Brilliant Bugs

‘Bugs’ is a useful catch-all label that can cover more than just insects. Spiders can be included as well as true bugs such as aphids, cicadas and stink bugs. Lobsters and other crustaceans even get a look-in here too. Arranged in question and answer format, the book presents information in bite-size chunks, generously illustrated and backed up by fact box panels. Questions posed are along the lines of ‘Can insects sing?’, ‘Are ants related to wasps?’, or ‘How does an insect grow?’ Close-up photographs enable you to view the jaws of a preying mantis, the compound eyes of a housefly or the feathery antennae of an atlas moth. We learn that one in three animals species on this planet is a beetle, and that a colony of 40,000 ants has collectively the same number of brain cells as a human. In spite of the bitty presentation, the book has a logical construction, divided into chapters on habitats and homes, senses, survival skills, friend or foe. Colourful, lively and full of variety, the book offers a smorgasbord of information rather than a sustaining meal.