Invasion of Tiny Creatures

They may look like science-fiction movies' monsters from outer space. But in fact, these tiny creatures inhabit our homes, clothes and even our bodies.



British author and trained zoologist, Tom Jackson brings some of these rather terrifying looking creatures to life, in a book called 'Micro Monsters ' - a title that is self-explanatory once you see the pictures.

He spent three months compiling the images in the book. In order to capture the incredible details, the tiny creatures were coated in gold and froze them in liquid nitrogen. Then a beam of electrons is transmitted through these subjects from a scanning electron microscope. As it streams through, it creates a very high resolution image that can be transferred onto a layer of photographic film, resulting in crystal clear photos.



Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a single dust mite among skin scales in housedust.



This is a Louse holding onto an egg. These creatures that feed off skin and other debris off a host's body. While there are over 3,000 known of such species, only three are known to attack humans, the most common of which is the head lice.



This is the electron micrograph of a Bluebottle fly, the most common fly in the world. Slightly bigger than a housefly, the insects that move in packs, feed off decaying food, garbage or faeces.



This is a yellow dung fly, which as the name indicates are insects that hang around horse and cow dung.



This is an aphid. They leach on to healthy plants and suck out the sap, destroying them completely.

Want to see more? Then get the book 'Micro Monsters '. It not only features about 80 bugs but also, gives a detailed explanation on each of these tiny creatures that surrounded us.