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(light dramatic music)
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Tonight, there's magic in the air.
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(light music)
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Insects in search of partners.
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The world is a very big place,
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and insects are very small.
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To make more insects,
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they somehow have to find each other.
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No matter how hard it is or how far.
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But they're obviously really good at it.
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Insects have been around for hundreds of millions of years.
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In that time,
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they've evolved all kinds of ingenious ways
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to make sure partners get together
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and to guarantee the survival of future generations.
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(light music continues)
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(gulls cawing)
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There are a few places on the planet where insects
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can really achieve their true potential.
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(light music)
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Like Mono Lake,
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high in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.
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The water here is so alkaline
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not many creatures can survive at all.
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But try telling that to one particular kind of insect.
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(flies buzzing)
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Brine flies, they breed in numbers that defy belief.
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They blacken the shores in their hundreds of millions.
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(flies buzzing)
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And they fill the air with dense clouds.
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An all you can eat buffet for the locals.
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(gulls cawing)
(light dramatic music)
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California gulls gorge themselves on clouds of flies.
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(light dramatic music continues)
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But they make no impact at all on their numbers.
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(flies buzzing)
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This alien landscape is the realm of insects,
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but insects everywhere are very,
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very good at making more insects.
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Especially when we provide them with five star
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board and lodging.
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(light dramatic music)
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These green bottle fly's eggs will hatch and grow
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and transform into pupae in just a few days,
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A couple more days and the next generation
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is ready to emerge from the pupae.
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An inflatable forehead breaks through the tough outer case.
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(ominous music)
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And these flies are ready to start the whole process again.
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(flies buzzing)
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Each female can lay 2,000 eggs in her lifetime.
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Eggs that will soon turn into more flies that can each lay
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2,000 eggs of their own.
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If none died, in just two generations,
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that's two million flies.
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(ominous music)
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(flies buzzing)
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All insect populations could reach such unimaginable
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numbers, but thankfully,
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most of their offspring don't survive.
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Otherwise we'd all be knee deep in insects.
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It's not always this easy.
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For many insects, even finding a partner
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can be a real problem.
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Emperor moths live on open heathland.
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The terrain is endless.
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The nearest partner could be miles away.
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Somehow, two tiny moths must find each other
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across a vast featureless landscape.
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No problem.
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The female moth releases a scent,
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a sex pheromone from an organ at the tip of her abdomen.
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(light music)
(air whooshing)
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Caught on the breeze, it drifts down wind
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until it's picked up by a sophisticated tracking system;
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a male emperor moth's antenna
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They're branched like feathers,
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which gives them an enormous surface area.
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Combining micro x-ray techniques with data
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from a scanning electron microscope,
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we can see these structures in intricate detail.
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They're covered in tiny hairs.
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They trap any pheromone molecules wafting past the antennae.
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Nerve fibers run inside each hair,
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and when a pheromone molecule is trapped on the hair's
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surface, it triggers the nerve to fire a signal.
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A male moth's antennae can detect
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a single molecule of the pheromone.
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Sensitive enough to smell a female more than a mile away.
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(light music)
(birds chirping)
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But he doesn't react until he detects more of her scent
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until he's certain she's in range.
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He flies upwind tracking the scent plume wherever it leads.
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Many kinds of insects use sex pheromones,
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but each is different.
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So each male knows he's tracking
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a female of his own species.
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The further a male travels,
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the stronger the scent becomes.
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Triggering more and more hairs on his antennae.
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Drawing him further and further upwind towards the source.
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A virgin female.
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But not for much longer.
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(light music continues)
(wings rustling)
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It all seems so simple, but it's not foolproof.
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(birds chirping)
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The scent of a female wasp is drifting
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through this Australian woodland,
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and it's been picked up by a male.
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It certainly smells right for his species.
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So he sets off on the trail of a female.
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(light dramatic music)
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Or so he thinks.
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But he's going to be disappointed.
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The scent is coming from the flower of a wasp orchid.
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Still, it definitely smells like a female wasp.
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So worth a try.
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He tries to mate with the flower, and in his passion,
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a packet of the orchid's pollen gets stuck to his back.
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Another flower and the poor wasp is fooled again.
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This time he scrapes off some of the pollen
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and pollinates the flower.
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Another successful mating,
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but not for the wasp.
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(light music continues)
(birds chirping)
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So maybe there's a more secure way
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to send messages over long distances.
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Light travels a long way and is easily seen at night.
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And it's not at the mercy of the wind
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or of deceitful orchids.
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(crickets chirping)
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(light music)
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In their search for romance
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some insects put on spectacular light shows.
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(light music continues)
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Fireflies light up the evening forests.
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There might be a dozen or more different kinds
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in this one forest, all signaling for a mate.
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So, to avoid confusion,
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every species needs its own unique code.
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Each kind of male flashes at different rates
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and at different intervals.
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Insects invented morse code long before we did.
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When a female sees a pattern she recognizes,
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she signals back to identify herself.
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And she must also use the correct code for her species.
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That way a male knows he's closing in
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on one of his own kind.
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(light music continues)
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The males of some fireflies synchronize their flashing.
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Each male is triggered by his neighbors to light his own
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lantern and waves of illumination ripple through the forest.
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(light music continues)
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Seen over the course of the night,
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fireflies paint the forest below
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and stars paint the sky above.
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(light music continues)
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Coded signals can also be sent with sound.
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(bugs chirping)
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After dark, these forests in India are alive
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with the love songs of insects.
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But this tree cricket has a problem;
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to attract a mate, he needs to make himself heard.
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To stand out above the din.
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Still, he has a plan.
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He cuts a hole in the center of a carefully selected leaf.
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Then he lines up his wings with the hole and sings.
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(crickets chirping)
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The leaf works as a baffle.
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It stops the sound coming from the rear of his wings
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from interfering with the sound coming from the front.
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(crickets chirping)
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It makes his song much louder,
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so it penetrates further through the noisy forest night.
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He's one of the very few insects
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that have learned to use tools.
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And it works.
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A female is impressed by his efforts.
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After mating, he even offers her dinner;
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a secretion from glands between his wings
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that are packed with nutritious food.
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It will help her produce bigger and better eggs.
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(bugs chirping)
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It's important for a female to choose the best male
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to father the next generation.
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For a tree cricket, the volume of the male's song
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is a good guide.
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(crickets chirping)
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(thunder rumbling)
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How else can you decide on your perfect partner?
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Female stag beetles leave nothing to chance.
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(thunder rumbling)
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(light dramatic music)
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They expect their partners to prove themselves in combat.
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Male stag beetles grow their mandibles to sizes out of all
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proportion to their bodies, just to impress females.
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(suspenseful music)
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(light dramatic music)
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They use their mandibles like a stag uses
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his antlers to fight a duel.
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(light dramatic music continues)
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(thunder rumbling)
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Only winners get to mate,
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so evolution has favored ever larger jaws
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and bigger heads packed with powerful muscles.
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(light dramatic music continues)
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And it's not just female beetles that want
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to pick the winner.
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(woman speaking foreign language)
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These fights are so spectacular that across many Asian
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countries they've become a kind of sport.
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(light dramatic music)
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Many of these gladiators are collected
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from local rainforests,
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but some come from breeders that hope
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to raise champion fighters.
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(both speaking foreign language)
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Bets are placed, sometimes worth a thousand dollars or more.
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(light dramatic music)
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(suspenseful music)
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For the beetles, the loser is the lucky one;
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he's returned to the rainforest
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while the winner will face another contest.
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(light music)
(birds chirping)
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There are more genteel ways to impress a lady.
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In late summer the air is full of the songs of grasshoppers.
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Of many different kinds.
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(grasshoppers trilling)
(light music continues)
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Each species sings its own distinct song
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in this grassland chorus
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to attract females of his own kind.
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(grasshoppers trilling)
(birds chirping)
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But for this rufous grasshopper, a song alone isn't enough.
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He needs to perform a whole song and dance routine.
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His black and white tipped antennae
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and his conspicuous mouth parts are all part
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of his dance regalia.
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(grasshoppers trilling)
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First a twirl with his mouth parts.
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Then a bow with his antennae.
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(grasshoppers trilling)
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The female is obviously impressed.
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She sings her own song,
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and its meaning is pretty obvious.
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(bottle popping)
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(light music)
(birds chirping)
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Dancing is all the more effective with flamboyant costumes.
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In the rainforests of Central America
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both sexes of the paddle-legged mosquito
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wear sparkling blue plumes on their legs.
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When a male lands close to a female,
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he waves his colorful legs to impress her.
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If she likes what she sees, she invites him to mate.
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(light music continues)
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Then the female leaves him to find a tree hole
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filled with water.
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She flicks her eggs inside one at a time
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with thoughtless accuracy,
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Some insects can't afford to waste time
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on a romantic courtship.
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(light music)
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A male ivy bee, and he has a problem.
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Female ivy bees only mate once,
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so he's going to have to look sharp.
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The trouble is there are rival males
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emerging all around him.
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(bees buzzing)
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Male ivy bees emerge from their burrows before the females.
269
00:25:32,300 --> 00:25:35,540
And soon the air is full of hopeful bees
270
00:25:36,500 --> 00:25:40,015
all waiting to spot the first female.
271
00:25:40,015 --> 00:25:42,375
(bees buzzing)
272
00:25:42,375 --> 00:25:44,875
(light music)
273
00:26:01,220 --> 00:26:02,963
When a female does emerge,
274
00:26:06,060 --> 00:26:10,510
she's pounced on by dozens of eager males
275
00:26:10,510 --> 00:26:12,293
all desperate to mate.
276
00:26:12,293 --> 00:26:17,293
(dramatic music)
(bees buzzing)
277
00:26:17,330 --> 00:26:21,930
In their frenzy these bees form mating balls.
278
00:26:21,930 --> 00:26:24,603
Sometimes of dozens of male bees.
279
00:26:27,998 --> 00:26:30,790
And somewhere inside the creche, a female.
280
00:26:48,380 --> 00:26:51,470
Eventually, one lucky male wins,
281
00:26:51,470 --> 00:26:52,713
usually the biggest.
282
00:26:53,645 --> 00:26:55,090
(bees buzzing)
283
00:26:55,090 --> 00:26:58,053
The female didn't have to work too hard to find a mate.
284
00:26:59,170 --> 00:27:03,433
All she had to do was to stick her head above ground.
285
00:27:05,110 --> 00:27:09,840
But now she has to dig herself a nest burrow all on her own
286
00:27:10,700 --> 00:27:14,563
while the males hang around for their next opportunity.
287
00:27:15,555 --> 00:27:20,460
(bees buzzing)
(birds chirping)
288
00:27:20,460 --> 00:27:23,390
Having a big get together like this certainly makes
289
00:27:23,390 --> 00:27:25,653
finding a partner a lot easier,
290
00:27:26,730 --> 00:27:28,970
but sometimes even the biggest gatherings
291
00:27:28,970 --> 00:27:30,703
still face problems.
292
00:27:34,340 --> 00:27:36,603
The River Danube in Hungary.
293
00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:43,280
These mayflies have spent a year on the bottom of the river
294
00:27:43,280 --> 00:27:46,930
feeding and now they emerge from the water
295
00:27:48,480 --> 00:27:50,207
and turn into adults.
296
00:27:50,207 --> 00:27:52,707
(light music)
297
00:27:54,090 --> 00:27:57,667
They'll only live for this one night, but what a night.
298
00:28:04,340 --> 00:28:09,191
As dusk falls, an insect orgy begins.
299
00:28:09,191 --> 00:28:12,524
(light music continues)
300
00:28:17,244 --> 00:28:20,744
Millions of mayflies dance over the river.
301
00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:26,143
Their only purpose is to breed and make more mayflies.
302
00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:32,450
Mayflies have been around since before
303
00:28:32,450 --> 00:28:34,313
the time of the dinosaurs,
304
00:28:35,680 --> 00:28:38,713
but today they face a very modern problem.
305
00:28:41,350 --> 00:28:43,880
Bright lights on bridges over the river
306
00:28:43,880 --> 00:28:46,383
draw them away from their dances.
307
00:28:51,380 --> 00:28:53,743
It's a blizzard of mayflies.
308
00:28:57,690 --> 00:29:00,900
Many crash onto the road and will die here
309
00:29:01,850 --> 00:29:04,313
without ever getting a chance to breed.
310
00:29:06,222 --> 00:29:11,222
(traffic humming)
(light music)
311
00:29:14,098 --> 00:29:15,380
In the last few years,
312
00:29:15,380 --> 00:29:17,720
even brighter lights have been installed
313
00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:20,363
below the bridges.
314
00:29:23,500 --> 00:29:26,023
Now the mayflies are drawn to these,
315
00:29:33,370 --> 00:29:36,230
but the new lights have been specially designed to keep
316
00:29:36,230 --> 00:29:39,360
the mayflies over the river where
317
00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:41,333
they can fulfill their life's mission.
318
00:29:42,244 --> 00:29:44,827
(light music)
319
00:29:51,180 --> 00:29:54,870
After mating, females dip onto the water's surface
320
00:29:54,870 --> 00:29:56,310
to release their eggs.
321
00:30:07,120 --> 00:30:12,033
Eventually, exhausted, they can no longer take off again.
322
00:30:13,150 --> 00:30:16,760
They've only been adults for a few brief hours,
323
00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:18,023
but their job is done.
324
00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:24,890
Billions of eggs sink to the riverbed
325
00:30:26,110 --> 00:30:29,983
where they'll soon hatch into the next generation of larvae.
326
00:30:35,060 --> 00:30:38,470
For most insects, reproduction simply depends
327
00:30:38,470 --> 00:30:40,494
on huge numbers.
328
00:30:40,494 --> 00:30:44,590
(car horn honking)
(traffic humming)
329
00:30:44,590 --> 00:30:46,953
Lay hundreds or thousands of eggs,
330
00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:52,808
abandon them to their fate, and hope a few survive.
331
00:30:52,808 --> 00:30:56,308
(dramatic rhythmic music)
332
00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:03,560
This female vapourer moth is nothing more
333
00:31:03,560 --> 00:31:05,423
than a bag of eggs.
334
00:31:09,150 --> 00:31:13,643
She has no wings and only lives long enough to lay her eggs.
335
00:31:16,300 --> 00:31:19,800
But insects can improve the odds for the next generation
336
00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:24,063
by being careful where they lay their eggs.
337
00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:32,670
A lackey moth arranges hers in a precise band
338
00:31:32,670 --> 00:31:35,530
around a twig of the bush she knows
339
00:31:35,530 --> 00:31:37,163
her caterpillars will eat.
340
00:31:49,080 --> 00:31:51,040
A large white butterfly stacks
341
00:31:51,040 --> 00:31:53,930
hers neatly under a cabbage leaf;
342
00:31:53,930 --> 00:31:56,023
her caterpillar's favorite food.
343
00:32:11,120 --> 00:32:14,410
This Necroscia stick insect makes sure no one
344
00:32:14,410 --> 00:32:16,333
will ever find her eggs.
345
00:32:17,370 --> 00:32:21,153
She holds each huge egg at the tip of her abdomen.
346
00:32:23,060 --> 00:32:27,603
It looks as tough as nails and that's exactly how it's used.
347
00:32:31,100 --> 00:32:34,443
The stick insect hammers it into the trunk of a tree.
348
00:32:40,050 --> 00:32:44,640
Once she's made a dent, she screws the egg into the wood
349
00:32:49,130 --> 00:32:50,993
until it's completely hidden.
350
00:32:57,320 --> 00:33:00,550
A green lacewing has an even more ingenious way
351
00:33:00,550 --> 00:33:01,943
of hiding her eggs.
352
00:33:08,110 --> 00:33:11,840
She lays each one onto the end of a strand of silk
353
00:33:14,080 --> 00:33:16,613
so they aren't noticed by marauding ants.
354
00:33:22,400 --> 00:33:26,323
The eggs themselves are like mini survival capsules.
355
00:33:27,270 --> 00:33:29,210
Magnified a hundred times
356
00:33:30,310 --> 00:33:32,483
they're exquisitely engineered.
357
00:33:33,550 --> 00:33:36,823
Reinforced with struts and braces for strength.
358
00:33:40,090 --> 00:33:43,370
Inside this egg of a large white butterfly,
359
00:33:43,370 --> 00:33:46,253
a tiny caterpillar is developing and growing.
360
00:33:50,100 --> 00:33:52,967
In less than a week it fills the whole egg.
361
00:33:58,090 --> 00:34:03,023
Its soon so big it has to fold in half just to fit inside.
362
00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:08,793
Now it's time to hatch.
363
00:34:18,250 --> 00:34:22,387
When they emerge, most young insects are on their own.
364
00:34:23,245 --> 00:34:25,665
(light music)
365
00:34:25,665 --> 00:34:28,998
(light dramatic music)
366
00:34:42,240 --> 00:34:44,013
They might look tiny and frail,
367
00:34:46,730 --> 00:34:49,400
but they have plenty of tricks to help them survive
368
00:34:49,400 --> 00:34:51,103
in the big, bad world.
369
00:35:00,160 --> 00:35:04,595
If you're a caterpillar, try not to look like a tasty grub.
370
00:35:04,595 --> 00:35:07,095
(light music)
371
00:35:11,580 --> 00:35:14,683
Spines and hairs put off some predators,
372
00:35:23,140 --> 00:35:26,423
but some take the whole disguise thing to extremes.
373
00:35:31,260 --> 00:35:33,463
These really are caterpillars.
374
00:35:41,310 --> 00:35:44,643
A lot of the time young insects do just fine,
375
00:35:47,380 --> 00:35:51,433
but not all insect parents are so remiss.
376
00:35:53,130 --> 00:35:55,853
Some go to a lot more effort.
377
00:36:00,140 --> 00:36:04,010
In North America, this wasp is busy digging out
378
00:36:04,010 --> 00:36:06,193
a burrow to serve as a nest.
379
00:36:11,570 --> 00:36:13,920
Once it's finished, she'll stock it
380
00:36:13,920 --> 00:36:17,343
with a lifetime supply of food for her larva.
381
00:36:25,320 --> 00:36:28,403
These wasps are called cicada killers.
382
00:36:29,635 --> 00:36:32,968
(light dramatic music)
383
00:36:34,650 --> 00:36:37,243
So it's no surprise she hunts cicadas.
384
00:36:39,650 --> 00:36:41,113
But she's not a killer.
385
00:36:49,250 --> 00:36:52,513
She stings them with a venom that paralyzes them.
386
00:36:56,040 --> 00:36:59,070
They won't die, not just yet.
387
00:36:59,070 --> 00:37:00,923
They'll stay nice and fresh,
388
00:37:01,880 --> 00:37:03,913
but they can't escape their fate.
389
00:37:08,150 --> 00:37:11,163
They'll be eaten alive by a wasp grub.
390
00:37:13,100 --> 00:37:16,603
Each larva will need several cicadas to sustain it,
391
00:37:18,140 --> 00:37:20,733
and each nest contains several larvae.
392
00:37:24,080 --> 00:37:28,130
So she has plenty of work to do ferrying cicadas
393
00:37:28,130 --> 00:37:29,383
back to the burrow.
394
00:37:35,100 --> 00:37:37,400
She can even fly with her prey,
395
00:37:37,400 --> 00:37:40,280
even though it might weigh twice as much as she does.
396
00:37:51,120 --> 00:37:55,690
When she's finished, the undead cicadas are sealed
397
00:37:55,690 --> 00:37:57,493
in what will become their tomb.
398
00:37:59,585 --> 00:38:02,335
(dramatic music)
399
00:38:09,150 --> 00:38:13,723
And she starts the whole exhausting task over again.
400
00:38:15,879 --> 00:38:17,870
(light music)
401
00:38:17,870 --> 00:38:21,690
Half a world away, on the plains of Africa,
402
00:38:21,690 --> 00:38:24,840
the big things are busy providing more opportunities
403
00:38:24,840 --> 00:38:26,263
for the little things.
404
00:38:37,766 --> 00:38:40,100
(light dramatic music)
405
00:38:40,100 --> 00:38:44,573
Adult dung beetles feast on dung, and so do their lavae.
406
00:38:51,160 --> 00:38:53,520
And this pile is plenty to feed both
407
00:38:53,520 --> 00:38:55,913
the beetles and their next generation.
408
00:38:57,100 --> 00:39:00,163
But it's not the endless feast that it might look.
409
00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:06,283
There's a mad scramble for any fresh offering.
410
00:39:09,110 --> 00:39:12,043
What's needed is a way to avoid the crush.
411
00:39:16,090 --> 00:39:18,900
Each beetle parcels up dung into a ball
412
00:39:18,900 --> 00:39:21,580
that can be rolled away from the crowd
413
00:39:21,580 --> 00:39:23,313
to a more secluded spot.
414
00:39:33,040 --> 00:39:35,770
To avoid going round in circles,
415
00:39:35,770 --> 00:39:38,693
a dung beetle uses the sun as a compass,
416
00:39:39,580 --> 00:39:42,773
even compensating for its passage across the sky.
417
00:39:46,170 --> 00:39:49,573
In this way, it follows as straight a line as possible.
418
00:39:53,860 --> 00:39:56,650
This male is joined by a female who follows him
419
00:39:56,650 --> 00:39:58,573
and his precious ball of dung.
420
00:40:03,570 --> 00:40:05,420
And they keep going through the night
421
00:40:07,100 --> 00:40:08,943
using the Milky Way as a guide.
422
00:40:18,470 --> 00:40:21,230
Eventually, the two beetles bury the ball
423
00:40:21,230 --> 00:40:22,703
and she lays an egg.
424
00:40:26,150 --> 00:40:29,230
The female stays with the ball to keep the grub growing
425
00:40:29,230 --> 00:40:31,293
insides safe from harm.
426
00:40:33,736 --> 00:40:35,290
(birds chirping)
427
00:40:35,290 --> 00:40:37,760
Across the plains of Africa,
428
00:40:37,760 --> 00:40:40,950
game herds are converting plants into food
429
00:40:40,950 --> 00:40:43,803
for many different kinds of dug beetles.
430
00:40:45,457 --> 00:40:47,810
(light dramatic music)
431
00:40:47,810 --> 00:40:50,670
And antelope dung comes in neatly packaged,
432
00:40:50,670 --> 00:40:53,740
handy, rollable balls.
433
00:40:53,740 --> 00:40:56,870
So convenient that this dung beetle specializes
434
00:40:56,870 --> 00:40:59,493
in burying antelope dung for its larvae.
435
00:41:06,120 --> 00:41:08,923
But sadly, this beetle's been duped.
436
00:41:10,010 --> 00:41:12,163
He's not rolling dung at all.
437
00:41:16,340 --> 00:41:20,670
The seeds of this South African plant look and smell exactly
438
00:41:20,670 --> 00:41:22,053
like antelope dung.
439
00:41:23,760 --> 00:41:26,440
Enough to convince a dung beetle to roll
440
00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:28,113
them away from the plant.
441
00:41:30,170 --> 00:41:33,910
The seeds are rock hard and will provide no sustenance
442
00:41:33,910 --> 00:41:34,843
for its larvae,
443
00:41:36,240 --> 00:41:38,750
but the beetles are so completely fooled
444
00:41:38,750 --> 00:41:41,113
that they bury the plant seeds anyway.
445
00:41:42,460 --> 00:41:45,056
The perfect little gardeners.
446
00:41:45,056 --> 00:41:49,130
(light dramatic music)
(wind whistling)
447
00:41:49,130 --> 00:41:52,363
Some dung beetles have abandoned dung altogether.
448
00:41:55,900 --> 00:41:59,440
This species feeds its young on millipede flesh,
449
00:41:59,440 --> 00:42:00,340
which is a problem
450
00:42:02,130 --> 00:42:05,393
because it can't kill a millipede by itself.
451
00:42:14,100 --> 00:42:16,562
It needs to hire an assassin.
452
00:42:16,562 --> 00:42:19,562
(suspenseful music)
453
00:42:25,400 --> 00:42:28,083
Millipede assassin bugs.
454
00:42:32,903 --> 00:42:35,653
(dramatic music)
455
00:42:43,130 --> 00:42:47,310
Assassin bugs even work together to overpower
456
00:42:47,310 --> 00:42:49,173
a really big millipede.
457
00:42:54,251 --> 00:42:57,251
(suspenseful music)
458
00:43:00,610 --> 00:43:03,363
They stab it with their sharp mouth parts,
459
00:43:07,330 --> 00:43:10,283
then they injected with fast acting lethal toxins.
460
00:43:20,140 --> 00:43:22,170
Once they've finished,
461
00:43:22,170 --> 00:43:24,763
there's still plenty left for the beetle family.
462
00:43:33,220 --> 00:43:36,880
It uses its webbed shaped head and powerful legs
463
00:43:36,880 --> 00:43:40,273
to separate the millipede into convenient chunks;
464
00:43:41,860 --> 00:43:45,463
small enough to bury, but big enough to feed its larvae.
465
00:43:47,654 --> 00:43:50,790
(light dramatic music)
466
00:43:50,790 --> 00:43:55,123
And maybe a little bit more appetizing than dung.
467
00:43:58,688 --> 00:44:02,000
(light music)
(birds chirping)
468
00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:05,093
Family life among insects takes on many forms.
469
00:44:12,070 --> 00:44:14,240
There are even tender moments happening
470
00:44:14,240 --> 00:44:16,106
right under our feet.
471
00:44:16,106 --> 00:44:18,773
(ominous music)
472
00:44:24,860 --> 00:44:27,943
The common earwig is a model parent.
473
00:44:31,400 --> 00:44:33,313
Mother tends the eggs,
474
00:44:34,580 --> 00:44:39,580
cleaning them and keeping them free from mold and infection.
475
00:44:51,090 --> 00:44:53,950
She sits with them like a bird on the nest,
476
00:44:53,950 --> 00:44:58,383
protecting them from danger like centipedes.
477
00:45:05,230 --> 00:45:09,823
And if anything threatens her clutch, she'll defend them.
478
00:45:11,094 --> 00:45:14,344
(light dramatic music)
479
00:45:16,680 --> 00:45:18,183
She's having none of it.
480
00:45:21,340 --> 00:45:23,763
Her sharp pincers soon see it off.
481
00:45:30,720 --> 00:45:33,373
But just to make sure her clutch is safe,
482
00:45:34,290 --> 00:45:39,290
she now moves her eggs, one by one, to a quieter spot.
483
00:45:45,533 --> 00:45:48,783
(light dramatic music)
484
00:45:53,651 --> 00:45:57,180
(birds chirping)
485
00:45:57,180 --> 00:46:00,100
Thorn bugs raise their families out in the open
486
00:46:00,100 --> 00:46:02,123
where it's even more dangerous.
487
00:46:13,350 --> 00:46:15,713
Mother stands guard over her brood.
488
00:46:17,190 --> 00:46:19,113
She has to be really alert.
489
00:46:22,536 --> 00:46:24,160
(ominous music)
490
00:46:24,160 --> 00:46:27,630
The biggest threats to her family are predatory wasps
491
00:46:29,090 --> 00:46:32,240
always on the lookout for fresh meat.
492
00:46:32,240 --> 00:46:35,740
(ominous music continues)
493
00:46:47,070 --> 00:46:49,030
If the family senses danger,
494
00:46:49,030 --> 00:46:54,030
they drum on the twig by jumping up and down all together.
495
00:47:05,100 --> 00:47:08,283
Their mother responds immediately to their distress call.
496
00:47:11,060 --> 00:47:12,985
First, a warning.
497
00:47:12,985 --> 00:47:15,720
(wings rustling)
498
00:47:15,720 --> 00:47:16,633
A wing buzz.
499
00:47:17,613 --> 00:47:20,160
(light dramatic music)
500
00:47:20,160 --> 00:47:22,325
Back off or else.
501
00:47:22,325 --> 00:47:24,992
(wings buzzing)
502
00:47:29,000 --> 00:47:31,173
She's armed with a sharp thorn,
503
00:47:35,690 --> 00:47:37,790
but that's not her most impressive weapon.
504
00:47:41,479 --> 00:47:44,812
(light dramatic music)
505
00:47:55,114 --> 00:47:57,864
She's a highly skilled kickboxer.
506
00:48:02,020 --> 00:48:06,936
She draws her leg back and kicks.
507
00:48:06,936 --> 00:48:09,686
(dramatic music)
508
00:48:17,190 --> 00:48:20,520
It's so fast that even slowed down 40 times
509
00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:22,523
the action is just a blur.
510
00:48:24,081 --> 00:48:26,050
(dramatic music)
511
00:48:26,050 --> 00:48:28,120
She hits with such a powerful blow
512
00:48:29,700 --> 00:48:31,623
she leaves the wasp reeling.
513
00:48:35,470 --> 00:48:37,233
If she wasn't so vigilant,
514
00:48:39,250 --> 00:48:42,223
predators would soon eat her entire family.
515
00:48:45,960 --> 00:48:48,680
But there is a way to avoid all this stress
516
00:48:51,120 --> 00:48:54,033
and still make sure your babies are well protected;
517
00:48:58,680 --> 00:49:00,143
employ babysitters.
518
00:49:03,330 --> 00:49:06,913
Or, in the case of imperial blue hair streaks,
519
00:49:08,120 --> 00:49:10,090
more like a well armed security force
520
00:49:16,150 --> 00:49:17,993
of rainbow ants.
521
00:49:22,280 --> 00:49:25,880
These butterflies can even recognize the right species
522
00:49:25,880 --> 00:49:29,540
of ant and won't lay eggs on trees
523
00:49:29,540 --> 00:49:31,813
without the right babysitters.
524
00:49:33,952 --> 00:49:36,170
(light dramatic music)
(bugs trilling)
525
00:49:36,170 --> 00:49:38,410
As soon as they're laid, the eggs
526
00:49:38,410 --> 00:49:41,580
have ant guards standing over them.
527
00:49:41,580 --> 00:49:44,530
And once they hatch, the caterpillars are never
528
00:49:44,530 --> 00:49:47,643
without an ant escort wherever they go.
529
00:49:50,350 --> 00:49:53,343
But the ants don't provide this service for free.
530
00:49:55,620 --> 00:49:59,770
The caterpillars have special organs that produce food
531
00:49:59,770 --> 00:50:02,513
packed with essential nutrients for the ants.
532
00:50:11,100 --> 00:50:13,570
In return, the ants defend the caterpillars
533
00:50:13,570 --> 00:50:16,801
against any other insects that come too close.
534
00:50:16,801 --> 00:50:20,051
(light dramatic music)
535
00:50:47,230 --> 00:50:51,363
Even when they turn into pupae they still produce ant food,
536
00:50:52,430 --> 00:50:54,663
so the ants continue to guard them.
537
00:50:56,030 --> 00:50:59,800
Imperial blues can pupate out in the open
538
00:50:59,800 --> 00:51:03,623
and in big groups thanks to their guards.
539
00:51:05,470 --> 00:51:07,420
And when they emerge,
540
00:51:07,420 --> 00:51:10,460
the butterflies don't have far to look
541
00:51:10,460 --> 00:51:12,343
for willing babysitters.
542
00:51:14,891 --> 00:51:17,190
(light dramatic music)
543
00:51:17,190 --> 00:51:19,770
But the earwig has to face the trials
544
00:51:19,770 --> 00:51:22,083
of parenthood on her own.
545
00:51:29,140 --> 00:51:30,863
She's more than up to it.
546
00:51:31,860 --> 00:51:34,783
Her maternal instinct is as powerful as any.
547
00:51:41,120 --> 00:51:43,923
She puts everything into raising her family,
548
00:51:44,970 --> 00:51:48,815
even though earwig toddlers can be quite a handful.
549
00:51:48,815 --> 00:51:52,898
(light dramatic music continues)
550
00:51:56,100 --> 00:51:58,080
If they stray too far,
551
00:51:58,080 --> 00:52:00,310
she gently coaxes them back home
552
00:52:00,310 --> 00:52:02,033
with touches from her antennae.
553
00:52:06,670 --> 00:52:11,193
She even carries them like a tiny cat with its kittens.
554
00:52:12,658 --> 00:52:16,741
(light dramatic music continues)
555
00:52:19,170 --> 00:52:22,310
And she feeds them on predigested food
556
00:52:22,310 --> 00:52:25,953
until they're old enough to venture into the big wide world.
557
00:52:33,640 --> 00:52:37,733
It's a touching sight, such a gentle mother.
558
00:52:42,090 --> 00:52:46,140
She's just one example of the ingenious ways that insects
559
00:52:46,140 --> 00:52:48,880
have evolved to make sure the next generation
560
00:52:49,730 --> 00:52:52,484
have the best start in life.
561
00:52:52,484 --> 00:52:54,984
(light music)
562
00:52:57,120 --> 00:53:00,970
They've been producing generation after generation like this
563
00:53:00,970 --> 00:53:04,173
for well over 400 million years.
564
00:53:06,070 --> 00:53:09,670
Over that time they've turned planet earth
565
00:53:09,670 --> 00:53:11,430
into planet insect
566
00:53:13,420 --> 00:53:16,980
thanks to the unparalleled ability of insects
567
00:53:16,980 --> 00:53:18,993
to make more insects.
568
00:53:18,993 --> 00:53:22,326
(light music continues)
569
00:53:55,997 --> 00:53:59,330
(light dramatic music)
43046
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