E is for Exoskeleton

Fun Facts. No really, they are fun!!!


1) Insects do not have internal skeletons like humans do. Instead, they have an external shell that supports and protects their bodies. This is called the exoskeleton.

2) In order to grow, an insect must shed its old exoskeleton to allow a larger insect to emerge. We call this molting.

 

3) After a molt the exoskeleton is soft and lacks pigmentation. In this state, the insect is vulnerable to predation and it may take several hours, even days before the exoskeleton hardens and regains its true coloration.                                

Here’s a little flash fiction (~180 words), brought to you on the fly by yours truly, blackbelt panster extraordinaire. Okay, I know this is rubbish. But today, I’m here to make you feel better about your writing.  *drum roll* …

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A great pressure built inside the beast. It was alone, restless, and dangerous as it laboured for breath. The expansion inside its body grew by degrees, warping and bending the beast's hard exoskeleton. The beast could not stop the change from completing its task. The exoskeleton was an old carapace that had protected its host during many battles. But over the years it had become worn, and damaged, and a new and larger carapace was breaking free. Soon the change would be complete, but for now, the beast howled in torrents of pain and madness, fraying birds that scattered into the night. Then, a thin seam cracked open at the top of its thorax. The slit was small but relief could be heard in the stillness that followed. Expanding its body one last time, the beast pulled up through the seam and away from the old carapace. A new beast had finally emerged. On the ground lay the old empty shell, translucent and hollow like a ghost. The beast would admire its new exoskeleton another day. Now, with the pain alleviated, the beast rested.