ABSTRACT
There are trillions of cells inside reader's body-more than the number of galaxies in the known universe! Of course, to pack all those cells into one person-or flower, or bird, or poodle moth-the cells have to be very small. Slime molds begin life as tiny single cells, like many other unicellular critters. Usually, cells do this just before dividing into two new cells, each of which gets its own DNA copy. Instead, it keeps copying its DNA over and over, growing larger and larger, until one single cell has hundreds or thousands of copies of genetic material. Luckily, bloodsucking bugs aren't as large as the biggest flies authors know of. Mydas flies are thought to feed on flower nectar, and adult timber flies don't have fully developed mouths. The rats quickly developed a taste for giant stick insects, and the insects' population plummeted. To protect themselves, smaller crabs cover themselves with algae, kelp, and other sea matter to camouflage themselves.
