Fireworks are one of the most festive things I can think of, next to a steaming cup of tea on the sofa next to your favorite people (whether it is family, friends or partners). There…
Picky pollinators and the butterfly effect of losing…
What's the gist of pollination? Think of pollination as plant sex by proxy. Or if this makes you uncomfortable, think of it as the transfer of pollen (male sperm) to the female part of the…
“Mirror mirror on the wall” and other intelligence…
We take for granted that mirrors are something to look at when we want to explore our own body as seen by the rest of the world. But this behavior took a long time to…
A matter of love or death (Amazing parasites,…
I've written before about crazy inventive parasites which would go to impressive lengths to grab a snack from their favourite host. Today though, I'm writing about a true parasitic love story. Many great poets and…
The body snatching barnacle (Amazing parasites, part 4)
In previous posts we’ve seen beautiful wasps, morbid butterflies and gorgeous caterpillars. In this one we are visiting a crustacean – a type of shellfish organism, not too different from shrimps, crabs and lobsters. Except that this one is…
(Bio)Engineering a dragon
It's clear we do need dragons, even if only for the sole reason that it'd be absolutely awesome!.. Reading this blog post made me think - how hard would it be to (bio)engineer a dragon?…
Bloodthirsty butterflies (Amazing parasites, part 3)
In the previous posts of this series we saw the neurosurgeon jewel wasp and the caterpillars changing the color of their host to beautiful shades of red. You didn't really believe that that's all, right?…
Tickle me pink – what makes us ticklish?
The human skin is the biggest organ in our body and is also the biggest sensory organ. It is just as vital sensory organ as our eyes, ears, tongue and nose. Thanks to it, we…
Blushing caterpillars (Amazing parasites, part 2)
Do you know the story of Odysseus - a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. In part of his journey to the underworld, Odysseus had to choose…