Hiding in plain sight and deceptively still, treehoppers have evolved an ingenious way to communicate—using a complex series of vibrations. Now, scientists are listening in and starting to crack the treehopper code. And it turns out, these insect conversations are happening nearly everywhere they eavesdrop—from tropical rainforests to urban gardens. Your own backyard may in fact be hosting a cacophony of communication that is imperceptible, until we listen in just the right way.
Invisible Nature: Code of the Treehopper, a delightful and informative story about what we don’t usually see or hear, directed by science filmmaker Flora Lichtman for bioGraphic.
Next, watch Whale Fall (After Life of a Whale) and Animated Life: Seeing the Invisible. Plus: Look Up! The Billion-Bug Highway You Can’t See.h/t @Anna_Rothschild.
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