Meet the Creepy Critters

Say what?! Transmogrify means to make a fundamental change or to alter greatly, sometimes with a grotesque or funny effect. Insects are a lot smaller than you humans. So if you want to see what the insect world is like, you're going to have to TRANSMOGRIFY!

What's it like being a half-inch tall? It can be scary when you're face-to-face with a predator, like a mole or a spider. They may seem small to you humans, but to an insect they're HUGE!

But being this size is great if you want to make a quick escape into the soil. Soil makes a great place to live, especially if you are small. Food, water, and hiding places are all around, and the climate is much more stable than it is above ground. An amazing array of plants, animals, fungi, and microscopic critters live and work in the soil. This gives soil high biodiversity! High biodiversity helps keep ecosystems healthy both above ground and below, even in times of stress. It also makes soil one of the most dynamic environments on earth. So many different kinds of organisms live in soil that thousands of new species are discovered each year. There is a lot more going on in just a teaspoon of soil than you might think!

Hey, why don't you come meet some of the critters who share this incredible world underground!

If you're up to the challenge, take the Critter Quiz to see how well you know your underground organisms!