–Anita, 11
Dear Anita,
Ants are pretty good little weightlifters. My friend Rich Zack, a scientist at Washington State University who studies insects, knows a lot about ants. One kind of ant that he has studied can carry up to 20 times its own weight. » More …
-Gianni, 10, Cayman Islands
Dear Gianni,
Our planet is home to more than seven million amazing animal species. While we have our differences, we also have something in common: We are all made up of a bunch of cells. » More …
– Tanya, Pullman, WA
Dear Tanya,
You know it’s springtime when animals start coming out of hibernation. That includes ladybugs that crawl out from their cozy winter hiding places. » More …
Dear Dr. Universe: How do spiders make silk? Also, sometimes spiders hang down from the ceiling, when they climb back up, where does the silk go? –Johnny, 8, Pullman, WA
Dear Johnny,
Spiders can do some amazing things with their sticky, stretchy, and super-strong silk. Us cats are pretty curious about these little silk-spinning machines, too. » More …
What is the smallest insect on Earth? -Laurenz, 8, Molino, Philippines
Dear Laurenz,
When I saw your question, I set out to explore with my bug net and a magnifying glass. I was searching all around for tiny insects when I ran into my friend Laura Lavine, a Washington State University scientist who studies bugs.
She said there are nearly a million different kinds of insects on Earth. The smallest of all the known ones are called fairyflies. » More …
How far can monarch butterflies fly? -Roarna, 9, New Zealand
Dear Roarna,
When cold winters come around, thousands of monarch butterflies begin a long journey in search of warmer weather. Some will fly more than 2,200 miles to find it. » More …
Why do bees make hexagons in their hives? Why not any other shape? -Aditya, 10, New Delhi, India
Dear Aditya,
When bees make hexagons in their hives, the six-sided shapes fit together perfectly. In fact, we’ve actually never seen bees make any other shape. That’s what I found out when I visited my friend Sue Cobey, a bee researcher at Washington State University.
Cobey showed me some honeycombs where the female bees live and work. Hexagons are useful shapes. They can hold the queen bee’s eggs and store the pollen and honey the worker bees bring to the hive.
When you think about it, making circles wouldn’t work too well. It would leave gaps in the honeycomb. The worker bees could use triangles or squares for storage. Those wouldn’t leave gaps. But the hexagon is the strongest, most useful shape. » More …
Do spiders have good eyesight? -Kathryn, Comfort, Texas
Dear Kathryn,
Most spiders have quite a few eyes, but they usually can’t see very well. Then again, seeing isn’t everything. » More …
I saw a caterpillar and a butterfly in the neighbor’s yard. So my question is, what exactly happens inside the little sack they’re in while they transform into a butterfly and HOW exactly do they do it? -Eston
Dear Eston,
Springtime sets the stage for one of the greatest transformations in the natural world.
“It’s the construction of a butterfly or moth from caterpillar soup,” said my friend David James, an entomologist at Washington State University. James studies the science behind metamorphosis, or how a creature transforms. » More …
Why do bees have stuff that looks like hair? The hair on their legs looks like a real hassle, what with all the crud that sticks to it.* -Elliot
That crud is their food, Elliott. That’s what I learned from Steve Sheppard. He studies bees here at WSU. » More …