Recent comments in /f/askscience

Liberty-Justice-4all t1_j5d2xop wrote

Reply to Do you stop being allergic to things when you die? by kcshoe14

Not 100% sure on all allergic reaction mechanisms, but I can tell you anything involving blood moving up to the surface isn't going to happen.

In hives and other rashes, the raised red surface is because your microscopic blood vessels react to let more blood flow into the area.

When you are dead, those tiny blood vessel walls are no longer reacting, and the blood isn't flowing.

In fact, the blood settles on the bottom of your body as it's no longer being kept moving and muscled back from where gravity pulls it - this is called liver mortis.

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the_denim_duke t1_j5d0vzh wrote

Reply to Do bugs Ccommonly die of old age in nature? by 14159548210

More bugs likely die from predation in the wild than from old age, as many insects and other invertebrates have relatively short lifespans and are a vital food source for a wide variety of predators. Additionally, many insects have high reproductive rates, which can offset the loss of individuals to predation.

There are also many insects that have a long lifespan, and for those, age-related death is more likely. e.g. the Queen ant, termite, or honeybee, and Cicadas, Praying Mantis' etc.

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