Six-Legged Soldiers: Using Insects as Weapons of War

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Jeffrey A. Lockwood (Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities, Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities, University of Wyoming)

Six-Legged Soldiers

Using Insects as Weapons of War

Jeffrey A. Lockwood (Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities, Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities, University of Wyoming)

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English

Oxford University Press
01 April 2009

Warfare & defence; Chemical & biological weapons; Mathematics & Sciences; Zoology & animal sciences; Insects (entomology)

"The emir of Bukhara used assassin bugs to eat away the flesh of his prisoners.

General Ishii Shiro during World War II released hundreds of millions of infected insects across China, ultimately causing more deaths than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan. These are just two of many startling examples found in Six-legged Soldiers, a brilliant portrait of the many weirdly creative, truly frightening, and ultimately powerful ways in which insects have been used as weapons of war, terror, and torture.

Beginning in prehistoric times and building toward a near and disturbing future, the reader is taken on a journey of innovation and depravity. Award-winning science writer Jeffrey A. Lockwood begins with the development of ""bee bombs"" in the ancient world and explores the role of insect-borne disease in changing the course of major battles, ranging from Napoleon's military campaigns to the trenches of World War I.

He explores the horrific programs of insect warfare during World War II: airplanes dropping plague-infested fleas, facilities rearing tens of millions of hungry beetles to destroy crops, and prison camps staffed by doctors testing disease-carrying lice on inmates.

The Cold War saw secret government operations involving the mass release of specially developed strains of mosquitoes on an unsuspecting American public--along with the alleged use of disease-carrying and crop-eating pests against North Korea and Cuba. Lockwood reveals how easy it would be to use of insects in warfare and terrorism today: In 1989, domestic ecoterrorists extorted government officials and wreaked economic and political havoc by threatening to release the notorious Medfly into California's crops.

A remarkable story of human ingenuity--and brutality--Six-Legged Soldiers is the first comprehensive look at the use of insects as weapons of war, from ancient times to the present day."

By: Jeffrey A. Lockwood (Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities Professor of Natural Sciences & Humanities University of Wyoming)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 239mm, Width: 163mm, Spine: 31mm
Weight: 708g
ISBN: 9780195333053
ISBN 10: 0195333055
Pages: 400
Publication Date: 01 April 2009
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for Six-Legged Soldiers: Using Insects as Weapons of War

Compelling. Simon Schama, Financial Times Lockwood's approach is fresh. PD Smith, The Guardian The book is an excellent read. Michelle Harvey, Times Higher Education Supplement It's a delightfully gory book. James Delingpole, Irish Mail on Sunday He writes with vigour and clarity, making the book very accessible. Joanna Bourne, The Times Lockwood has produced an engaging work. Robin McKie, The Observer 'Six-Legged Soldiers' exposes convincingly the likely devastating impact. An infectious, haunting read. Emmanuelle Smith, Financial Times It's a delightfully gory book. James Delingpole, Mail on Sunday 'Six Legged Soldiers' is an excellent account of the effect that anthropod-borne diseases have had on warefare. Kenneth J. Lithicum, Nature.