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Bugs

What Is a Bug?

Insects, spiders, centipedes, and other creepy-crawlies are commonly called bugs. Bugs are invertebrate animals and usually wear a hard external skeleton. They are some of the planet's most successful creatures. They live in every corner of the globe and are capable of adapting to any type of environment. There are about 1.5 million known insect species—though another 45 million may exist—and about 75,000 species of arachnids, including spiders, scorpions, ticks, and mites.

Bug Features

Photo: Dung beetle with dung ball

Video: African Dung Beetle

Sacred to ancient Egyptians, these beetles recycle—of all things—dung.

Photo: Close-up of a hornet on a plant

Hornet

Peer inside a hornet hive and find out how these social insects live. Discover why male hornets are few and far between.

Photo: Monarch butterfly on a flower

Monarch Butterfly

Get to know one of the world's most beautiful butterflies. Find out about the mass migrations that take monarchs to warmer climes each winter.

Photo: Madagascar hissing cockroach

Madagascar Hissing Cockroach

Discover a horned roach that battles like many antlered mammals. Hear the hissing these roaches use for fighting—and for mating.

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