Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Bugs

Spectacular Footage of a Butterfly Leaving Its Cocoon

The transition from caterpillar to butterfly is a process that consists of four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult

Watch This Mother Tick Lay 1,500 Eggs

The birthing process for a female tick is very involved. Once she’s matured, she can take up to 20 days to lay her eggs

The offspring of mosquitoes like this one could soon be toast thanks to a new trial in Florida.

Trending Today

Florida Officials Will Release Genetically Modified Mosquitoes to Fight Zika

The Florida Keys are the latest front on the war against the virus

Why Do Insects Hate the Smell of Peppermint?

The stick bug primarily depends on its camouflage to avoid predators. But when enemies get too close, this insect deploys peppermint as a last resort

Watch a Bombardier Beetle Mace a Praying Mantis

Praying mantises are adept at ambushing their prey with their specialized legs and swift reflexes

The tongue-eating louse will leave you speechless.

Hollywood Has Nothing on These Real Life Halloween Horror Shows

Face-unfurling, chest-exploding, zombie-making fiends: They’re all around us

Yes, Spiders Eat Spiders

Portia spiders, known for their remarkable intelligence, have some of the most astonishing hunting skills in the arthropod community

Timelapse Footage of a Giant Caterpillar Weaving Its Cocoon

For six weeks, luna moth caterpillars gorge themselves on the leaves of the marula tree. Then, when they’re ready, they instinctively weave giant cocoons

These glow-in-the-dark roaches have the goods.

I Am Officially in Love With Cockroaches

And after you read this, you will be too

Trending Today

Look Out New Yorkers: Hot Weather Makes Roaches Take to the Skies

Ew ew ew ew ew

A silverfish

New Research

Richer Homes Are Also Richer in Biodiversity

Scientists find that wealthier neighborhoods sport a greater diversity of bugs

New anti-Zika measures go way beyond bug spray.

All the Extremely Absurd Ways People Are Fighting Zika at the Rio Olympics

Donning facial masks, wearing Zika-proof uniforms and freezing sperm: Does any of this stuff actually work?

Maratus bubo

Cool Finds

Stunning Images Capture Peacock Spiders’ Flashy Colors

Beautiful and acrobatic, these tiny, vibrant creatures shake their tail fuzz in elaborate mating dances

Being a blood fluke is more popular than you might expect.

How Parasites Became So Popular

A new study finds that parasitism evolved independently 223 times. But that number is actually surprisingly low

Cool Finds

This “Sweaty” Billboard Kills Mosquitoes

Gross gimmick or Zika-fighting innovation?

This bed bug has favorite colors, too.

New Research

Bed Bugs Are Picky About Certain Colors

But don’t buy new sheets just yet

Black widows’ red hourglass tells birds to back off but is almost invisible to insects.

The Deadly Cunning of the Black Widow’s Color Scheme

Why did the spider evolve to have that crimson hourglass on its back?

Cool Finds

The Northeast Prepares for Swarms of Cicadas This Spring

Billions of red-eyed cicadas will emerge from the earth in much of the northeast this spring, part of a 17-year-cycle

The Chilarchaea quellon trap-jaw spider can snap its long chelicerae shut in about a quarter of a millisecond.

Tiny Spiders Are the Fastest Known on Earth

Some trap-jaw spiders can snap their mouths shut with incredible force—in less than a millisecond

An ant of the species Iridomyrmex purpureus (center) lifts a leg in an aggressive display when she encounters ants from a different nest.

Antennae Yield New Clues Into Ant Communication

Despite more than a century of study, scientists still have much more to learn about the complex world of ant communication

Page 10 of 13