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Enter the weird and wonderful world of water bugs! What stories
those creepy crawly, spineless creatures have to tell. They've
been around for about 500 million years, when they filled
the earth's lakes and oceans. Some came even before the dinosaurs.
Prehistoric dragonflies were the largest flying spineless
creatures ever to have lived! Ancient dragonflies had wingspans
as long as your arm! Today, the Australian dragonfly, which
starts life as a nymph in creeks and ponds, can fly as fast
as a car in suburban streets.
Having evolved over the ages, many water bugs use their ancient
behaviour, even to this day, to escape dangers — like
flash floods and dirty waters. Some, like those sensitive,
soft-bodied freshwater mussels, can live for up to 100 years
in the same spot.
Today, water bugs are still the most common critters to be
found anywhere there's water. A good look at the bugs in your
waterway can tell you how healthy or polluted it is.
All photographs in the Buglopedia and Bugasaurus Believe it or Not are reproduced with permission from: John H. Hawking & Felicity J. Smith (1997) Colour Guide to Invertebrates of Australian Inland Waters, Cooperative Research Centre for Freshwater Ecology, Albury.
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