[♪ INTRO] Hey, Squeaks. Whatcha looking at? [Squeaks squeaks] Oooh, a ladybug? How cool! Ladybugs are insects that have a very important
job in the Fort’s greenhouse. They eat a lot of garden pests, and they help to
keep our flowers and vegetables healthy! [Squeaks squeaks] Oh! Squeaks says ladybugs are his
favorite kind of bug. But did you know that ladybugs
aren't actually bugs? [Squeaks squeaks] It's true! Do you remember what we learned about insects's
bodies, Squeaks? [Squeaks squeaks] Ri
ght! Insects have three main body segments:
a head, a thorax, and an abdomen. And sticking out of that thorax, they have
six legs! There are some other living things that you
or I might call bugs, like spiders or roly-polys, that aren’t insects because they don’t
have the right body parts. But here’s the thing. They aren’t bugs, either! [Squeaks squeaks] I know, right? But scientists use the term “bug” to refer to a very specific group of insects
called the true bugs. In other words, all bugs ar
e insects, but
not all insects are true bugs. [Squeaks squeaks] You would think a ladybug would be a bug,
wouldn’t you? But this is where it can get tricky. Some insects have the word “bug” as part
of their name, but they aren’t true bugs. Ladybugs are actually a kind of beetle, and
beetles are not true bugs. [Squeaks squeaks] How do we know? Well, just like all insects share a few important
body parts, there are some things that true bugs have
in common. For one thing, they have very special mo
uthparts. Here's a picture of the mouthparts of a true
bug. What do you notice about their shape or structure? [Squeaks squeaks] Yeah, their mouthparts look really sharp. True bugs use them to jab into plants or other
animals to suck out the juices inside. [Squeaks squeaks] Yeah, I know, it sounds a little yucky. But even bugs have to eat! True bugs also grow and develop differently
than many other insects. Insects like ladybugs and butterflies begin
life in an egg that hatches into a larva. Tha
t larva then changes into a pupa. And when the pupa breaks open, an adult insect
enters the world. But true bugs don’t go through all of those
steps. Instead, a bug hatches from its egg into something
called a nymph. And unlike larvae, which look a lot more like
blobs or worms, nymphs look a lot more like an adult bug. And over time, nymphs get bigger and grow
some additional body parts, like wings, until they reach adulthood. [Squeaks squeaks] Right. Ladybugs don’t have mouthparts that are
shap
ed in a way that lets them jab and suck. And they go through both a larva and a
pupa stage of life. So they’re not true bugs. But the aphids they eat are bugs. They have sharp mouthparts to suck out the
yummy, sugary liquid inside of plants. [Squeaks squeaks] Right, that’s not very good for the plant. Plus, aphids can carry diseases. That’s why ladybugs are so good to have
around the garden. They eat aphids and help keep the plants safe. But aphids are still pretty cool. Because depending on wh
ere they live, they
have babies in different ways. In places with a cold winter, they’ll lay
eggs that wait until spring to hatch. But in places where it’s warm all year,
female aphids don’t lay eggs at all. They give birth to live babies! [Squeaks squeaks] Yeah, it’s pretty unusual for a bug! All living things reproduce, or make babies, but they certainly don’t all reproduce in
the same way! The same is true for the way things develop
and grow. For example, another group of true bugs are
called
assassin bugs. [Squeaks squeaks] Yeah, this time “bug” is in the name and
the insect really is a bug! And like all true bugs, assassin bugs lay
eggs that hatch into nymphs, but their nymphs act very differently than
the adults! Some of them stick pieces of dead insects
to their backs. [Squeaks squeaks] What, you don’t think that’s cool? It’s a trick the nymph uses to hide from
predators, so it doesn’t get eaten. Nature can seem pretty strange sometimes! But even behavior that’s strange to a hum
an,
or a robot rat, can help a living thing survive. And it’s not the only disguise an assassin
bug can wear. For example, a different species, or type
of assassin bug, has a body part that is shaped kind of like
a wheel sticking out of their back. This part develops as the insect grows… and gives the insect their nickname,
a wheel bug. [Squeaks squeaks] Oh yes, the assassin bugs get their name because they use their sharp mouth parts to
eat other insects. After piercing their prey, they can sq
uirt
digestive juices into the other insect’s body and then slurp
the insides out. However, there is one group of assassin bugs that just sucks blood, including human blood. [Squeaks squeaks] Well, kind of like mosquitos. Mosquitos do have mouth parts that can pierce
our skin, but they’re not the same kind that bugs
have. Mosquitos are actually a type of fly, and
just like beetles, flies aren’t true bugs. These blood-drinking assassin bugs are sometimes
nicknamed kissing bugs because they bite a
round an animal’s mouth…but
it’s not a very nice kiss. And they can also spread disease. Some kissing bugs carry teeny tiny critters
called parasites that can travel to the animal they're feeding
on, and then make that animal sick. And that includes humans, so it’s best to admire any cool-looking
assassin bugs from a distance. [Squeaks squeaks] Oh, Squeaks wants to know if bugs do anything
helpful! Yeah, so far we’ve learned about bugs that
can hurt our plants and make us sick. But that doesn’t
mean bugs are bad. They have a role to play in nature just like
every other living thing. There’s also one kind of true bug, called
a cochineal bug, that humans grow on special farms for a very
important purpose. These small bugs suck the juices out of cacti, and are especially fond of prickly pears. They also make a special chemical in their
bodies that makes them taste really bad so ants won’t
eat them. [Squeaks squeaks] Yes, instead of piling a bunch of dead insect
bodies on their back. Yes.
But a long time ago, humans figured out that
if you can collect this chemical and mix it with some other ingredients, we can make
a really pretty red dye called carmine. In fact, people have been making this bug-based
dye and using it to color things like clothing
for thousands of years! So we have insects in our greenhouse to help
plants grow, but other people have greenhouses full of cacti because they want
to help their bugs grow. [Squeaks squeaks] Yeah, and you know what else is pretty neat?
Cochineal bug nymphs make a sort of a wax
coating to help protect themselves from the Sun…
sort of like a self-made sunscreen! And if the cactus plant they’re living on
gets a bit too crowded, they can also make a waxy string that will carry them away to
a plant that’s got a bit more elbow room! [Squeaks squeaks] Hmm, I don’t know if we should get them
for our greenhouse. Maybe we should ask Juniper what she thinks
before we add any prickly pears and cochineal bugs to the greenhouse. Should we
go find her now? [Squeaks squeaks] Thanks for joining us on SciShow Kids. If you want to keep learning with me,
Squeaks, and all our other friends, be sure to hit the subscribe button, and we’ll see you next time here at the Fort! [♪ OUTRO]
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