Caddisfly Bling

I love the intersection of biology and art. So do, apparently, caddis flies. Pictured above, these are the water-dwelling larvae of caddis flies. In their natural habitat, they glue any old thing together to create a protective shell for their vulnerable little bodies. In a stroke of pure genius, french artist Duprat has collected larvae and provided them with semi-precious stones and gold bits. The result is something stunning and weird. Gold and pearls are a little garish, but what else... what else could we give these little buggers? Could we put them to work building something practical? This might be an art project, but I have a feeling that a practical purpose could come out this idea.

Caddis flies have always struck me as an interesting model for an alien race. One of these days, I am going to write about an alien that travels the galaxy, collecting odd bits of other cultures and gluing them to itself as part of its protective case, which also serves as a shelf of travel mementos.