A new book released in the UK, Unseen Companions, reveals through close-up photography the fascinating and often beautiful organisms that share our world.
Photography by David & Madeleine Spears & Paul Cook
Earwig
The curved pincers on the tip of the abdomen of Forficula auricularia, magnified 75x.
Common Field Grasshopper
At a magnification of 60x, Chorthippus brunneus is the most oft found grasshopper in Britain.
Bumblebee
Bombus terrestris is large, furry and slow-moving. He doesn't smile much either.
Dust Mites
Seen at a magnification of 350x, a group of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus forage for human skin on a bedsheet.
Cat Flea
The most common pest found in the home, Ctenocephalides felis is streamlined and covered in bristles. Fortunately, they're 250 times smaller than this one.
Pharoah Ant
Though a native of tropical Africa, Monomorium pharaonis has established himself in Britain. This one's seen at 230 times his usual height.
Human Head Louse
This critter clings onto hair and moves about the skin, biting and sucking blood. No scratching, now. Worryingly, this Pediculus humanus capitis is only magnified 80x.
Fruit Fly
This nuisance pest contaminates food with bacteria and can produce up to 500 eggs in a life cycle that completes in little more than a week. Magnification is slightly lower at 350x.
House Spider
Next time you feel like washing one of these down the bath plug-hole, remember the size of Tegenaria domestica's fangs, viewed here 20x.
Mosquito
This one is the most common mosquito in the world. The Culex pipiens can carry the West Nile Virus, encephalitis and elephantiasis. Only the female bites.
American Cockroach
One for horror buffs and hygiene fans alike: Periplaneta americana. This little beauty is magnified a not inconsiderable 120x.
Black Garden Ant
Lasius niger gently carries an aphid egg in its jaws, magnified here 90x. Ants actively farm aphids, in exchange for the sweet 'honeydew' excreted by the aphid.
House Fly
Musca domestica, if you're ever face to face.
