Some of the most numerous fossils that have survived into the modern age are those coiled, ridged shells left behind by ammonites. Indeed, many rocks between 66 and 200 million years old seem to comprise little else but the mineralised remains of these prehistoric cephalopods. It seems that for a vast period of time, ammonites were among the most abundant of all marine creatures.
Generally speaking, spiders and water do not mix. If you’re an arachnophobe, ponds might therefore seem like a reasonably safe place to go to avoid eight-legged critters. There are, however, a small number of British spiders that are adapted to life on, and even in, the water.
Halloween is almost upon us, so The Nature Nook will be looking at creatures with more macabre and sinister behaviours than usual. We’ll be starting off proceedings with this insect, a burying beetle from the genus Nicrophorus. These fascinating little creatures are the recyclers and undertakers of the insect world.
Wait, what? Scorpions in the UK? Surely not! Aren’t scorpions only found in hot, dry environments? Well, it’s certainly true that scorpion diversity is greatest in subtropical regions, but these tough little arachnids actually live on all major landmasses apart from Greenland and Antarctica, and in virtually every terrestrial habitat.
For a long time, it was believed that there were no venomous crustaceans in the world. Venom is common in many arthropods, including spiders, scorpions, centipedes and wasps, but of the approximately 70,000 species of crustacean, none were known to be venomous.
