“These
are about one day old.” Peck points out
a cluster of maggots, maybe twenty or thirty, feeding side by side, packed in
close. They’re easy to miss, because all
that can be seen of them is their tail ends.
Insects take oxygen through openings in the exoskeleton called
spiracles. In the larvae, there are,
specifically, anal spiracles. On top of
its other charms, the maggot breathes through its ass. It is a handy evolutionary adaptation if, as
Peck puts it, “you spend your whole day with your head buried in slimy dead
flesh.
(from Grunt by Mary Roach)
9*/10. The
complete review is here.
.
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