The Earth has continually developed over its history, and the current lands and seas hold a record of this evolution, in their fossils, soil deposits and life forms. All of the planet serves as nature's raw material, and each species struggles with issues of adaptation and self-preservation. For plants, the secrets of life start in the seeds, which propagate in often strange ways. The seeds of the wild oat (vildhavre), for instance, drop to the ground and then undulate to move themselves to a favorable position to take root, while other seeds wind once on the ground, drilling themselves into the soil. The witch hazel (trollhassel) plant shoots seeds out of its body, helping them reach a sunny spot. A forest fire, though apparently destructive, aids in the production of some pinecones (tallkottar), which open only when in flames. Seeds in the soil push aside objects to aid their growth, helping flowers to bloom and fruits to ripen. Corn reproduces by forming a tassel to release pollen dust, which is then captured further down the stalk by silks. Each kennel represents a new seed. Insects, especially bees, often provide the transportation for pollen. As the bumblebee (humla) crawls into a flower to locate the nectar, it is brushed with pollen, which it then scatters. Some flowers, such as those on cacti, have waving "arms" to better reach the bees. The honeybee (honungsbi) is a master pollinator. It gathers pollen to feed its larvae, collecting it in sacks on its rear legs. The honeybees battle dangerous plants and rainstorms in order to work tirelessly on their hives. In hollow trees, one queen bears all the responsibility for reproduction, after which her eggs are deposited in wax chambers created by the worker bees. They produce wax in their bodies and squeeze it from between their abdominal segments. Each hive cell fits the others, creating a strong and efficient chamber packed tight with food supplies for winter and honey created from nectar by house bees. After harvest season, the queen must leave to create a new hive. The drones then select several larvae and feed them royal jelly to make them fertile. When one emerges, it must kill the other contenders and then mate with one drone in a "wedding flight." Some ants also make honey, and store it in their abdomens, which swell to huge proportions. There are over five thousand species of ants, each specialized and individual. For instance, the harvester ants dig tunnels and move objects many times their size; hunting ants eat pests such as termites; and leaf cutters (bladskärarmyror) collect pieces of flora to grow a fungus they need to survive. Even drops of water contain life, in the form of single-cell protozoa (urdjur) and rotifers (hjuldjur), which have crude digestive systems. In the rivers, a more developed fish called the stickleback (spigg) creates a nest where the male lures the female and encourages her to lay her eggs. He then supplies the milk for fertilization, and defends the nest. Nearby, dragonfly nymphs (trollsländelarver) eat fish eggs; archer fish (sprutfisken) shoot "bullets" of water at airborne insects; and diving spiders (vattenspindlar) build an underwater air bubble in which to live. In the ocean, some fish bear the traces of prehistoric life forms, such as kelp fish (kelpfisken), which can walk. The angler dangles a wormlike growth to attract fish to eat, while on land, the fiddler crab (vinkarkrabban) waves its one oversized claw to attract a mate. Off the ocean in California and Mexico, schools of grunion (grunionfisk) lay their eggs ashore, bury them in the sand, then return to sea. Later, the eggs hatch by the million, but many are eaten, acting out nature's ebb and flow. Also mirroring this delicate balance is the volcano, which looks destructive but actually helps replenish the planet's raw materials. Nature continues to create and recreate, replenishing the world with her secrets of life. (AFI)
