I stand on a piece of smooth wood and survey my surroundings.  The forest in front of me and the large wood structure that emits light and noise is directly behind me.  All of a sudden the wood starts to shake from the vibrations of one of the featherless bipeds comes to get me.  I turn just in time for a large clear enclosure to be put around me. This was my plan of course. There have been quite a few disappearances as of late and I have pinpointed the source to be this abomination of a tree, right on the edge of the forest.  I formulated a plan to be caught by this biped so they would take me inside. Once inside I will then locate the bodies or rescue them from a fate worse than death.


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The enclosure starts to move.   It’s taking me into it’s wood structure, a mysterious realm only a few of us have had the chance to enter.  This particular animal seems to enjoy taking insects, especially ones with a shiny colorful exoskeleton, such as mine.
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Once inside I see the most disgusting display of power.  Containers of insects and plants all kept for the bipeds amusement.  Their is papers on the containers with symbols upon them. A bipedal language.  They must be “lah- bells” describing the insects trapped inside.

The featherless biped puts my container on the shelf and sits down to make my “lah- bell”.  It probably will explain my feeding process, injecting venom into my prey and sucking out their insides, while the description has a high shock value it isn't the weirdest way to eat.  I like to eat pest bugs like aphids and caterpillars. This helps the bipeds because they like to control plants, and the bugs I like to eat get in the bipeds way.

This is simply an accident of nature.  I begrudgingly help the biped’s efforts because I love eating those bugs  ,however the bipeds kill my kind in droves because of their use of pesticides.  It’s ironic how they kill the insects who kill the pests naturally. Featherless bipeds are weird like that.

I watch the others from my container.  What cowards, giving up the will to live free outside and so soon?  I shake my head. Captivity does odd things to us insects. My captor gets up from it sitting position.  The biped walks to my enclosure. I get in an attack position. My predator instincts are triggered. The featherless biped deformed tarsus puts a “lah- bell” on my enclosure.  A seal on my fate…To be continued

I wake up to the sun on my back and the warmth makes me want to go back to sleep.  But, sadly I can not. I have to get up and eat. Eating is how I pay the nice lady to be able to sleep in her garden. My name is Lady, I am one year old, and I am a ladybug. My mom was here first, but she died about two years ago. I have about two more years until I die. Winters are the hardest time for me but having others around helps with staying alive and then finding a mate. I get up and start flying around the garden to help me wake up. I am 0.3 inches long and I am on the small side. My shell is yellow with three black dots on each side. Standing out is how I tell the other bugs to stay away from me. They usually get the clue because why would they want to eat something that tastes awful?

Anyway that's enough background for now. I go to the plants where there are bites on the leaves because there is where I find my breakfast. Eating aphids are the most delicious thing on each! They are juicy and crunchy. After about ten aphids I am full so I fly back around the garden to give the lady my greeting. Landing on her shoulder is usually the best way to get her attention. After I land she says, “hi there you are, Lucky. Thanks for eating the bugs so my garden can live.” Wow, when will she realize that my name is not lucky? My name is Lady! Well at least she knows how much I help her. That is really all I can ask for.
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by Lauren

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Works Cited

Nelson, Angela. “6 surprising facts about ladybugs.” mother nature network. Narrative Content Group, 30 December 2016. Web. 28 May 2018.

Levy, Debra. "Why Are Ladybugs Considered Good Luck?" Animals - mom.me. No publisher, no published date listed. Web. 28 May 2018.

Meadors, Pamela. "Characteristics of a Ladybug." Animals - mom.me. No publisher, no published date listed. Web. 28 May 2018.

Hello, my name is Saphy. I’m a hoverfly. I’m also known as a flower fly or syrphid fly. Being a hoverfly is really interesting and a lot more difficult than some people might think. When I was born, I was blind! I looked like a little green caterpillar and I had to crawl around to look for aphids to eat. My mouth worked differently back then, so I had to drink the inside of the aphids; like a tiny milkshake. Not all of us eat aphids, though! Some of my cousins fed off roots and plant material. Others even live in ant colonies. I’m not quite sure what they eat, but the ants don’t seem to mind!



Now that I’ve grown, I’m a vegetarian! Now that I’m an adult fly, I eat mostly pollen and nectar. My only job is help plants grow and prosper. But don’t think it’s easier for me now! Even with my bright bee-like coloration, some birds and wasps can tell I’m harmless. Solitary wasps will attack me and some even go after larvae! The poor things. There’s even the spotted flycatcher, a type of bird, can tell the difference. They won’t go after bees, but they’ll go after me if they have the chance. And of course, I always have to look out for spiders.

I’m perfectly healthy now, though. I race and hover all over gardens. I zoom around oregano, garlic chives, and other smelly edible plants in hopes to find a mate! I can’t wait to make up to a hundred little eggs and start the process all over again. Wish me luck!

by Matthew
Sustainable Ag. Student
​5/17/18
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Works Cited
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/beneficial/hover-flies-in-gardens.htm
https://www.britannica.com/animal/hover-fly
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artmay07/cd-hoverflies.html

There are many changes happening in our oceans right now, and the majority of them are proving to be harmful to the species that inhabit it. One of these processes is known as “ocean acidification”. Ocean acidification is just as it sounds- it’s the process of an ocean becoming more acidic. This raises a number of problems; most notably it is dissolving our coral and shellfish. They are dying prematurely, and the new spawn are growing weaker and weaker shells. It makes them more susceptible to diseases and predators, and it shortens their lifespan in general.

Of course, the declining sickly shellfish population hasn’t gone unnoticed by the scientific community, and currently there is work being done to counter the effects of ocean acidification. Jonathan P. Davis, a researcher from Taylor Shellfish Farms Inc., is currently leading a team of researchers and scientists in using selective breeding and genetics to harden up our Pacific Oysters.

Their efforts are proving to be successful. This team has produced 42 lines of hybrid oysters that are more inclined to survive our more acidic seas. As time passes, the oysters will be selectively bred over and over until the hardiest few have doubled, tripled, quadrupled, etc., in number. This could be the key to saving not only our Pacific Oysters, but all of the other suffering Oyster populations as well.

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Article Source

Image Sources:
Shell Dissolving
Handful of Oysters