A story for kids who love bugs.

[MamaSheep]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

 

Moms who get creeped out by photos of large creepy crawlies might want to stand back from the computer. ;)

[CalicoKat]

http://www.chinaberry.com/p/The-City-Under-the-Back-Steps.cfm?tid=806092085&kw=city%20under%20the%20back%20steps&zmam=7946946&zmas=2&zmac=157&zmag=90&zmak=city%20under%20the%20back%20steps_P&zmad=16855422928&zmap=10932

 

It's an audio book from Chinaberry. My kids LOVE it. It's one of those living stories with lots of information wrapped up in a story.

[Jean in Newcastle]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

 

Moms who get creeped out by photos of large creepy crawlies might want to stand back from the computer. ;)

 

That's a really neat story! (I don't like a lot of bugs but I liked this one. Perhaps because I don't have one in my house. . .:D)

[myfatherslily]

Very cool! Thanks!

[nmoira]

I'm a bit freaked out that this thread is currently on the same page as the Kafka for 4th Graders thread. :tongue_smilie:

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm a bit freaked out that this thread is currently on the same page as the Kafka for 4th Graders thread. :tongue_smilie:

 

:D

[CalicoKat]

That's a really neat story! (I don't like a lot of bugs but I liked this one. Perhaps because I don't have one in my house. . .:D)

 

They also had/have a neat one on owls called Owls in the Family. Its the same kind of teaching story. Totally inspired ds 8 to be enthusiastic about owls. He wants to catch one.

[Jean in Newcastle]

They also had/have a neat one on owls called Owls in the Family. Its the same kind of teaching story. Totally inspired ds 8 to be enthusiastic about owls. He wants to catch one.

 

Yes, we enjoyed Owls in the Family.

[Geo]

So great, thanks for sharing! :001_smile:

[GingerPoppy]

Wow, fantastic story--heartwarming! I can't wait to share it with my bug-loving dd10 tomorrow. Thank you so much for sharing!

[Alessandra]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

 

Moms who get creeped out by photos of large creepy crawlies might want to stand back from the computer. ;)

 

Holy cow! I clicked off that screen as soon as the monster bug popped up. Don't want to go back -- but what is the story? BTW, I am fine (pretty fine) with ordinary insects, but that guy!!! Yikes!!!!

[MamaSheep]

Holy cow! I clicked off that screen as soon as the monster bug popped up. Don't want to go back -- but what is the story? BTW, I am fine (pretty fine) with ordinary insects, but that guy!!! Yikes!!!!

 

They were thought to be extinct, but 24 of them were found on one small patch of vegetation on a teeny tiny island. The govt. allowed only 4 of them to be removed for a breeding program. While they were working on the red tape there was a rockslide they thought might have wiped out the whole lot of them, but they were still there, clinging to their bush. Within two weeks two of the captives were dead and a third dying. Fortunately the zoo guy figured out a cure just in time. Now there's a fair-sized population in captivity. They can't restore them to their native habitat, though, because it's still overrun with descendants of the ship-wreck rats that killed them all off in the first place. The residents of the island aren't sure they want to trade rats for those monster bugs.

[Corraleno]

Wow, fantastic story--heartwarming! I can't wait to share it with my bug-loving dd10 tomorrow. Thank you so much for sharing!

:iagree:

I read it to my kids and must confess I actually choked up at the end:

Will ordinary Janes and Joes, going about their days, agree to spend a little extra effort and money to preserve an animal that isn't what most of us would call beautiful? Its main attraction is that it has lived on the planet for a long time, and we have the power to keep it around. I don't know if it will work, but in the end, that's the walking stick's best argument:

 

I'm still here. Don't let me go.[/Quote]

:crying:

 

 

Jackie

[Corraleno]

Holy cow! I clicked off that screen as soon as the monster bug popped up. Don't want to go back -- but what is the story? BTW, I am fine (pretty fine) with ordinary insects, but that guy!!! Yikes!!!!

I didn't mind the big guys at all — I thought they were totally cool and would willingly have one as a pet. (I especially love the fact that they pair-bond and sleep together cuddled up, with the male's legs wrapped around the female — how cute is that??!) But OMG did anyone watch the video of the larva hatching??? The article suggested that the video was produced as a way of showing the locals how cute the critters are, but I suspect it's going to backfire badly! As much as we love bugs in this family, all three of us were watching that hatching video thinking "whoa, that's one creepy, squirming Alien spawn thing!" :ack2:

 

Jackie

Edited March 2, 2012 by Corraleno
typos

[rgrin]

I didn't mind the big guys at all — I thought they were totally cool and would willingly have one as a pet. (I especially love the fact that they pair-bond and sleep together cuddled up, with the male's legs wrapped around the female — how cute is that??!) But OMG did anyone watch the video of the larvae hatching??? The article suggested that the video was produced as a way of showing the locals how cute the critters are, but I suspect it's going to backfire badly! As much as we love bugs in this family, all three of us were watching that hatching video thinking "whoa, that's one creepy, squirming Alien spawn thing!" :ack2:

 

Jackie

 

 

:iagree:That was one freaky video!

[MamaSheep]

I didn't mind the big guys at all — I thought they were totally cool and would willingly have one as a pet. (I especially love the fact that they pair-bond and sleep together cuddled up, with the male's legs wrapped around the female — how cute is that??!) But OMG did anyone watch the video of the larva hatching??? The article suggested that the video was produced as a way of showing the locals how cute the critters are, but I suspect it's going to backfire badly! As much as we love bugs in this family, all three of us were watching that hatching video thinking "whoa, that's one creepy, squirming Alien spawn thing!" :ack2:

 

Jackie

 

The first thing ds and dh said when I showed them the pictures was "they should sell those as pets!"

 

Of course, ds had an Aspie-level obsession with creepy crawly critters (especially, but nowhere near limited to, crickets) from about age 3 to 11-ish, and he still has a big fond spot in his heart for them. Over the years we've had a big tub of crickets as well as several rounds of butterfly larvae, ladybug larvae, mantises, pill bugs, giant centipedes, and hissing cockroaches (they actually make really good pets), not to mention the random visitors "rescued" from the back yard.

[Alessandra]

They were thought to be extinct, but 24 of them were found on one small patch of vegetation on a teeny tiny island. The govt. allowed only 4 of them to be removed for a breeding program. While they were working on the red tape there was a rockslide they thought might have wiped out the whole lot of them, but they were still there, clinging to their bush. Within two weeks two of the captives were dead and a third dying. Fortunately the zoo guy figured out a cure just in time. Now there's a fair-sized population in captivity. They can't restore them to their native habitat, though, because it's still overrun with descendants of the ship-wreck rats that killed them all off in the first place. The residents of the island aren't sure they want to trade rats for those monster bugs.

 

Thanks -- that is an interesting story. Are they any relation to the giant Madagascar cockroach?

 

For me, it is a comfort to have read (in The Practical Entomologist) that insects have a size limitation because of the weight of an exoskeleton. I hope this is true!

 

The first thing ds and dh said when I showed them the pictures was "they should sell those as pets!"

 

Of course, ds had an Aspie-level obsession with creepy crawly critters (especially, but nowhere near limited to, crickets) from about age 3 to 11-ish, and he still has a big fond spot in his heart for them. Over the years we've had a big tub of crickets as well as several rounds of butterfly larvae, ladybug larvae, mantises, pill bugs, giant centipedes, and hissing cockroaches (they actually make really good pets), not to mention the random visitors "rescued" from the back yard.

 

Whoa! Giant centipedes and hissing cockroaches!!! We've raised butterflies, ladybugs & mantises. I felt quite proud of myself being able to do that. But I have to ask -- is this a struggle for you, or you just never got creeped out by insects, ever? I would like to get to a point being a little calmer around big bugs. Our family started to get interested in insects last year when ds had to make a collection + raise some insects for a Boy Scout merit badge. But I still have a ways to go in being comfortable around them.

 

And the cockroaches make good pets because....?

 

Also, I don't see ants on your list. I was wondering about them (we have an ant habitat).

Edited March 4, 2012 by Alessandra

[ReneeK]

My daughter who's nickname is Bug loved it. She just wants to pin one in her entomology collection. I told her I wouldn't touch it even if we could. Thanks for sharing the post.

[MamaSheep]

Thanks -- that is an interesting story. Are they any relation to the giant Madagascar cockroach?

The ones in the story are evidently some kind of stick insect.

 

For me, it is a comfort to have read (in The Practical Entomologist) that insects have a size limitation because of the weight of an exoskeleton. I hope this is true!

 

I hope so too! It makes me wonder what it was about the prehistoric environment that allowed bugs to get as big as they evidently did then. But I've never really looked into it.

 

Whoa! Giant centipedes and hissing cockroaches!!! We've raised butterflies, ladybugs & mantises. I felt quite proud of myself being able to do that. But I have to ask -- is this a struggle for you, or you just never got creeped out by insects, ever? I would like to get to a point being a little calmer around big bugs. Our family started to get interested in insects last year when ds had to make a collection + raise some insects for a Boy Scout merit badge. But I still have a ways to go in being comfortable around them.

 

I grew up in Yellowstone Park tagging along with my brother and his buddies. We played in the dirt, and the wood pile (for the wood-burning stove), climbed trees, made forts under bushes, caught snakes in the creek and made houses for them in the sandbox...all that good stuff. Bugs were just part of life as long as I remember. I do get creeped out by the scary ones like black widows, but we didn't have those where we lived when I was a kid. And when you walk to school through herds of elk and buffalo, and listen to coyotes singing you to sleep I guess bugs are the least of your worries...lol.

 

I do draw the line at snakes, though. I don't want their particular feeding habits in my house. Especially not with dd, who would sympathize way too much with the mice.

 

I wish ds would do boy scouts. We tried for a while, but it's just not happening. I guess having an Aspie will have to be enough adventure for me. :)

 

And the cockroaches make good pets because....?

Well, they're quiet, they don't take up much space, they don't move very fast so they're easy to catch and handle, they make an interesting noise when startled (just a quiet hiss), they don't eat much (we used wheat bran as a substrate in their cage and then just tossed in some fruit and veggie peels now and then, and used some gel crystal things to give them water without making a mess), don't make a big mess (we picked out any food scraps that were getting icky and every couple of weeks dumped out the wheat bran and put in some more), don't reproduce at normal room temperatures (they need tropical conditions to reproduce), and only live about a year (so about the time everyone's tired of them, they're not around anymore). They're individual-looking enough that you can give them names, which is fun too. And they make a great conversation piece.

 

Also, I don't see ants on your list. I was wondering about them (we have an ant habitat).

 

Now that you mention it, I think we did do ants once too. I don't think they lasted very long for us. Too dry maybe. I'm not big on ants, though. If they get out they might live in the walls and cause trouble. We have the wrong climate for most of the other critters we've had, they'd never survive. Except the crickets. We did have some of those get out and show up periodically in the basement or behind the toilet. But those weren't as bad as the palmetto bugs that used to sneak into the house regularly back when we lived in Georgia. Those things were NASTY.

[Alessandra]

The ones in the story are evidently some kind of stick insect.

 

Oh, I shut down the site so fast I didn't get a good look.

 

I hope so too! It makes me wonder what it was about the prehistoric environment that allowed bugs to get as big as they evidently did then. But I've never really looked into it.

 

Oh dear, I never knew about this.

 

Well, they're quiet, they don't take up much space, they don't move very fast so they're easy to catch and handle, they make an interesting noise when startled (just a quiet hiss), they don't eat much (we used wheat bran as a substrate in their cage and then just tossed in some fruit and veggie peels now and then, and used some gel crystal things to give them water without making a mess), don't make a big mess (we picked out any food scraps that were getting icky and every couple of weeks dumped out the wheat bran and put in some more), don't reproduce at normal room temperatures (they need tropical conditions to reproduce), and only live about a year (so about the time everyone's tired of them, they're not around anymore). They're individual-looking enough that you can give them names, which is fun too. And they make a great conversation piece.

 

Easy to handle would really be a selling point, lol.

 

Now that you mention it, I think we did do ants once too. I don't think they lasted very long for us. Too dry maybe. I'm not big on ants, though. If they get out they might live in the walls and cause trouble. We have the wrong climate for most of the other critters we've had, they'd never survive. Except the crickets. We did have some of those get out and show up periodically in the basement or behind the toilet. But those weren't as bad as the palmetto bugs that used to sneak into the house regularly back when we lived in Georgia. Those things were NASTY.

 

We used to keep crickets as food for anoles. I never liked the crickets much. Palmetto bugs -- saw one in Houston once -- quite horrible.

Edited March 5, 2012 by Alessandra