• more about #entomology more comments →
    capnrob: I can beat pretty much this entire list when it comes to geekitude: Leigh Van Valen keeps naming species he discovers in *elvish*. Yes. As in ol' J.R.... more »
    Purple Dave: So, how exactly do you pronounce the one that's named after Clarke? Arthurseeklark-ey? Artherklark-ey? Artherkuhklark-ey? Being that it's Latinize... more »
    bonniegrrl: On Starwars.com, I interviewed the scientists who named insects after Star Wars characters like Yoda and Darth Vader if you'd like to read more: [www... more »
    PostMarque: can we get gallery's in a non-gallery option. more »
    Denza Car: WHAT?! No Sclerocypris zelaznyi? [en.wikipedia.org] Really, to ostracize Roger Zelazny like that... more »
    botanicidal: Wow, that is an incredible collection of awesomeness. I'd love to write a thesis on any one of those and then present my findings to an amphitheatre o... more »
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.: Yay cool fun. Nice work, Lauren, must have been a bit tedious. The Vader beetle and the Gamera turtle were the best, I thought. more »
    Grey_Area: This is an incredible list, Lauren! Where did you track down all this stuff? The Sinemys gamera has freakin' WINGS, how awesome is that?! more »
    crashedpc - Haifisch: Yeah, I'd stomp on a trilobite too. "Nede go ape fer Ima!" How quaint. Although I, too, am disappointed by the Cthulhu spider. Seriously. C'mon. more »
    Mount_Prion: Pic 1 = casual dating. Pic 2 = relationship. Pic 3 = marriage. more »
    GitEmSteveDave_My Brute Dojo CDIAFIFE: We use these things on my farm called "Fly Predators". They are little wasps who fly around and lay their eggs in fly larvae. Then then eat the larv... more »
    Belabras: Man, the insect world if freaking terrifying. more »
    Brine: If you want disturbing, check this out: more »
    crashedpc - Haifisch: I... I... *crying* The pictures, they're disturbingly beautiful. more »
    AndrosZ: That second shot is amazing. I feel like they could be having a conversation. And by conversation I mean the ant yelling "WTF?!" at the fly. more »
  • #triviagasm

    30 Real Animals with Science Fiction Names

    It's no secret that many scientists are great fans of science fiction, and sometimes tributes to characters and authors end up in their work. We list 30 species, alive and extinct, that bear scifi-themed names. More »
  • #sciencephotography

    How Would You Like A Giant Poison Stinger Buried Deep Inside Your Brain?

    Here you can see an ant shooting a dose of venom straight into a centipede's head. The centipede is translucent, so you can actually see the stinger in its brain. And there's more. More »
  • #madscience

    Mosquitoes Have the Most Annoying Mating Habits in the Animal Kingdom

    In this video of mosquitoes on the verge of mating, scientists reveal something that laypeople might already have known. Even in the act of love, mosquitoes are really annoying. More »
  • #madscience

    Cocaine Makes You Altruistic, Say Scientists

    Bees that are high on cocaine behave more altruistically than sober bees do. Scientists report today in The Journal of Experimental Biology that coked-up bees are much more enthusiastic about helping other bees find food.
  • #sexualselection

    Why Nature Prefers a Small Man to Mate with a Big Woman

  • #evolution

    A Parasite that Induces Love in its Host

    A Brazilian wasp has evolved a very peculiar mind-control power in order to reproduce: It induces love in a species of caterpillar. The wasp lays its eggs in a baby caterpillar, which grows normally as the eggs grow inside it. Eventually, larvae burst out of the caterpillar's body, and that's when things get weird. The caterpillar covers the larvae with silk, and will protect them quite violently until they are full-grown wasps (you can see that in this picture). In fact, the caterpillar refuses to eat or leave until the wasps hatch. More »