Contents Contents Tiny Creepy Crawlers Tough Critters Ancient Killers Tiny Tanks Stalking the Seabed Skin Crawlers Champion Jumpers Making You Itch Survival Tricks Leggy Hunters An Incredible Journey Mini Creatures Parasites on Parade Glossary Index 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 31 32
tiny Creepy Crawlers Don’t be fooled by size Some of the most powerful creatures are also the smallest You can find lots of these tiny creatures in your own homes but others are so small you need a microscope to study them But despite their small size all have powers of some sort including amazing defenses impressive speed and the ability to survive in extreme environments 6 Flea Tardigrade Unfortunately when we look on the small scale we find a lot of unpleasant creatures too Parasites such as fleas and worms live on or in the body of a host animal usually at the host’s discomfort Up to fifty percent of all animal species are parasitic in some way It’s a good life for the parasite after all offering easy food and lots of protection
Tick Woodlouse A few of these parasites such as the flea and tick live on our bodies One or two of them live inside us And then there are truly troublesome life forms such as plague bacteria which are so small they can be passed on in the bodies of tiny parasites and yet are so deadly that they have changed the course of human history Mini bugs rule Giant millipede
