Won’t somebody please think of the insects?!
Global protected areas safeguard many plants and animals, but insects? Not so much. Enlarge / This butterfly is also referred to as the Cairns Birdwing. (credit: Jodi Jacobson) Nearly 17 percent, or 22.5 million square.....»»
Ants have a specialized communication processing center that has not been found in other social insects
Have you ever noticed an ant in your home, only to find that a week later the whole colony has moved in? The traps you set up catch only a few of these ants, but soon, the rest of the colony has mysteriously disappeared. Now, a study published in the.....»»
Team develops autonomous robot to stave off spotted lanternflies
A team from Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute (RI) has developed an autonomous robot to control the spread of spotted lanternflies, invasive insects known to destroy economically important crops......»»
Help, bees have colonized the walls of my house! Why are they there and what should I do?
Have you spotted a swarm of flying insects emerging from a wall? Or noticed a buzzing noise coming from inside the house?.....»»
Researchers create engineered human tissue to study mosquito bites, disease
A UCF research team has engineered tissue with human cells that mosquitoes love to bite and feed upon—with the goal of helping fight deadly diseases transmitted by the biting insects......»»
Researchers find structures that enable rapid transmission of nerve impulses in insects
An animal's brain consists of two different types of cell: neurons, which process and transmit information, and glial cells, which support the neurons in a variety of ways. In 1871, the French anatomist Louis-Antoine Ranvier demonstrated something sp.....»»
The world"s first flowers were pollinated by insects, says new study
Plants existed on Earth for hundreds of millions of years before the first flowers bloomed. But when flowering plants did evolve, more than 140 million years ago, they were a huge evolutionary success......»»
"Butterfly chaos effect" discovered in swarms and herds of animals
Researchers at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) have discovered a phase shift between chaotic states that can appear in herds of animals and, in particular, in swarms of insects. This advance.....»»
Insect wings could inspire new self-cleaning technologies
Fresh insights into how insects use water droplets to wash dirt and pollutants from their bodies could help improve the performance of self-cleaning devices, a study suggests......»»
How insects track odors by navigating microscale winds
How do flying insects like important pollinators locate odor sources in the great outdoors, despite encountering highly variable wind conditions? They use odor plumes—which travel like smoke and form when the wind blows odor molecules from their so.....»»
Bacteria are vital for the diversity and survival of insects, shows new study
Insects are crucial for biodiversity and among the most successful species on the planet. However, until now, it has been unclear how they could exploit such a diversity of food sources. According to a recent study published in the journal Nature Eco.....»»
Could wildflowers and bug hotels help avert an insect apocalypse? We just don"t know—yet
Insects are in rapid decline. One study found the global total is falling by 2.5% a year, with insect species going extinct eight times faster than mammals, birds and reptiles......»»
Bees can do so much more than you think—from dancing to being little art critics
Bees are among the most important insects on Earth—vital pollinators of our crops and significant contributors to human societies for thousands of years......»»
Researchers develop optoelectronic graded neurons for perceiving dynamic motion
The tiny visual systems of flying insects have inspired researchers of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) to develop optoelectronic graded neurons for perceiving dynamic motion, enriching the functions of vision sensors for agile response......»»
A new model for the evolution of honey bee brains
Researchers have proposed a new model for the evolution of higher brain functions and behaviors in the Hymenoptera order of insects. The team compared the Kenyon cells, a type of neuronal cell, in the mushroom bodies (a part of the insect brain invol.....»»
Report: Warming climate could deliver new crops, and blights, to New Zealand
New, invasive plant-destroying insects, weeds and diseases will increasingly challenge New Zealand's borders as a warming climate and other global "megatrends" make our plants and ecosystems more exposed and vulnerable; a new report proposes......»»
Lickable toads and magic mushrooms: Wildlife traded on the dark web is the kind that gets you high
The internet has made it easier for people to buy and sell a huge variety of wildlife—from orchids, cacti and fungi to thousands of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish, as well as insects, corals and other invertebrates......»»
Nitrogen found to affect soil invertebrates and insects
Higher levels of nitrogen in the environment (coming from fertilizers and livestock, for example) not only affect plants but also soil invertebrates and insects. The diversity of roundworms declines in areas with high input of nitrogen, and numbers o.....»»
Dandelions are a lifeline for bees on the brink. We should learn to love them, says researcher
Dandelions, love them or hate them, are blooming in abundance all over the UK this spring. As an ecologist who studies the insects which visit these flowers, so redolent of sunshine, I have never been able to understand why anyone might hate them......»»
Worldwide insect decline: Causes, consequences and potential countermeasures
Throughout the world, we are witnessing not just a decline in the numbers of individual insects, but also a collapse of insect diversity. Major causes of this worrying trend are land-use intensification in the form of greater utilization for agricult.....»»
Butterflies and dodos hold clues to protecting biodiversity
Although too late for the famed flightless bird, new scientific findings on the winged insects could help preserve animal species......»»