it may often be seen darting across
floors with very great speed
occasionally stopping suddenly and
remaining absolutely motionless
presently to resume its rapid movements
often darting directly at inmates of the
house particularly women evidently with
the desire to conceal itself beneath
their dresses and thus creating much
consternation
description given to this creature by an
entomologist from the United States
Department of Agriculture In 1902 and we
have to admit the creature does indeed
look creepy but as always everything is
so not so simple
foreign
so a house centipede this is a creature
that lives in houses and apartments when
the weather forces it out from under the
leaves to seek a warmer shelter anyone
who stumbled across it at least once
most likely felt the urge to squish this
arthropod with something heavy or at
least scream or both I can't blame you
for that it's a completely
understandable impulse since centipedes
have too many legs for our liking
there's a theory that says that humans
are evolutionarily programmed to fear
creatures with a bunch of legs because
for our distant ancestors seeing them
could mean a painful death from Venom
that's another story house centipedes
not only have 15 pairs of legs they're
also capable of reaching speeds of 1.3
feet per second which is much faster
than you'd expect from such a tiny
creature you see the centipede gets
scared and in just a second you lose
sight of it and this makes it even more
terrifying in general the desire to
squish a centipede is understandable but
you shouldn't do this
despite their intimidating appearance
house centipedes perform an important
function they kill the most unwelcome
pests in your home mobs flies crickets
ants centipedes use two legs right next
to their head to inject Venom and the
rest of them to catch prey this is
called a lassoing technique the
centipede jumps on its prey and wraps it
up with its multiple legs the mandibles
are also used to hold prey actually one
house centipede can grab and hold
several pests at once I know it sounds
creepy but don't think centipedes prey
only on creatures people hate most like
all sorts of creeping bugs how about a
bug that can crawl into your bed and
bite you painfully ruining your sleep
yes it can become prey to centipedes too
and I'm certain you'd appreciate this
Choice since waking up and discovering
you've been bitten is not the most
pleasant experience
centipedes don't make nests or cobwebs
they're considered active hunters and
are constantly seeking out their next
prey also centipedes don't eat wood
cloth or your food nor do they carry
deadly diseases all they need is to hunt
pests in short they're like witchers
from the world of arthropods without
swords or medallions but also feared by
everyone though there's absolutely no
reason for this
house centipedes can't even bite a
person that is in theory they can try
but there's the problem centipedes
simply aren't strong enough to pierce
human skin why would they bite a human
anyway they're always delicious pests
around
how centipedes have a lifespan of three
to seven years depending on the
environment by the third year of Life
they can begin to reproduce so it'll be
nice if you give the poor arthropod a
chance to leave Offspring after all
that'll be a win-win for everyone
but even if dozens or hundreds of
centipedes unexpectedly show up in your
house you shouldn't worry about them at
all no really centipedes are drawn to
pests and since there are so many of
them just think what creatures could be
hiding in your walls and upholstered
furniture to attract so many Monster
Hunters or maybe they're under the
bathtub or in your closet
centipedes are just as good at hunting
termites this is one of their favorite
prey keep in mind termites can be a
really serious issue and if you live in
a region where they're found you can
imagine why it usually starts with the
nest somewhere in the garden which
expands as the termite Colony grows
eventually the termites get inside the
house and then
even if the foundation is made of
concrete they still get what they
consider delicious food termites cause
huge damage by breaking down and eating
anything that contains cellulose their
food of choice is wood but they also
don't mind paper clothing dung mold and
even soil therefore termites are
rightfully considered one of the most
destructive pests the amount of time it
takes for termites to cause serious
damage to your home is determined by the
size of the colony the larger The Colony
the worse a single termite eats about
two percent of its body weight in Wood
daily a medium-sized Colony will cause
serious damage to a house and in three
to five years they can eat the entire
house
and they're damn hard to get rid of
sometimes you even have to demolish the
outer walls or even entire rooms this is
where centipedes come to the rescue
they'll happily hunt termites just like
any other pests by the way cockroaches
which are also not so easy to get rid of
are also on the centipede menu so think
carefully what you'd rather put up with
centipedes that scare you but are
actually helpful or losing the house
wall as it's being devoured from the
inside
but what if it's not termites that annoy
you but for example mice mouse traps
don't help neither do centipedes and
your cat's more afraid of mice than your
granny yep some cats are like that I
know this for certain well as an
alternative you can get a spider the
huntsman spider is one of the most
common spider species found in
Australian homes the leg span of this
spider can reach 6.3 inches of course
when you're that big you can hunt even
mice in 2016 one such spider was seen in
the town of copabella in Queensland it
was dragging a large Mouse somewhere
it's not clear whether the spider killed
the mouse itself or found it already
dead however huntsman spiders don't
build cobwebs instead they prefer to
literally hunt down and kill their prey
so the mouse might as well end up as its
prey why settle for carrion when you're
a tough Hunter
these spiders aren't considered
dangerous to humans although large
individuals can deliver painful bites in
general they're wary of people trying to
stay clear from them the only problem is
that at the same time huntsman spiders
often look for a comfortable place to
settle which is why they get into cars
hide behind sun visors or run around the
dashboard alas not to catch a mouse
while the bite of a huntsman spider can
be simply painful for people in smaller
animals its bite can cause paralysis
this makes it easier for the spider to
digest its prey and that's probably what
happened to that poor Mouse
are these spiders effective against
pests yes would I like to have one
around no actually praying mantises can
also successfully eliminate pests that
damage plants in your garden and bother
you personally but do they actually make
good guards well to some degree
[Music]
despite being voracious and deadly
predators praying mantises are not
entirely useful insects they're just as
likely to eat a harmless butterfly or
Bumblebee as they are to eat a nasty
caterpillar it's not clear which side
they're on praying mantises also prey on
each other so it's unlikely they'll
breed much in your garden even if you
want to introduce them on purpose can't
count on them to stay where you want
them to be praying mantises can have
lunch and then just head out there's
another thing praying mantises might as
well attack house centipedes yes the
ones that scare you but are actually
helpful and here apparently you'll have
to choose which pest fighting Defender
you prefer to have around you can share
your thoughts on that in the comments
huh I know we're talking a lot about
nasty creatures today but I'd like to
mention one more spider after all it's
also immensely helpful to humans if
you're out in the yard and you come
across a big black and yellow spider
chances are good that it's a yellow
garden spider this is a very common
arachnid species found across the United
States and let's be honest it may look
terrifying large size formidable looks
and the Very fact that this is a goddamn
spider or enough to scare you but there
is some good news first this spider will
hardly want to get into your house and
it won't bite you unless of course you
decide to pick it up well even if you do
it's venom is not dangerous to humans
though it is to various pests including
flies and mosquitoes and this is the
second good thing about this spider
actually these insects are like the
staple food of spiders yellow garden
spiders spend their whole lives in the
same place for example under a canopy
and they're very very effective in
Catching anyone who can damage your
garden and bothering you personally well
anyone except for burglars of course
yellow garden spiders feed on hopping or
flying garden pests such as aphids
grasshoppers moths beetles wasps bees
and mosquitoes perhaps if the yellow
garden spiders were larger they'd expand
their diet to include mice well I prefer
them to remain the same size they are
now
however if the idea of using spiders
instead of pesticides seems a bit
troubling to you you can check out a
life hack from Australian Farmers
according to statistics pest insects
cost the Australian Horticulture
industry millions of dollars each year
Pest Control is difficult and expensive
but these shrewers family found a way
out they grow leeks lettuce napa cabbage
and other leafy greens that aphids and
caterpillars love to eat to deal with
them the shrewers family planted other
plants that create a cozy habitat for
brown lacewings ladybugs and a few other
insects these insects eat pests
preventing them from active breeding and
thereby saving plants
well since insects are used instead of
chemicals why not do it on a larger
scale not as an experiment but to get a
real benefit this is what they did in
the Savio Cooperative which is the
leader in tomato production in France
The Cooperative works with 126 producers
and is known for its pesticide-free
crops that is they really use zero
harmful substances today Savio is the
only European producer that has a
running production of auxiliary insects
keep in mind the bug Farm opened a long
time ago back in 1983 auxiliary insects
like bumblebees can control harmful
species such as white flies that circle
around growing plants also bumblebees
ensure efficient pollination in a purely
organic way it's kind of weird that so
far such methods of pest control haven't
spread around the world but okay to the
credit of French Farmers the use of
predatory insects his sword compared to
2015.
and how do you like the idea of using a
beetle as a bio weapon no it's not like
they deliver the insect in a combat zone
to spread deadly diseases we're talking
about a beetle called cryptolamus
mantrazieri it belongs to the ladybug
family and is endemic to Australia the
beetle was imported to the USA back in
1891 to fight mealybugs and it turned
out to be quite good at it one larvae of
cryptolamus can eat up to 250 small
mealy bugs the only problem is the
Beetles are thermophilic and simply
can't survive the cold winter so they
need to be released to get in the spring
but in general these are real biological
Pest Control agents cryptolamus beetles
were also introduced to New Zealand for
Bio control
insects are just as good at dealing with
waste some people even grow them for
this purpose because waste is a real
problem that Humanity has to deal with
all the time for example Singapore
generated 665 000 metric tons of food
waste in 2020 of which only 19 percent
was recycled what could we do about it
feed that waste of fly maggots insecta
is a startup built around this idea the
maggots that participate in the project
eat up to eight tons of food waste per
month including byproducts coming from
soybean factories and breweries it's
proposed to flash dry the maggots and
feed them to farm animals and turn the
excrement of insects into fertilizer
this is the way to extract many valuable
biomaterials from ordinary maggots which
have a good market value in short the
idea seems to be quite good there's one
thing though people really dislike
maggots when it comes to maggots the
first thing people think of is that
maggots are gross or even harmful older
people in order for insects to actually
be involved in the recycling process
something needs to be done about this
attitude
moreover we could also use insects to
deal with excrement yes the world
actually faces a problem related to this
type of waste by 2030 we'll have to deal
with 3.7 billion tons of excrement per
year and this is just accounting for the
feces produced by farm animals most of
this excess poop can be used as
fertilizer for crops however this won't
work from any regions take for example
the Netherlands or Northern Italy where
there's a lot of livestock and little
arable land an alternative is to
transport manure to areas where it's
needed but transportation is always
costly and not everyone's ready to
invest in a business that involves
relocating feces there's another option
you can just feed the feces to insects
in the wild many flies thrive on manure
it contains the right amount of
nutrients and moisture and is a perfect
growing medium for maggots well after
the Flies take care of the manure you
can use the insects to produce animal
feed such a peculiar cycle involving
species
there are of course more well-known ways
insects help us for example flies and
maggots help the police solve up to 60
murders a year if you've watched enough
crime series you probably know how it
works the police need to know when the
victim died in order to accurately
recreate their last movements determine
the last person they talk to and so on
this helps identify the suspect but the
more time passes from the moment of
death the more difficult it is to
determine the circumstances and exact
timeline and this is where insects come
to the rescue entomologist that is
scientists who specialize in studying
insects can determine the time of death
because the decomposing body attracts
flies
I hope you're not having a snack right
now but if you are I'm sorry actually I
should have warned you back when we
started talking about manure
flies lay their eggs in corpses from
which maggots hatch by observing the
life cycle of insects on the corpse and
in its immediate surroundings
entomologists can establish the time of
death with great accuracy well then
everything depends on the police
collecting evidence and other similar
work they don't involve insects at least
for now anyway
what else can we use insects for
oddly enough for weed control releasing
tiny insects to control invasive weeds
really works according to a study by the
U.S department of Agriculture a few
years ago scientists released arundo
Gall wasps and some other insects to see
how they'd handle a weed called giant
Reed which grew along the Rio Grande in
Texas I gotta admit this is one of the
fastest growing land plants in the world
and to make matters worse no animals eat
this weed animals don't even nest in
thickets of giant Reed while it chokes
useful plants the giant Reed also
increases the population of cattle fever
ticks in short that's a typical invasive
species that needs to be dealt with to
accelerate weed removal scientists have
combined mechanically cutting with
insect releases that is people cut the
giant Reed and then let insects handle
it this gave local plant species a head
start to grow and start driving out the
invasive weed and this is a very good
working strategy because the giant Reed
is resistant even to fire it burns well
but then quickly recovers which is why
the contribution of insects is very
important
we also got earthworms of course they
have nothing to do with the giant Reed
earthworms think globally because they
can save the planet by preventing floods
and droughts that is earthworms
themselves hardly realize this here's
how it works floods and droughts are
caused by cycles of dry weather and
Monsoon type rains which are often said
to be caused by global warming the
average worm weighs less than half an
ounce but it can eat through a decent
amount of soil when earthworms dig
tunnels the soil absorbs more water
which means that millions of worms can
turn the earth into one vast sponge the
sponge can absorb water during floods
and retain it during dry periods now
it's up to the farmers to play their
part they can make a huge contribution
to mitigating climate change when the
fields are not plowed the soil is
improved Naturally by tunneling
earthworms all the farmers need to do is
not bother earthworms as they do their
jobs
well we also have to introduce worms to
places that for some reason don't have
enough of them back in 2014 experts
warned that Britain would have to import
millions of earthworms to help restore
Farmland devastated by floods the worms
that lived in the soil were killed by
the weight of the water it simply
removed all the air from the soil and
the worms suffocated it takes at least
twenty four thousand worms to restore an
acre of Farmland by the way this would
cost around twenty four hundred dollars
yes turns out earthworms are quite
expensive think about this every time
you notice these little creatures
crawling out of the ground during the
rain
and then I thought if some creatures can
save the Earth from the effects of
global warming simply by doing what they
do every day then maybe they can do
something about plastic well you know
along the way yes plastic is something
people are producing and insects aren't
supposed to do anything about it but it
turns out they really can help us out
here meet the wax mob a creature that's
considered a parasite for honeybees it
was the honeybees that helped discover
the unique properties of the wax moth
evolutionary biologist Federica
bertuccini was cleaning out the beehives
in her backyard when she removed a few
wax worms and placed them into an old
plastic bag however when the woman
checked the bag again an hour later she
found small holes in it and she
immediately realized what was going on
this Behavior may seem weird if you
haven't studied the waxworm menu in
chemistry wax worms feed on wax and
beehives like plastic wax is a polymer
made up of a long string of carbon atoms
held together that is both wax and
polyethylene have the same carbon
backbone apparently the wax worms simply
evolved a molecule that breaks down wax
and this molecule also works on plastic
in general from the point of view of
evolution the wax moth was not supposed
to be saving the planet it happened by
chance but when scientists ran
experiments in the lab the results were
impressive
each wax worm makes an average of 2.2
holes per hour overnight 100 wax worms
broke down .003 ounces of a plastic
chopping bag at that speed it'd take the
same 100 wax worms almost a month to
completely break down an average .03
ounce plastic bag but the most
interesting thing is that wax worms can
dissolve the plastic even when they're
dead to figure this out the scientists
applied a Liquid Blend of recently
deceased wax worms to the plastic the
blend dissolved the plastic just like
the live worms in short this is a really
useful discovery that can help fight
plastic pollution because so far
scientists are simply suggesting that
Humanity produces less plastic and this
doesn't work too well
and it seems like Nature has realized
that it can't rely on humans to solve
this issue living creatures around the
world are evolving to eat plastic a
recent study scanned over 200 million
genes found in environmental DNA samples
and scientists have found thirty
thousand different enzymes that can
degrade 10 different types of plastic
and if these figures don't tell you
anything let me explain it in a
different way living organisms adjust to
the conditions Humanity creates for them
the increase in plastic production over
the past 70 years from 2 million tons to
380 million tons per year has given
microbes time to evolve to deal with
plastic the researchers say of course
this doesn't mean that people could just
sit and wait for different
microorganisms to do all the work for
them but it's quite possible to use
these tiny workers to learn better ways
to break down plastic microbes will
hardly mind if we help them with this
see you later