Ouch - Chemical Defense in Insecta
Today, I sat upon the beach below Au Sable’s campus. The muddy lake water below the skewed, brittle dock was like glass, reflecting the soles of the redwing boots my grandfather had given to me last summer. The weather I felt on my skin was balmy, the sky above me was blue, and the hotdogs I was happily consuming were crisp, smoky, and quite perfect. I was at peace with a world I was sure was full of joy, happiness, and benevolence towards all men. How wrong I was. As I lay in my restive repose, participating in my porcine feast, my peace and goodwill erupted into pain and grief, for a small bug, possibly an insect of the order Coleoptera, flew with a steely and malignant purpose into my vulnerable and unwitting right ocular implement. With surprise and slight alarm, I flinched. I blinked. I rubbed my orb-shaped organ. Horror and catastrophe! For this action unleashed the most unimaginably painful burning sensation, coating my eyeball immediately in its hellish excruciation. As...