♪ Found in nearly every habitat on Earth, There are more than one-and-a-half million insects that have been discovered, and it's estimated that may be only a small fraction of how many there truly are.

Small species like this one here not only have never been filmed but haven't even received a name yet.

Others are so similar in appearance it takes extensive research and scientific equipment to distinguish them.

For the squeamish, these insurmountable figures may be discouraging but believe it or not, the world would be a drastically different place without these creepy crawlers.

One species in South Carolina plays the wildest role in making sure these ecosystems continue to flourish.

♪ opening music ♪ ♪ The insect world is a tough place to live and is filled with some of the dirtiest jobs in the animal kingdom.

Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in the layer of plant debris on the forest floor known as "“leaf litter.

"” Here, a rich biodiversity of animals and fungi recycle the nitrogen in dead plant matter and enrich the soil aiding new growth.

To do this, small pieces of leaves are broken down, consumed, and then excreted by countless species of insects and other arthropods.

The leaf litter, in exchange, provides the perfect habitat offering shelter and protection for these organisms.

They may seem small and insignificant, but the health of the environment relies greatly on these decomposers and without them, plants would lose the natural source of nutrients they provide.

For bigger decomposition jobs, no bug does it better than the American Carrion Beetle.

♪ Also called "“burying beetles, "” these insects feed and lay their eggs on the bodies of dead or decaying animals.

Though this may be unpleasant, it's a necessary process of keeping the balance of nature in check.

When an animal dies, it emits a foul odor that's picked up by flies and other scavengers, like the carrion beetle and lets them know it's time to go to work.

Once the beetles arrive, they quickly begin digging underneath the decaying carcass to bury it in the earth, preventing the food from drying out and keeping competitors away from the action.

Most of the eating is done by the juvenile bugs, while adults have been observed to have a bite here and there, their primary focus is to mate, lay their eggs, and thin out the competition.

One of the main competitors of the carrion beetle is the fly.

Though it's impossible to completely eradicate them, this beetle has a couple tricks up its sleeve.

A closer look at the beetle reveals these tiny mites mounted on their backs.

When a beetle arrives at a carcass, the mites hop off and quickly get down to business eating fly eggs and smaller larvae.

In this form of mutualism, the carrion beetle's offspring have fewer competitors, and the mites get a free ride from meal to meal.

♪ ♪ At Clemson University, bug scientists or "“Entomologists,"” have been researching insects like the carrion beetle since 1889.

Their work typically consists of identifying and analyzing local species as well as keeping track of changes throughout the environment over time.

To get specimens, this group of students and faculty head out to areas like Clemson's Experimental Forest and capture species by sifting through leaf litter and setting up traps.

Once collected, they're brought back to the lab and filtered once more to obtain clean samples for studying.

For a closer look into specimens, modern DNA sequencing is used to differentiate cryptic species that look identical, but are genetically distinct.

One of the final stops for those collected is Clemson's Arthropod Collection Museum where over a million-and-a-half species are stored and cataloged for future study putting a pin down on how essential these wild creatures can be.

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