Are you dealing with a lot of annoying flies this summer? You can learn a lot about a fly by using a few materials from around the house.
* Drowned fly
* Salt
* Paper towel
* Popsicle stick
STEP 1: Place a drowned fly on a white paper towel.
STEP 2: Cover the drowned fly with salt and consistently move the fly around in the salt with the popsicle stick until the fly starts moving.
Flies and other insects breathe through tiny openings along the sides of their abdomen called spiracles. These openings were filled with a liquid causing the fly to drown. The salt draws the liquid out of the spiracles allowing the fly to "breathe" again.
Jason Lindsey is a science outreach educator with Hooked on Science. Check out his website hookedonscience.org for webcasts and experiments.
Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom:
For corrections to this story or other insights for the editor, click here. To submit a letter to the editor, click here. To learn about the Southeast Missourian’s AI Policy, click here.