Meet the bombardier beetle, the bizarre and wonderful insect that brews boiling chemicals in its abdomen.
Left: A napalm-spewing Tanker Bug from Paul Verhoeven’s rendition of Starship Troopers, inspired by the (much smaller) bombardier beetle.
The bombardier beetle is often cited by Creationists, who claim the beetle could not have evolved without blowing itself to bits. However, that relies on a number of incorrect assumptions which have been neatly debunked. The evolution of the bombardier beetle is a fascinating example of how diversity and complexity can arise from simple, natural processes.
