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The soundscape of this episode uses the track Lyrebird, from the album EGG, from Ultracomfortist. It's released under a creative common license and really cool! I also added some kitchen noises from Lewooz.
Picture yourself in a kitchen. In the normal kitchen of a normal human home. You walk on the floor, with the pieces of furniture towering over your small, elongated body. You carefully advance, hiding in the shadow. You are a silverfish, and this human home is also your home.
[human home soundscape fades in, with kitchen noise and relaxing background music.]
Hi and welcome to the Insect Insights, chill insect stories to relax and wonder, available wherever podcasts are. If you like this podcast, you can subscribe, leave a review and even an insect question, on spotify or on the website. I am Max, your host, and I hope you are ready to dive into insect knowledge for another insight!
Private property means nothing to you, so you obviously don’t own the place, but it is very much your home. All you have known, and all you will know, throughout your little insect life. And also all your ancestors have known for many generations. Your kind live almost exclusively in human buildings. The outside is a bit too cold for you.
Talking about cold, it really wasn’t very warm in here for a while. Things felt very quiet, and both the environment and yourself fell in some sort of torpor. Your slowed down metabolism still allowed you to move, but very little. You didn’t have much appetite.
But now, it’s like life has been brought back all around you. It is warmer, there’s a bit more moisture in the air as well, and you can feel hunger again. Maybe also, a different kind of hunger…
As it was cold, you only craved sugar. Carbohydrates to fuel the maintenance of you body: It’s not like there would have been anything else to do than wait. And suddenly, you feel like diversifying your diet again. This warmer environment is ideal for much more than survival. You could thrive!
You are almost mature, and soon ready to mate. One more molt is all it will take. To complete it, now that the temperature fits, you do need a diverse diet, to synthesize all these molecules for your growth. Proteins to recycle and assimilate, and cholesterol, with which you will create the growing juice, the ecdysteroids, molting hormones. Missing this one, your body would just accumulate reserves, getting ready for a step that could never come.
The starchy breadcrumbs here and there will still be the basis of your diet, a solid base of easily digested sugar. To fit your new conditions, you also want to add in some proteins and fat. This forgotten piece of cat food will be perfect. Exactly the nutrients you need to allow the growth of your silvery body to start again.
Luckily, you found all you were looking for. After this long sugar-only diet, eating fat and proteins feels great.
DeVries, Z. C., & Appel, A. G. (2014). Effects of temperature on nutrient self-selection in the silverfish Lepisma saccharina. Physiological Entomology, 39(3), 217–221. https://doi.org/10.1111/phen.12064