Researchers from North Carolina have noticed the unusual origins of the ball-shaped springtail (Dicyrtomina minuta). It’s so bad that they take off so slowly from the ground. Backwards, that you can only see them by recording the jump with a high-speed camera. Each jump of the bug is associated with situations where it may be in danger. The duration of the aggressor’s action is about 1.7 milliseconds.
Like individual specimens, they use a tiny appendage called biological furcae for jumping. When the beetle runs, the appendage pushes it off the ground and throws it into the air to a height of up to 62 millimeters. For this line, the diameter is 102 millimeters, this size is impressive if you consider that the length of the beetle’s body does not add up to 2 millimeters.
They are also used so that they can be used backwards, which suggests that jumping is not their normal mode of locomotion. The authors of the study believe that jumping is an exceptional response to danger for Dicyrtomina minuta.
Source: Tech Cult
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