Apiphobia / Entomophobia
Bees, Wasps & Insects
Without bees, our food system collapses. Without wasps, pest insects would overwhelm our gardens. Even the humble cockroach has a story worth hearing.
Bee
The tiny worker holding our food system together
Bumblebees can generate heat by vibrating their flight muscles, and will sometimes warm up cold flowers before collecting pollen — essentially giving the flower a hug.
Wasp
The misunderstood predator keeping your garden alive
Queen wasps hibernate alone through winter, then build an entire colony from a single cell in spring — one of nature's most impressive solo engineering feats.
Cockroach
350 million years of survival — and counting
Madagascar hissing cockroaches are kept as pets around the world. They're clean, docile, hiss by pushing air through breathing holes in their sides, and some people find them genuinely endearing.
Mosquito
The most consequential insect on Earth — for better and worse
Mosquitoes have existed for over 200 million years. They outlasted the dinosaurs — but the males spend their entire lives doing nothing but sipping nectar and pollinating flowers.
Hornet
Bigger and louder than a wasp — but still not out to get you
A single hornet colony can remove tens of thousands of caterpillars, flies, and aphids from a garden over a summer — they're one of the most effective pest controllers in the insect world.
Fire Ant
An insect that forms living rafts and coordinates stings with chemical signals
Fire ant colonies can assemble themselves into bridges, ropes, and waterproof rafts with load-bearing properties engineers are actively studying as models for self-assembling swarm robots.
Praying Mantis
A silent ambush predator in your garden — and one of the few things actively hunting the insects that eat your plants
Praying mantises are sold commercially as biological pest control — gardeners introduce them to naturally reduce aphids, caterpillars, and beetles without chemicals. One of nature's most alien-looking insects is also one of the gardener's most willing allies.
Bullet Ant
The world's most painful insect sting is voluntarily endured in Amazonian coming-of-age ceremonies — and causes no lasting harm
The Sateré-Mawé bullet ant glove ceremony has been completed by thousands of young men over generations — 10 minutes wearing gloves full of angry bullet ants. It's an endurance test, not a medical procedure, and every participant survives.
Centipede
Can deliver a painful bite and hunts prey far smaller than you — and poses essentially no serious medical risk to healthy adults
House centipedes do active pest control work every night — eating spiders, cockroaches, termites, silverfish, and bed bugs with equal enthusiasm. One of nature's most alarming-looking guests is also one of the most useful.