DVD BBC - Life Disc 3: Insects (2010)

BBC - Life Disc 3: Insects (2010)

Masters of adaptation, the vast variety of insects outnumber all other animal species put together. While the female Darwin stag beetle has normal-sized jaws, the male’s mandibles are longer than his body. Serrated and strangely curved, they’re used as a weapon against rival males. Japanese red bug juveniles eat a rare fruit, which their mother collects from the forest floor. It can take her hours to find a perfectly ripe fruit -- but if she doesn’t get it back quickly enough, her young will abandon their nest and find a better mother. The bombardier beetle has two chambers within its body to store different inert chemicals. When threatened, the beetle mixes the chemicals in a third chamber, where they react explosively and burst from its rear end, spraying its enemy in a boiling, caustic jet.

Peter's DVD rating:
577 LIF QH 501.L544 2010

An aerial camera system creates a "butterfly-eye" perspective of more than a million monarch butterflies in their wintering grounds in Mexico. Male Darwin's stag beetles fighting, then mating, in the treetops. A Japanese red bug mother working tirelessly to feed her young with a rare fruit, only to have them abandon the nest when she's not quick enough with the meal. Male Dawson's bees committing mass murder to gain access to a female. ==

2:40	Darwin Stag Beetle males fight. The winner also drops his mate afterwards. (Patagonia, Chile)	6:30	Male moth emits scent from plumes at end of abdomen	8:50	Damselflies mate and form shape of a heart; eaten by frogs;
13:20	Damselfly wings break through surface tension of water after ovipositing (Southern France)	14:10	4-week old Monarch Butterfly fly across Lake Erie to Oyamel Firs in Mexico, 2000 miles; Great-grand children will return.	16:30	Black-backed Orioles eat Monarchs after ripping out toxic parts.
20:40	Alkali Fly tolerates water twice as salty as ocean; swarm in millions; walk underwater to eat algae (Mono Lake, California)	22:30	100,000 Wilson's Phalarope make only stop to feed on Alkali Flies as they migrate to South America	24:50	Bombardier Beetle (Oogpister) hunts ants and stores formic acid as defense against
26:00	Banded Mongoose (South Africa)	27:10	Devil Rider Stick Insect fire terpenes.	27:25	European Wood Ant fire acid like nettle sting
27:55	Bombardier Beetle mixes two compounds to produce an explosive spray.	29:00	Honey Bee collect nectar and store honey in hollow log (woodlands of Minnesota)	30:00	Black Bear cub is stung, but mother steals a comb
32:35	Japanese Red Bug juveniles only eat fruit from one type tree. Mother searches for ripe fruit, but stolen by another female. Her young abandon the nest to live with the thief mother, who works to death feeding the broods. Her dead body becomes final meal	36:55	Dawson's Burrowing Bee males fight to death to mate with females emerging from burrows, decapitating a female by accident (Australian outback)	41:20	Grass-cutter Ants bring cut grass to nest. Cultivate fungus garden to feed 5-million colony. Ventilation system: opening faces prevailing winds to release excess carbon dioxide (Argentina)

2:40 Darwin Stag Beetle males fight.	6:30 Male moth	8:50 Damselflies mate
13:20 Damselfly wings	14:10 Monarch Butterfly	16:30 Black-backed Orioles
20:40 Alkali Fly	22:30 Wilson's Phalarope	24:50 Bombardier Beetle
26:00 Banded Mongoose	27:10 Devil Rider Stick Insect	27:25 European Wood Ant
27:55 Bombardier Beetle	29:00 Honey Bee	30:00 Black Bear cub
32:35 Japanese Red Bug	36:55 Dawson's Burrowing Bee males	41:20 Grass-cutter Ants
41:20 fungus garden


Index	Feb 19, 2011	Peter Chen