"Catapults: they’re amazing! Stored potential energy rapidly released as forward motion to launch missiles, basketballs, watermelons, and even flying cars through the air. We know them, we build them, we love them. But humans are not alone in our adoration of the contraption, for while nature may abhor a vacuum, she loves a nasty catapult. And nature puts catapults in one fun place in particular, namely the bodies of arthropods…insects, crustaceans, spiders, and the various creepy-crawlies of the planet.

How do catapults come in handy for arthropods? In some species, females cannibalize their mates prior to, during, or after copulation. The best way to avoid being devoured by your mate is make sure you have some spring in your step! ..."