Insects
Insects
Articles tagged with "Insects"
Cicadas use darkness cues from shadows to move toward trees
When periodical cicadas surface after years underground, they don’t grope blindly for trees. They head for the shadows , researchers report March 20 in the American Naturalist .
Fossil reveals that an early relative of spiders had claws
A stunningly preserved fossil shows that early relatives of spiders and scorpions were already armed with their hallmark front claws about half a billion years ago.
Female giant rainforest mantises grow up to strike harder than males
Scientists tracked mantis strike force from youth to adulthood, showing females eventually hit far harder than males. Why is a mystery.
Mosquitoes’ butt cells tell them when to stop biting
Mosquitoes have an appetite dampener in their derrières. When mosquitoes’ bellies are full, special cells in their rectums block their bloodthirst , researchers report March 20 in Current Biology . The finding may unlock a way to stop the insects from biting in the first place.
Butterflies crossing oceans, moths navigating by the stars: unravelling the mysteries of insect migrations
Trillions of insects embark, largely unnoticed, on epic journeys every year across mountain ranges, deserts and seas, and it is only now, as their numbers suffer huge declines, that scientists are tracking their movements.
Half of Amazon insects could face dangerous heat stress
A sweeping new study of more than 2,000 insect species reveals a troubling reality: many insects may be far less capable of coping with rising temperatures than scientists once hoped.
Cockroaches that eat each other’s wings turn into a fierce fighting force
The wood-feeding cockroach’s cannibalistic love bites lead to a lasting bond. Afterward, the pair prefer each other over all other roaches.
Air pollution distracts insects from pollination and sex
Even at levels safe for humans, air pollution can disrupt the way some insects communicate with plants, and with each other.
Every ant is a queen in this parasitic species — and they reproduce by cloning themselves and hijacking other ant colonies
A rare Japanese ant is the only species known to lack female workers and males; all of its young develop into parasitic queens that try to take over other colonies.
Keeping a beat wins caterpillars friends in low places
Some caterpillars speak ant by rocking to a beat. By jiggling like a cellphone receiving a call while on vibrate, the caterpillars cozy up to ants, reaping benefits for them both .
Why does sound startle these caterpillars even though they don't have ears?
Tobacco hornworm caterpillars have no organs that resemble ears. Yet, scientists were able to figure out how they hear—and it could inspire next generation microphones.
New Zealand bug of the year: moth named Avatar after mining threat crowned winner
A tiny critically endangered moth, named after the Avatar films because of the proposed mining activity threatening its primary habitat, has been crowned New Zealand’s bug of the year. The Avatar moth won by a wide margin, earning 5,192 of the more than 11,000 total votes cast.
Microplastics have reached Antarctica’s only native insect
An international team led by researchers at the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment has found that Antarctica's only native insect is already consuming microplastics, despite living in one of the most isolated places on Earth.
Spotted lanternflies are invading the US. They may have gotten their evolutionary superpowers in China's cities.
The alarming spread of spotted lanternflies across the U.S. has been made possible by cities acting as evolutionary incubators, fine-tuning the insects and enabling them to thrive.
Beetles steal the scent of ants to secretly live among them
The catch? Once they enter the any colony, the beetles can never leave. Sceptobius beetles are seen grooming an ant as part of their evolved symbiotic relationship.
Some dung beetles dig deep to keep their eggs cool
A temperate tunneling species of dung beetle seems capable of adapting to climate change, but their tropical cousins may be less resilient.
These beetle larvae lure in bees by mimicking flowers
Like wily perfumers, a parasitic beetle’s larvae create floral aromas to lure in bees. Plants are known to cosplay as animals, but this rare discovery could be the first known example of an animal chemically mimicking a plant.
Inside Taiwan's 'butterfly kingdom,' a rare natural wonder takes place every year
Every winter, a marvelous spectacle occurs as hundreds of thousands of butterflies travel south across Taiwan in one of the world’s most rare migrations. Purple crow butterflies are deeply beloved in butterfly-obsessed Taiwan.
Rare butterflies bounce back after landowners in Wales cut back on flailing hedges
Record numbers of eggs of the rare brown hairstreak butterfly have been found in south-west Wales after landowners stopped flailing hedges every year. The butterfly lays its eggs on blackthorn every summer.
Spider silk-making organs evolved due to a 400-million-year-old genetic oops
Spiders’ ability to spin webs may be one consequence of a really big genetic mistake. A close look at the genetics and development of spinnerets — spiders’ silk-making organs — reveals that an early arachnid doubled all of its DNA hundreds of millions of years ago.
An all-female wasp is rapidly spreading across North America’s elms
She’s less than a centimeter long, produces only daughters and is conquering the continent without a single male. Meet the elm zigzag sawfly, named for the delicate zigzag patterns it carves into elm tree leaves.
New beetle named after Jersey conservationist Gerald Durrell
The Macratria durrelli is part of a larger group known as antlike flower beetles A new type of beetle has been named in tribute to Gerald Durrell, the author and naturalist who founded Jersey Zoo.
Snails on a plane: Australia flies rescue mission to Norfolk Island for a tiny, critically endangered species
On a grey day in early June, a commercial plane landed at Norfolk Island Airport in the South Pacific. Onboard was precious cargo ferried some 1,700km from Sydney: four blue plastic crates with “LIVE ANIMALS” signs affixed to the outside.
Newly discovered mantis species dances like a snake to avoid death after sex
The snake-tail mantis shows there’s more to these insects than just cannibalism. This male snake-tail mantis, Ameles serpentiscauda , has three simple eyes (ocelli) visible between its antennae, which mantises usually use during night flights to navigate using starlight.
What scientists are learning from the strangest spider webs on Earth
Webs can be decorated with decoys, fine-tuned like guitars—and hold secrets about evolution.
Cicadas use darkness cues from shadows to move toward trees
When periodical cicadas surface after years underground, they don’t grope blindly for trees. They head for the shadows , researchers report March 20 in the American Naturalist .
Fossil reveals that an early relative of spiders had claws
A stunningly preserved fossil shows that early relatives of spiders and scorpions were already armed with their hallmark front claws about half a billion years ago.
Female giant rainforest mantises grow up to strike harder than males
Scientists tracked mantis strike force from youth to adulthood, showing females eventually hit far harder than males. Why is a mystery.
Mosquitoes’ butt cells tell them when to stop biting
Mosquitoes have an appetite dampener in their derrières. When mosquitoes’ bellies are full, special cells in their rectums block their bloodthirst , researchers report March 20 in Current Biology . The finding may unlock a way to stop the insects from biting in the first place.
Butterflies crossing oceans, moths navigating by the stars: unravelling the mysteries of insect migrations
Trillions of insects embark, largely unnoticed, on epic journeys every year across mountain ranges, deserts and seas, and it is only now, as their numbers suffer huge declines, that scientists are tracking their movements.
Half of Amazon insects could face dangerous heat stress
A sweeping new study of more than 2,000 insect species reveals a troubling reality: many insects may be far less capable of coping with rising temperatures than scientists once hoped.
Cockroaches that eat each other’s wings turn into a fierce fighting force
The wood-feeding cockroach’s cannibalistic love bites lead to a lasting bond. Afterward, the pair prefer each other over all other roaches.
Air pollution distracts insects from pollination and sex
Even at levels safe for humans, air pollution can disrupt the way some insects communicate with plants, and with each other.
Every ant is a queen in this parasitic species — and they reproduce by cloning themselves and hijacking other ant colonies
A rare Japanese ant is the only species known to lack female workers and males; all of its young develop into parasitic queens that try to take over other colonies.
Keeping a beat wins caterpillars friends in low places
Some caterpillars speak ant by rocking to a beat. By jiggling like a cellphone receiving a call while on vibrate, the caterpillars cozy up to ants, reaping benefits for them both .
Why does sound startle these caterpillars even though they don't have ears?
Tobacco hornworm caterpillars have no organs that resemble ears. Yet, scientists were able to figure out how they hear—and it could inspire next generation microphones.
New Zealand bug of the year: moth named Avatar after mining threat crowned winner
A tiny critically endangered moth, named after the Avatar films because of the proposed mining activity threatening its primary habitat, has been crowned New Zealand’s bug of the year. The Avatar moth won by a wide margin, earning 5,192 of the more than 11,000 total votes cast.
Microplastics have reached Antarctica’s only native insect
An international team led by researchers at the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment has found that Antarctica's only native insect is already consuming microplastics, despite living in one of the most isolated places on Earth.
Spotted lanternflies are invading the US. They may have gotten their evolutionary superpowers in China's cities.
The alarming spread of spotted lanternflies across the U.S. has been made possible by cities acting as evolutionary incubators, fine-tuning the insects and enabling them to thrive.
Beetles steal the scent of ants to secretly live among them
The catch? Once they enter the any colony, the beetles can never leave. Sceptobius beetles are seen grooming an ant as part of their evolved symbiotic relationship.
Some dung beetles dig deep to keep their eggs cool
A temperate tunneling species of dung beetle seems capable of adapting to climate change, but their tropical cousins may be less resilient.
These beetle larvae lure in bees by mimicking flowers
Like wily perfumers, a parasitic beetle’s larvae create floral aromas to lure in bees. Plants are known to cosplay as animals, but this rare discovery could be the first known example of an animal chemically mimicking a plant.
Inside Taiwan's 'butterfly kingdom,' a rare natural wonder takes place every year
Every winter, a marvelous spectacle occurs as hundreds of thousands of butterflies travel south across Taiwan in one of the world’s most rare migrations. Purple crow butterflies are deeply beloved in butterfly-obsessed Taiwan.
Rare butterflies bounce back after landowners in Wales cut back on flailing hedges
Record numbers of eggs of the rare brown hairstreak butterfly have been found in south-west Wales after landowners stopped flailing hedges every year. The butterfly lays its eggs on blackthorn every summer.
Spider silk-making organs evolved due to a 400-million-year-old genetic oops
Spiders’ ability to spin webs may be one consequence of a really big genetic mistake. A close look at the genetics and development of spinnerets — spiders’ silk-making organs — reveals that an early arachnid doubled all of its DNA hundreds of millions of years ago.
An all-female wasp is rapidly spreading across North America’s elms
She’s less than a centimeter long, produces only daughters and is conquering the continent without a single male. Meet the elm zigzag sawfly, named for the delicate zigzag patterns it carves into elm tree leaves.
New beetle named after Jersey conservationist Gerald Durrell
The Macratria durrelli is part of a larger group known as antlike flower beetles A new type of beetle has been named in tribute to Gerald Durrell, the author and naturalist who founded Jersey Zoo.
Snails on a plane: Australia flies rescue mission to Norfolk Island for a tiny, critically endangered species
On a grey day in early June, a commercial plane landed at Norfolk Island Airport in the South Pacific. Onboard was precious cargo ferried some 1,700km from Sydney: four blue plastic crates with “LIVE ANIMALS” signs affixed to the outside.
Newly discovered mantis species dances like a snake to avoid death after sex
The snake-tail mantis shows there’s more to these insects than just cannibalism. This male snake-tail mantis, Ameles serpentiscauda , has three simple eyes (ocelli) visible between its antennae, which mantises usually use during night flights to navigate using starlight.
What scientists are learning from the strangest spider webs on Earth
Webs can be decorated with decoys, fine-tuned like guitars—and hold secrets about evolution.
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