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Joined: May 2008
Posts: 4,707
Master Elite Member
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Was It Designed?
The Beetle's Pressure-Spray System
Through less then an inch in length, the bombardier beetle is noted for its unique defense mechanism. When threatened, the insect sprays boiling, foul-smelling liquid and steam from its posterior, warding off spiders, birds, and even frogs.
Consider: This beetle is equipped with " a pair of glands which open at the tip of [its] abdomen." Each of theses has a reservoir that stores an acidic compound and hydrogen peroxide as well as a reaction chamber filled with enzymes dissolved in water. To protect itself, the insect can squeeze the solution from the reservoirs into the reaction chambers to trigger a chemical reaction.
The result?
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