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Description
Antarctic Chronicles - An entomological guide of the trample steppe
Other invertebrates have chosen a different approach to stay warm during winter by utilizing the heat from animals, exemplified by a recently diverged group of ectoparasitic insects known as skin insects (Zoococcus spp.). They constitute a highly derived group of scale insects which, rather than using their pointed proboscis to extract sap from plants, prefer to feed on the blood of large mammals and birds. This shift from sap-sipping to a blood-based diet is not a novel occurrence in the insect world, but a common evolutionary eventuality. At least six separate lineages have transitioned to a blood-sucking diet, likely stemming from sap-sucking species.
Like all coccoids, skin insects exhibit significant sexual dimorphism and a predominantly female population. Females are born flightless and, in their final stage, become immobile, remaining firmly attached to their host thanks to special hooks on their bodies. They usually reproduce through parthenogenesis throughout the year, producing small eggs that often become entangled in the fur or feathers of the host and are subsequently dispersed to other individuals through direct contact. Males are infrequent in the life cycle of skin insects, becoming slightly more common (0.01% sex ratio) during winter—a primitive trait of all scale insects aimed at enhancing survival during the food shortages of the harsh season. Despite not experiencing a shortage of food, even in winter, skin insects maintain sexual reproduction to a limited extent, ensuring at least a minimal level of genetic recombination.

Description
Antarctic Chronicles - An entomological guide of the trample steppe
Other invertebrates have chosen a different approach to stay warm during winter by utilizing the heat from animals, exemplified by a recently diverged group of ectoparasitic insects known as skin insects (Zoococcus spp.). They constitute a highly derived group of scale insects which, rather than using their pointed proboscis to extract sap from plants, prefer to feed on the blood of large mammals and birds. This shift from sap-sipping to a blood-based diet is not a novel occurrence in the insect world, but a common evolutionary eventuality. At least six separate lineages have transitioned to a blood-sucking diet, likely stemming from sap-sucking species.
Like all coccoids, skin insects exhibit significant sexual dimorphism and a predominantly female population. Females are born flightless and, in their final stage, become immobile, remaining firmly attached to their host thanks to special hooks on their bodies. They usually reproduce through parthenogenesis throughout the year, producing small eggs that often become entangled in the fur or feathers of the host and are subsequently dispersed to other individuals through direct contact. Males are infrequent in the life cycle of skin insects, becoming slightly more common (0.01% sex ratio) during winter—a primitive trait of all scale insects aimed at enhancing survival during the food shortages of the harsh season. Despite not experiencing a shortage of food, even in winter, skin insects maintain sexual reproduction to a limited extent, ensuring at least a minimal level of genetic recombination.