A Bug’s Life: Accurate to Real Bugs?

Many animated movies that have characters based on real creatures try to include some facts within their fictional tale. But it is worth wondering if a beloved film’s depictions are truly accurate, such as Pixar’s A Bug’s Life. There are many insects featured in this underrated classic, and their appearances and behaviors seem to be adapted for an aesthetically-pleasing children’s movie, rather than keeping the often creepy look of the real-life insects. Let’s dive in!

The General Anatomy of Insects

First, the general appearance of insects should be defined since this film doesn’t stick to every single fact. Keep in mind that these features aren’t set in stone, so it doesn’t mean that every single insect has all of these exact features. They’re just the common features among most types of insects. 

• Six Legs – Most insects have six legs that are about the same length, with some species having specialized functions for each leg. In contrast, many of the insects in A Bug’s Life have four legs in an apparent attempt to make them more pleasing to the eye for the intended audience: children. The animated insects look more toy-like and less creepy than their real life counterparts.
• No Nostrils or Lungs – Insects don’t breathe like humans simply because they lack nostrils and lungs. Instead, they breathe through small holes in their abdomen and use their antennae to smell. It seems that the movie sticks to this fact, since none of the main characters appear to have nostrils. 
• Compound Eyes – This is one insect feature that the movie undeniably changed to fit the cute and pleasing aesthetic. This may have been for good reason since the animated bugs have big, bright eyes that convey their emotions. Conversely, a real insect’s eyes are compound eyes, which means that they don’t have whites, irises, or pupils, so the whole eye is dark in appearance. This would have made for a much creepier film, so this artistic choice is for the best. 
• Carnivorous Diet – While not every insect eats other bugs, many species do. They’ll either attack a living bug and kill it, or they’ll wait for something else to kill the insect and then eat the deceased bug. This is also a good change in the movie, since it would be jarring to watch these lovable characters eat other insects, even if it’s accurate. The animated bugs all seem to be vegetarians, and even the main villain, Hopper, wants to get rid of the ants, not eat them.

Ants

The main protagonists of A Bug’s Life are ants who live in a colony and work hard to gather food for themselves and a mean bunch of grasshoppers who antagonize them every year. Real ants function in a similar way, as they’re social insects that live in colonies. The colony needs a queen to survive, even though she is not technically “in charge” or giving orders. She’s the one reproducing, so the future of the colony depends on her.

The queen only flies when she’s mating and otherwise stays in the background of all the activity. When the queen dies, a new queen takes her place and becomes the sole reproducer of the group. Females gather food and protect the nests, and males are winged drones that mate with the queen and die a few days afterward.

Movie Version:

The ants in the movie are clearly social and live in a colony setting like the real insects, but the inner workings of the ants are different. The queen, after surviving Hopper’s attack, retires and passes her crown down to her eldest daughter Atta. A real ant queen doesn’t retire, so the only replacement happens when the current queen dies of old age or is killed.

Atta’s younger sister, Dot, is a nymph and constantly trying to fly with her underdeveloped wings, much to the chagrin of her family. The real life stages of an ant are larvae, pupae, and adult ants, and it’s not likely that an adult ant would care about a young ant trying to fly.

Flik, the main character, is a worker ant who accidentally spills all of the gathered seeds and puts the safety of his colony in jeopardy. In reality, the worker ants are all females. So Flik should either be a female, or have wings and be a drone in order to be realistic. Another creative liberty that the movie takes is with Flik and Atta’s romantic relationship. Since ants in a colony come from the same queen and are therefore siblings, they wouldn’t be involved.

Grasshoppers

Grasshoppers make the perfect insect villains since they’re much larger and harsher-looking than the cute ants. These grasshoppers are actually relatively accurate to the real ones. Normal grasshoppers have three segments of their body and a hard exoskeleton. They can travel great distances for their food, so they don’t have to just hunt close to home. Their six legs are four walking legs and two jumping legs, which is how they’re able to jump in addition to being able to fly.

Grasshoppers are herbivores and most will eat any kind of general crops, including cotton, clover, and oats. They have palps to grasp their food before they use their mandibles to crush it. Since they move so fast and can eat a multitude of food, they are despised by farmers and gardeners alike, as grasshoppers can eat up to 25% of foliage a year. 

Movie Version:

The grasshoppers in the movie are relatively accurate to the real insects. They fly and jump great distances, and are much larger than insects like ants. The most common predator of real grasshoppers is the bird, so it’s very realistic that Hopper is terrified of birds and is eventually eaten by baby birds. His brother, Molt, sheds his skin in one scene out of fear, but it’s unclear if grasshoppers shed their skins out of anything but necessity.

Another fact that would have resulted in a very different film is that some species of ants attack and eat grasshoppers. Luckily for these antagonists, the cute ants only want their home to be left alone and not have to serve them anymore.

Ladybug

Ladybugs are perceived as very delicate and harmless, and they truly are for everyone except smaller bugs. Ladybugs eat small insects, like aphids and leaf cutters, and don’t harm us. Many gardeners actually place ladybugs in their garden to eliminate the threat of those pesky bugs that love plants. The distinctive colors and spots ward off predators. Ladybugs, or ladybirds, are interesting insects that are more useful to humans than annoying, assuming they stay outside. 

Movie Version:

Francis, the male ladybug in the film, is often mistaken for a female and it’s always played up for laughs. It must come with the territory since “lady” is in the name. He is a rougher character who gets verbally aggressive with anyone who makes fun of him, but he has a soft spot for his circus group and the young ants. The demeanor of male ladybugs versus females is unclear, but the main way to tell the difference between the real insects is that females are larger than males. 

Gypsy Moth

This moth is visually distinctive with its unique markings. The wings look like an inverted “V” that lead to dots marking the sections of the wing. The basic difference between males and females is that males can fly. The female gypsy moth has vestigial wings, which means they don’t function and seem to be left over from previous generations. The caterpillar stage is the hungriest one, as they will climb on plants to start at the top of the leaves and eat their way down. 

Movie Version:

The gypsy moth in A Bug’s Life, Gypsy, is a much more colorful version of the real insect. She has beautiful wings with purple and blue accents, and uses that to her advantage as she distracts potential predators from her friends. But these patterns and colors are sadly not realistic to a normal gypsy moth.

The female moths have cream-colored wings and tan bodies, so they’re much more muted than Gypsy. Her colors and wing style are said to be more of a European peacock butterfly than a gypsy moth. She is also married to Manny the praying mantis, which is definitely not realistic either. 

Praying Mantis

The praying mantis is a large insect that is harmless to humans, but definitely not to other insects. They are carnivores that are able to kill and eat many types of insects and creatures, including ones larger than them like a hummingbird. They have a wide range of vision, mainly because of their flexible necks that can turn 180 degrees to either side.

The famous praying motion is simply the position they take when they’re waiting to strike their prey. The praying mantis has small “spikes” on their legs and makes a deadly foe for insects when combined with the mantid’s fast reflexes.

Movie Version:

Manny the praying mantis is much more docile and regal than the real insect. He’s a magician and uses a takeout box to make insects or objects “disappear.” It can be assumed that the real praying mantis doesn’t practice magic, but that could be studied further. He’s married to Gypsy and genuinely cares for her. It’s good he is not married to another praying mantis because the females eat the males right after mating, so his story would’ve had a quick and painful ending. 

Black Widow

The black widow spider is commonly regarded as the most poisonous spider in the U.S. Its venom is enough to put a human in the hospital if it goes untreated. With this in mind, their bite is clearly lethal to small insects, as demonstrated when an insect sticks in their web. They’re even able to sense their prey coming by crouching and feeling the vibrations from the insect flying or walking towards it.

Also, their egg sacs stay in the web until they hatch, and the spider babies may even eat each other if they are hungry enough!

Movie Version:

Rosie the black widow is a much more friendly and cheerful character than her real life version seems to be. She is a motherly figure, which aligns with the stereotype of black widows being mothers, and cares for her friends when they get injured. She’s physically strong and can carry a few of them to safety, which is also accurate.

There is a joke in the movie about Rosie having twelve dead husbands, which plays into the stereotype of female black widows eating their mates after mating. But, believe it or not, this stereotype is mainly false! There are cases where a female will eat the male, but for the most part, she doesn’t eat their mate and make herself a true widow. 

Caterpillar

The caterpillar is the second life stage of the butterfly, but it comes with its own unique features. The eggs are laid on a host plant so that the caterpillar has nutrients immediately after hatching. They have the typical six legs of an insect, but they also have small five “prolegs” with hooks to help them grip onto any surface. This stage is characterized by the internal need to continue eating, and the typical diet of a caterpillar is leaves. 

Movie Version:

Heimlich the caterpillar certainly plays into the stereotype that caterpillars are always eating because he’s either looking for food or stuffing it in his mouth. His insatiable appetite is exaggerated, but it’s based on truth. A caterpillar has mandibles that chew side to side, but it can be hard to tell if Heimlich also has this skill.

At the end of the movie, Heimlich emerges from his cocoon with comically small wings and is thrilled that he’s finally a butterfly. The reason his wings are so small, besides to make one last joke, is because he emerged from his cocoon too early and did not give enough time for his wings to develop. 

Flea

The flea is commonly associated with furry pets, like dogs and cats, because their favorite meal is a warm furry mammal’s blood. They can hide within the fur and lay their eggs on the animal itself, which is how an infestation begins. Fleas can even live up to two weeks without food, so they’re able to comfortably change locations. They are notably not clean pests, as they can transmit different diseases and bacteria through their bites and excrement. 

Movie Version:

P.T. Flea, the owner of the circus that the group performs in, is a money-hungry character who is always looking for the next great act for his show. Fleas don’t have a circus (as far as we know), but they do seem to love being in a group since flea infestations are so common. He is also quick-tempered and jumps around quite a bit, making for an entertaining and lively character.

He isn’t shown to jump absurd distances in the movie, but real fleas are able to jump incredible lengths. They can even leap up to 150 times their own length, which explains why fleas seem to be invincible unless they are properly treated.

Pillbugs

Pillbugs, or roly-poly bugs, are known for their ability to curl up in a small ball or pill shape when they’re threatened or when a curious child picks them up. These isopods are actually crustaceans by definition and related to crabs. Their tough outer shell is shed multiple times in their lives, and they hide every time in order to protect themselves from predators. These insects prefer dark and moist environments, which is likely why they’re nocturnal and tend to stay in the dirt.

Movie Version:

Tuck and Roll are Hungarian pillbugs who have a tumbling act in the circus. They’re twins who use their rolling abilities to their advantage, even though they barely understand English and therefore can hardly understand the audience’s reactions. Pillbugs don’t seem to be this acrobatic in real life, but the rolling nature and wingless body are definitely accurate. 

Rhinoceros Beetle

The rhinoceros beetle is visibly distinct due to its large horns on the from of its head, but only males have this feature. The horns are used to fight, especially between two males during mating season. Rhinoceros beetles are large and can grow up to six inches long. These massive beetles are thankfully herbivores, so there is no worry about them attacking humans with their giant horns.

Movie Version:

Dim the rhinoceros beetle is a definite gentle giant in this movie. He’s quite cowardly and needs to be comforted by Rosie when he is hurt. But he does use his massive size to his advantage like the real beetle, when Dot, the young ant princess, is threatened by grasshoppers.

He also lives up to the other name of this beetle, the Hercules beetle, due to the insane strength it possesses. The rhinoceros beetle can lift up to 850 times its own weight, and it seems that Dim could do the same. His horned design was not specific to any one species, but one was found in the real world later on that proved the designers were ahead of their time. 

Walking Stick

The walking stick is an absurdly long stick bug that uses its twig-like appearance to its advantage. It will sway back and forth with the wind in order to blend in with the tree branches it’s likely resting on. They also molt before they become adults, leaving behind a tighter skin for one that is the right size. The walking stick is the longest insect in the world that we know of, which is startling in and of itself, but not too bad when we remember that they don’t attack humans. 

Movie Version:

Slim the walking stick is often made the butt of the joke due to his lanky appearance. He is constantly used as a prop rather than a performer in the circus, and is much taller than his friends. He cannot fly due to his lack of wings, but this is accurate to the real insect. Luckily, Slim has Francis to fly him around where he needs to go and is able to help his friends in any way that he can, using his length to his advantage.

Pest Control is Not Fiction

The animated versions of these insects are cute and entertaining, but the real life pests are not so special when they are trying to invade your space. Contact our pest control team today to discover the next steps for handling these pests. Insects from A Bug’s Life should stay on the screen, not in your home!

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Citations

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