Cold-Blooded
Cold-blooded is a misleading term. The scientific term is ectotherm: ecto = outside, therm = heat. Ectotherms don’t regulate their body temperatures like we warm-blooded endotherms do; they are at the whims of the outside temperature.
Being an ectotherm means that the temperature of your surroundings has a serious effect on your body. This explains why putting a fly in the freezer slows it down so much that you can tie a string to it like a leash. I bet flies love that, by the way.
For the record, I’ve never attempted this.
I usually have better things to do.
Being at the mercy of the outside temperature is why you don’t see many bugs and reptiles in cold parts of the world. They really prefer warm climates so they can be active and annoying. Fun fact: cockroaches in Manhattan wouldn’t last one winter without heated apartments to snuggle into (compliments of The World Without Us by Alan Weisman), as they are a tropical transplant and not built to withstand a New England winter on their own.
If we humans were ectotherms (and I’m glad we’re not), life would be a bit like this:
