Jared Free - "Annie Dillard"

In Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, the first of Dillard's three stories, she describes an experience she had while walking along the creek one morning. Dillard reflects that she often tried to spot the more elusive animals that could be found along the creek, the ones that would often flee at the sound of her approach. One morning she found a frog, and was surprised that it did not jump even as she crept to within four feet; something else happened though. "And just as I looked at him, he slowly crumpled and began to sag. The spirit vanished from hie eyes as if snuffed. His skin emptied and drooped; his very skull seemed to collapse and settle like a kicked tent. He was shrinking before my eyes like a deflating football." As I was reading this account I couldn't tell if this was all just a metaphor for the frogs demeanor, or if it was a literal description of what was happening; I thought it was the former. It turns out, however, the the frog had fallen victim to what Dillard refers to as the "giant water bug," scientifically known as the Belostomatidae. I was so intrigued by this story that I decided to research the Belostomatidae. The Belostomatidae is a family of insects known as toe-biters, Dillard's assessment, giant water bug, was also accurate. They are the larges insects in the order Hemiptera and have habitats that cover the globe. They are typically found in freshwater streams and ponds and are considered a popular food themselves in Thailand. They are considered fierce predators that stalk, capture and feed on aquatic crustaceans, fish, and amphibians. They often lie motionless at a body of water, attached to various objects, where they wait for prey to come near. When they strike they inject a powerful digestive saliva and suck out the liquefied remains. The bite is considered one of the most painful that can be inflicted by any insect and can even cause long term tissue damage in humans. A nasty brute, the frog never stood a chance.