Fair warning: Last chance to save yourself from what you’re about to see.The male Hercules beetle (Dynastes hercules) in its adult form is pretty rad looking with his characteristic horn. (No, this is not the horrifying part. That comes next.)
While that fine-looking gent didn’t turn out so bad, what he looks like while he’s en route to maturity is a whole different story. A horror story, to be specific. The Hercules beetle’s chrysalis looks like some sort of prop from an alien movie…
(Are you SURE you’re ready for this? We don’t need to do this. Really. It’s OK… Alright. fine.)Here it is, a thing of nightmares:
That video, by insect enthusiast Hirofumi Kawano, was posted via a tweet that you’re bound to see again at the rate it’s being re-shared. It shows the wriggling nightmare-inducing pupa stage of the Hercules beetle. The video is accompanied with the caption, “A lot of people think that a chrysalis does not move,” as if to suggest people grill this person on a constant basis about the ambulatory tendencies of transforming insects.Even if the video creeps you out, it’s hard to deny how captivating it is to watch and makes us wonder what sort of evolutionary benefits a moving chrysalis has. We imagine it’s got something to do with being able to flip itself over, dig itself into soil, or slowly evade predators whilst trapped in it’s armored sleeping bag.Any guess to why this happens? Where my entomologists at?! Let’s discuss in the comments below!Featured image: Disney/Pixar
Image: Dynastes hercules ecuatorianus |Â Didier Descouens
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