Nasty, Brutish, and Short

Birds do it, and bees do it, so do all animals, some of them in weird and wonderful ways. Quirks & Quarks' latest book explores the more bizarre behaviours of more than 100 creatures, from barnacles to Panda bears.

The tiny spider that has to tear off one of its two huge sex organs just to be able to get around; the sea slug that produces a powerful love drug and mates with both males and females; the bedbug that stabs its penis into the female's abdomen - the range of animal sexual practices is mind-boggling. And it's not only reproduction that has them doing very strange things. There's a beetle that shoots a stream of boiling hot, toxic liquid when it's threatened; a lizard that can run on water; a shrimp that explodes its prey.

Quirks & Quarks' latest guide is much more than a catalogue of peculiar practices, it's an engrossing look at the astonishing behaviours different animals have evolved in order to survive and reproduce.

With an introduction by Bob McDonald, host of Quirks & Quarks.

Autorentext

For nine seasons biologist PAT SENSON was a producer with CBC Radio's national science program, Quirks & Quarks, where his documentary work received numerous awards and accolades. He can still be heard every week on CBC Radio across the country as he supplies science stories to the local afternoon shows through CBC's syndication service. Pat currently lives in Toronto with his partner and their two slightly addled cats.

Inhalt

Introduction

1. The Battle of the Sexes
   THE INSECTS
   Insect Arms Race
   Weevil Penises
   The Power of One
   Bedbug Penis Tasting
   Fishing Spider Sex
   Redback Spider Sex
   Some Crickets Like it Rough

THE OTHERS
Genitalia Most Fowl
Cannibal Fish
Infertile Monkeys
Meerkat Infanticide
Hyena Hormones
Speedy Sperm

2. Impressing the Other Sex
   BIRDS DO IT
   Zebra Finch IQ
   Bowerbird Bullies
   Bowerbirds Come on Strong
   Godwit Vacations
   Auklets and Aphrodisiacs
   The Sound of Two Wings Clapping

BEES (AND OTHER INSECTS) DO IT
Hot Insect Sex
Quiet Crickets
Sniffing for Sexual Satisfaction
Weta Walking
Cricket Coupling
Brotherly Love Among Crayfish
Bisexual Beetles
Cockroach Wars
Water from Weevils' Sperm
Lying Flies

EVEN ANIMALS, LAND AND SEA, DO IT
Primate Copulation Call
Salacious Simians
Bat Brains and Balls
Amorous Antelope Antics
Sea Slug Orgy
The Barnacle's Penis
Penis Preference in Mosquitofish
Amazon Mollies
Dolphin Bling
Cichlid Dominance

3. Parenting Skills
   RAISING THE CHICKS
   Cowbirds' Bad Influence
   There Goes the Neighbourhood
   Birds that Time-share
   Two-Mom Albatross Families

BRINGING UP A BROOD
Self-Roasting Rodents
Father's Nose Best
Pregnancy and Monkey Dads
Stinking Baby Bugs
Cannibal Tadpoles

4. Lunch, Anyone?
   FINDING FOOD
   Owl Dung Nests
   Snails and their Slime
   How a Bat Holds its Licker
   Its Bite is Worse than its Bite
   Whales Lunge for Lunch
   Killer Whale Sonar
   Sea Lion Diving
   Dolphin Herders
   Guano-Eating Salamanders
   The Hummingbird's Stopwatch

HOW TO AVOID BECOMING A MEAL
Wolverine Frogs
Bombardier Beetles
Toadfish Pee
Squirrels Eating Snake Skin
Ultrasonic Gophers
Crafty Chameleon Camouflage

5. Parsing Parasite Peculiarities
   Blister Beetle Deception
   Ants Look Berry Nice
   Crustacean Kids, Parasitic Parents
   Woolly Caterpillar Medicine

6. Higher, Faster, Stronger
   The Fastest Jaw in the South
   Preying Mantis Shrimp
   The Mantis Shrimp's Super-Sight
   Mandible Mayhem
   How the Bow Bug Shoots Itself
   Catapulting Caterpillar Feces

7. Even More Weird Behaviour
   Washing with Urine
   Spider Venom Side Effect
   Termite Head-Bangers
   Army Ants Lie Down on the Job
   Loony Tunes
   Electric Fish
   Chimp Plans for Pitching
   Crocodiles Go Home
   Alligator Air Bags
   Bird Doping
   Scuba Bug
   Head-Under-Heels
   Bees' Knees
   Clownfish Sex
   Worm Hibernation
   Four-Eyed Fish
   Cold, Dry Bugs
   Tonguefish at the Vents

8. The Games Researchers Play
   Spitting Cobras
   Worm Grunting
   Flatulent Fish
   Fearless Iguanas
   Running on Water
   Wasp Faces: Friend or Foe
   Fruit Fly Fight Club
   Tadpole Bail Out
   Flying Ants