Author(s): Erica McAlister

Natural History

Insects are incredibly weird. Their morphology is about as alien to us as you can get without leaving this planet. They outnumber us 200 million to one. Before humans stamped their mark on this planet, insects had shaped it into the colourful and extraordinary world we all share today.Whether it’s the astonishing properties of resilin, the protein that makes fleas jump; the proboscis of the mosquito’s mouth being used to develop smart needles; or the computational dynamics gleaned from studying locust swarms in Africa — Erica McAlister and Adrian Washbourne reveal the wonder of insects, the historical figures who have made great breakthroughs in understanding them, and the increasingly vital role they play in ensuring life, as we know it, continues.