Buzz, Sting, Bite: Why We Need Insects

Description

Insects comprise roughly half of the animal kingdom, and they live everywhere. Most of us think life would be better without bugs. In fact, life would be impossible without them. Without the pinhead-sized chocolate midge, cocoa flowers would not pollinate. The fruit fly is essential to medical and biological research experiments. Insects turn dead plants and animals into soil. They control organisms that are harmful to humans. Sverdrup-Thygeson shows us that there is more variety among insects than we can even imagine, and the more you learn about insects, the more fascinating they become. --;Small creatures, smart design: insect anatomy -- Six-legged sex: dating, mating and parenting -- Eat or be eaten: insects in the food chain -- Insects and plants: a never-ending race -- Busy flies, flavoursome bugs: insects and our food -- The circle of life and death: insects as caretakers -- From silk to shellac: industries of insects -- Life-savers, pioneers and nobel prize-winners: insights from insects -- Insects and us: what's next?.