Insect Wings in Extreme Macro

Madagascan sunset moth. Image by Chris Perani.

Photographer Chris Perani is fascinated by the microstructures of insect wings, which he captures in “extreme macro” through focus stacking–letting us see wings in glorious micron-scale detail. In addition to giving insects their brilliant colors and irridescence, these structures serve another key role: they help insects stay dry. In a world where contact with water is unavoidable, insects have instead evolved to trap air in the gaps of their wings, letting water slide off instead of sticking. (Image credit: C. Perani; via Colossal)

Fediverse Reactions

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.