPICTS ITS ABILITY
THE FASTEST INSECT IN THE WORLD IS A DRAGONFLY THAT FLIES AT 37 MPH (60 KM/H), AS FAST AS A ...
THE LONGEST-LIVING INSECT EVER RECORDED IS A QUEEN ANT THAT LIVED TO BE...
THE STRONGEST INSECT IN THE WORLD IS A BEETLE THAT CAN CARRY 1,000 TIMES ITS OWN WEIGHT, THE SAME AS A HUMAN LIFTING A...
THE INSECT WITH THE LONGEST JUMP IN RELATION TO ITS SIZE IS THE FROGHOPPER. IF IT WERE A HUMAN, IT COULD JUMP...
THE LOUDEST INSECT IN THE WORLD IS THE AFRICAN CICADA. IT PRODUCES A SOUND OF 106 DECIBELS, AS LOUD AS A...
INSECT DECOMPOSERS EAT THE WASTE OF OTHER LIVING CREATURES. WITHOUT THEM WE WOULD BE SUBMERGED IN ORGANIC WASTE. ALSO, THEIR POOP BECOMES FERTILE SOIL FOR WOODLAND PLANTS AND THE FIELDS WE CULTIVATE. FIND OUT WHAT EATS WHAT BY FOLLOWING THE PATHS AND USING DIFFERENT COLORS.
INSECTS CAN ALSO BE EATEN BY PEOPLE. IN SOME COUNTRIES, THEY HAVE LONG BEEN PART OF TRADITIONAL CUISINE; IN OTHERS THEY ARE JUST STARTING TO BE. THE MOST COMMONLY EATEN INSECTS IN THE WORLD ARE GRASSHOPPERS, BEETLES, AND VARIOUS LARVAE THERE ARE THREE INTRUDERS ON THE PLATE BELOW. TRY AND FIND THEM.
REMEMBER: HOW MANY LEGS DOES AN INSECT HAVE?
THE MOST FAMOUS POLLINATOR OF ALL IS THE DOMESTIC BEE, BUT SOMETIMES IT FLIES SO FAR AWAY FROM ITS HIVE THAT IT MAY NEED HELP TO GET BACK TO IT. DRAW THE PATH THE BEE NEEDS TO TAKE TO GET BACK TO THE HIVE, VISITING ALL THE PURPLE FLOWERS ALONG THE WAY, AND WITHOUT EVER CROSSING ITS OWN FLIGHT PATH.
HONEYBEES MAKE HONEY, WHICH I LOVE!