Aliens Among Us

Did you know that the larvae of the common green bottle fly are sometimes used to heal infections that are resistant to antibiotics? The maggots eat the dead tissue and bacteria in the wound and produce antibacterial secretions that promote healing. Did you know that aphids can give birth to live female nymphs that are already pregnant? And that some ants will protect aphids from predators so they can collect the honeydew that the aphids excrete. I have always been fascinated with bugs, and as a child I would dig up rocks to see what was hiding beneath them. I was captivated by the ant farms advertised in the back of comic books. My interest waned as I grew older, as childhood interests often do, but recently I developed a renewed curiosity and started to photograph them. I’ll watch them for hours on end as they go about their lives, excavating a nest, eating, cleaning, or simply resting. Bugs are quite intriguing when you take the time to observe them. We are all familiar with their alien-like appearance when viewed in microscopic detail, but not so much of what they do throughout their day. I invite you to take a moment (or two!) and see what our little neighbors are up to.