Topic description and stories

A juvenile praying mantis

Baby mantises harness mid-air ‘spin’ during jumps for precision landings

05 Mar 2015

High-speed videos reveal that, unlike other jumping insects, the juvenile praying mantis does not spin out of control when airborne. In fact, it both...

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Cog wheels connecting the hind legs of the plant hopper, Issus

Functioning ‘mechanical gears’ seen in nature for the first time

12 Sep 2013

Previously believed to be only man-made, a natural example of a functioning gear mechanism has been discovered in a common insect - showing that...

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Pygmy mole cricket

Forget walking… tiny insect jumps on water

03 Dec 2012

Footage shows how a little creature propels itself off water.

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Flea jumping

Mystery of how fleas jump resolved

21 Mar 2011

New research from the University of Cambridge sheds light on how fleas jump, reaching speeds as fast as 1.9 meters per second.

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cleaner fish

Cleaner fish respond to the shadow of the future

03 Jun 2010

Tropical fish alter their behaviour with an eye to the future, researchers at Cambridge have found. This is the first time such behaviour has been...

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