Dirty Job

No one likes to clean up poo but someone has to do it.  Dung Beetles are actually quite fascinating little creatures, despite being scatophages (dung eaters) and also dung dwellers.  The Scarab well know from Egyptian mythology is a dung beetle.  The nocturnal North African Scarabaeus satyrus species of dung beetle is the only non human animal that uses the Milky Way to celestially navigate.  Takamichi Irie captures the likeness of nature's janitor at work rolling an excellently modeled ball of dung.  The tennis rackets for the flies wings are excellent parts usage as is the photography of with the reflection on the beetles carapace and the fly just out of focus.   The beetle itself is well executed as well, capturing the shape, and the details of the spiky nature of the dung beetle's legs.

 

Stag Beetle

On the sunny central coast of California we enjoy a fairly bug-free life. Sure, there are trillions of them, but they really don't bother us, few bite or sting, and most are so small they go unnoticed. So, I think if I saw one of these in real life I might have a mini heart attack, even if they are completely harmless. A brilliant MOC by Grant Davis.

Dragonfly

Dragonflies are one of those creatures that captivates everyone's imagination. Even if you see them all the time, you have to pause to appreciate one. Their elegant wings, slender body and iridescent surface makes them unique and beautiful. Speaking of beautiful, check out this dragonfly by Takamichi Irie, with some incredible flex tube work on the wings, gorgeous!

Hornet

One of the perks of living on the central coast of California is a distinct lack of bugs. I'm not saying there's none, there's plenty, but whenever someone visits from the midwest or south, they marvel at how few bugs there are, I'm totally OK with that. Take for instance this little critter by Takamichi Irie, I can't tell you the last time I saw a hornet, they're around I'm sure, but I haven't seen one. 

Mantis

We don't have a whole lot of the more exotic bugs here on the central coast of California, but we do see an occasional praying mantis, and it's always a little thrill. I don't know why this particular insect gets so much attention, but when one shows up it always seems someone is taking a picture of it. Now this version by Takamichi Irie is totally photogenic, being as it's built from everyone's favorite toy.

Stop Bugging Me

Just kidding.  You're not bugging me at all!  

From what I can tell from being an English teacher for nine years, Japanese boys and girls have a unique fascination with insects and even have a knack for collecting them.  They're not all just creepy crawly critters!  This makes me wonder if Takamichi Irie collected insects as a child.  He recently spent a year studying abroad and time to time expressed his feelings of being homesick, which might explain where his LEGO insect series came from.  It's amazing what you can do with just a few tiny parts (and especially with those that seem to have only a single use).  NPU, dude!  You can see the rest of the his "Small Animals" series on his Flickr.

Snail Black Widow Spider Stag Beetle

Detective D. Spy

Surveillance is everywhere these days (which makes shoplifting even more baffling to me) and has apparently made it's way to the insect world. Yes, you mischievous little woodland creatures and swamp dwellers, you are being watched because this camera-toting dragonfly by Brickthing is on the job. I really love all the detail on this fragile MOC, especially the hands for spines and Mandalorian helmets for eyes.

Thwack!

Chameleons are fascinating creatures. I mean think about it, they change colors, have independent eyes, can hit a target 1.5 times it's length away with it's tongue and has the craziest hands and feet. They also make excellent models as demonstrated by Littlehaulic here.

Skeeter

One of the things I love about living on the central coast of California (and conversely, hate about visiting relatives in the mid-west) is the lack of insects. Sure we have bugs, but mosquitos are fairly rare and we don't suffer like they do elsewhere. But you know, if the were as cool as this MOC by captainsmog, I might not dislike them so much.