Daniel and Kelly’s Extraordinary Universe Listener Questions #29
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Feb 5, 2026 They tackle bark beetles and the fungi they carry that disarm tree defenses. They explore insect fungus farming beyond beetles, including termites and ants. They introduce and explain ambipolar fields in planetary atmospheres and why Venus's is especially strong. They investigate when and how hair goes gray, including nerve-driven changes seen in mouse studies.
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Beetles Farm Fungi To Overcome Tree Defenses
- Spruce bark beetles carry fungi that neutralize tree chemical defenses and convert tree tissues into beetle food.
- Beetles and fungi form a tight symbiosis where beetles provide transport and fungi enable mass tree mortality.
Fungus Farming Is Common In Insects
- Fungus farming occurs widely in insects including termites, ants, wood wasps, and ambrosia beetles.
- Some ambrosia beetles carry specialized body structures to transport their fungal partners between logs.
Some Beetles Steal Fungal Farms
- Some beetles practice mycocleptism by stealing fungal cultivars from other farmers and re-establishing them nearby.
- These thieves are not born with the fungus but acquire it during their lives.