Hello folks who wonder if Turkey Vultures have an upset stomach and need to visit the doctor for accidentally eating fresh food,
We all live a crazy life, don't you think? Spare a minute to think about all the things you typically do during the week; the type of work you do, the type of people you are friends with, the type of food you eat every day and the type of things you indulge in to pass your time. Take a minute, I'll wait. Now, think about what you would have answered if I asked this question 5 years ago. How about 10 years ago or even 20 years ago. Wow, flashes of your wild college days or underage drinking probably reared its ugly head in those flashbacks. Now, if you said "I don't know Karan, my life is unchanged from how I lived 20 years ago", you may need to do some serious introspection.
There is a point in everyone's life when all the illusions of how you are going to live your life are shattered and you suddenly realize things will never be the same. All the habits you had or the things that you look forward to will change drastically and cause you to change your lifestyle significantly. Maybe it was the realization that Santa is not real or that all the junk food you eat is not magically getting metabolized but instead showing up on your hips. Or maybe you went drinking with friends the night before only to wake up near a dumpster the following morning with a throbbing headache and realize you are missing your cellphone and credit card. After this pivotal life moment, you go through some deep introspection and from that moment on, your life is never the same. This introspection moment in insects is called a pupa when they transform from a wiggling insect to a flying insect.
One of my favorite pupa stages in insects is that of a mosquito.
Even though most pupa stages of insects are immobile, the mosquito begs to differ. The pupa of a mosquito will typically hang beneath the surface of the water. But anytime there is a disturbance in the water or a shadow is cast over it, it immediately dives towards the bottom like an action hero dodging the villain's bullets, surfacing back after some time. They alternate between a backward and a forward somersault to dive down. Also affectionately called tumblers is precisely because of that behavior. ("What do the larvae look like", you asked? Check this post.)
Surely, we need to look closely at this beautiful acrobatic maneuver. Wow, now that is what the world needs more of to heal from all the trauma, not more cute puppies and kittens, I would argue.
Most people live their lives without letting the world know what they are going to eat every day, what they feel like every day and which country's beautiful beach they are currently at. The world does not like these people because they live their life in private and we hate that. We admire worship people who constantly give their opinions on which flavor of the cupcake is the best, what the country's politics should look like, whether they are starting a family or even how many sets in a workout they currently do at their gym. The pupa of a mosquito is something similar, it gives you a peek into its development when it is transforming into an adult inside the clear casing. Below is one stretching its body to accommodate the adult mosquito forming inside.
In the video above the darker pupa is nearing its end of this stage while the lighter colored pupa has still a couple of days to go. When you look closer at this pupa, you can see the eyes and the antenna of the adult mosquito. The adult mosquito is squeezed into the pupa as all budget airlines squeeze passengers on their airplanes.
And when the time comes and the mosquito finds its calling, the pupal skin splits open and an adult mosquito gradually emerges. "Don't let anyone tell you who you can and cannot suck blood from. People will always try to bring you down but you must keep on trucking." I shout in encouragement.
Here is how it looks up close when it is emerging from the pupal case. Based on how wild your imagination is willing to go, it also looks like it is trying to fit into its tight pants after going on a little fast-food binge while waiting for the pandemic to end.
Once completely emerged from the pupal case, the adult mosquito will catch its breath after getting through this ordeal.
Then it realizes there is no going back in time, so it pulls on its adult pants and heads towards land. In that moment, it leaves behind its pupal case and innocence. Below it is seen walking effortlessly on water towards land to dry itself and wait for its pilot's license application to be approved by the FAA before flying into the sunset.
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