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Trending Topics: Research News•The Entomology Profession•Amazing Insects•Science Policy and Outreach

Spider Solidarity: Scientists Discover New Species With Unprecedented Social Behavior

Sociality in spiders is quite rare, but a new species found in Madagascar takes it a step further. Isoxya manangona kite spiders build large colonies of webs, all connected by a central silk line where multiple adult males gather harmoniously. Researchers suggest the males could be “lekking,” gathering in a group to perform mating displays for females, a behavior never before seen in spiders.
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A detailed inforgraphic depicting the sterile insect technique, titled "Sterile insect technique: Control of primary screwworm." At far left is a picture of a fly next to a "radiation" icon. Next is a cycle diagram showing with text "primary screwworm lifecycle." Next is the same cycle diagram with a crossed circle over the section with a female fly laying eggs in a deer wound, with text "Sterile Insect Technique Reduces Female Oviposition." Then an equal sign leads to the final section with icon images of a deer and a cow, with text "Interruption of screwworm life cycle is successful protecting ungulates significantly."

Designing, Producing, and Communicating Effective Scientific Graphical Abstracts

Graphical abstracts are increasingly vital to research publishing, but many entomologists have not been trained in creating them. Learn the fundamentals of graphical abstracts and get some advice from experts in this recap of a workshop hosted by the ESA Student Affairs Committee at the 2022 Joint Annual Meeting of ESA, ESC, and ESBC.

closeup view of a webbing clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) adult on a gray fabric or carpet surface, of which individual fibers are visible in focus below the moth, but the foreground and background are blurry. the moth is near uniformly light brown in color, its wing scales somewhat pearlescent. its eyes are dark gray, and its head is fuzzy and slightly orange-brown.

In Defense of Clothes Moths, Marvels of Evolution

Though they cause headaches for dining on your wardrobe, webbing clothes moths are unique creatures with fascinating specialized biology. They can eat hair and metabolize their own water. They can chew through plastic and digest mercury. And that's not all. An entomologist studying these moths makes a case for appreciating their evolutionary feats.

Amazing Insects ›

Spider Solidarity: Scientists Discover New Species With Unprecedented Social Behavior

Sociality in spiders is quite rare, but a new species found in Madagascar takes it a step further. Isoxya manangona kite spiders build large colonies of webs, all connected by a central silk line where multiple adult males gather harmoniously. Researchers suggest the males could be “lekking,” gathering in a group to perform mating displays for females, a behavior never before seen in spiders.
Leave a Comment
closeup view of a webbing clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) adult on a gray fabric or carpet surface, of which individual fibers are visible in focus below the moth, but the foreground and background are blurry. the moth is near uniformly light brown in color, its wing scales somewhat pearlescent. its eyes are dark gray, and its head is fuzzy and slightly orange-brown.

In Defense of Clothes Moths, Marvels of Evolution

Though they cause headaches for dining on your wardrobe, webbing clothes moths are unique creatures with fascinating specialized biology. They can eat hair and metabolize their own water. They can chew through plastic and digest mercury. And that's not all. An entomologist studying these moths makes a case for appreciating their evolutionary feats.

side-by-side image of two spiders. at left, a brown widow, hanging vertically in webbing, showing its underside toward the viewer. the spider is dark brown to black in color, with an bright orange blotch on the bottom of its abdomen. at right is a black widow spider, hanging vertically on a stick, viewed from the side. the spider is dark black in color with a bright red splotch visible on the underside of its abdomen.

Brown Widow Spiders’ Aggression Likely Driver of Black Widow Decline

Black widow spiders have earned a fearsome reputation for their venomous bite. But in parts of the southern U.S. these spiders have much to fear themselves—from spider relatives who really don't like their company. A new study shows that brown widow spiders, of a species in the same genus, have a striking propensity to seek out and kill nearby black widows.

Closeup overhead view of a soldier Asian subterranean termite on a light gray background. Termite body is slightly tear-drop shaped and light yellowish brown in color. Its head is nearly as large as its body, also tear-drop shaped but darker honey brown in color with two long reddish brown mouthparts extending forward from its face.

Nitro-Nosh: Why Termites’ Molted Exoskeletons Never Go to Waste

Termites' wood-heavy diet offers little nitrogen, a critical nutrient for growth and reproduction. But their exoskeletons are nitrogen rich, and new research shows that eating shed exoskeletons after molting is a core strategy for recycling nitrogen throughout the termite colony and boosting the queen's egg-laying.

closeup of house fly facing to right, viewed from side, standing on the surface of a green leaf

Insects Taste More Than Food and With More Than Mouths

From mouthparts and antennae to legs, wings, and even ovipositors—insects taste with a host of body parts that far outpaces mere tongues. A new review in Annals of the Entomological Society of America tallies tasting techniques in insects and finds a line of research ripe for deeper exploration.

Science Policy and Outreach ›

Pest Quest

Board Game Teaches the Challenges, Uncertainty of IPM

A group of entomologists developed the board game Pest Quest to bring to life the complex agricultural scenarios and decision-making inherent in integrated pest management. Learn how the game was developed and try it yourself through a new article published in the open-access Journal of Integrated Pest Management.

Tess Brown

How a CDC Internship Set One Student’s Sights on Entomology

Through ESA and the CDC's Public Health Entomology for All program, Tess Brown gained hands-on experience working with mosquitoes and learning about vector-borne disease research. The senior at Southern University and A&M College now plans to pursue insect science in grad school.

Research News ›

Spider Solidarity: Scientists Discover New Species With Unprecedented Social Behavior

Sociality in spiders is quite rare, but a new species found in Madagascar takes it a step further. Isoxya manangona kite spiders build large colonies of webs, all connected by a central silk line where multiple adult males gather harmoniously. Researchers suggest the males could be “lekking,” gathering in a group to perform mating displays for females, a behavior never before seen in spiders.
Leave a Comment
Multi-panel image with several close-up photographs of a dead insect larva or pupa covered in a white fungal growth, identified as Fusarium concentricum. The fungus appears as circular patterns of white growth on the insect's body. In the bottom right two panels are an overhead view of a circular petri dish entirely filled with the white fungus.

Fungus Species Found Infecting Moth Pest of Chinese Fir Trees

Several species of fungus in the genus Fusarium are known to infect insects, while some also infect plants. Researchers in China report the first observation of the species Fusarium concentricum infecting an insect—in this case a key moth pest of Chinese fir trees.

a fuzzy bee, yellowish-brown in color, perches vertically on a grass blade next to the edge of a piece of corrugated plastic sheet, which is blue-ish green in color.

Is This Non-Native Mason Bee an Invasive Species?

What makes a non-native species "invasive"? And can a typically beneficial insect like a bee be deemed a threat to native species? Researchers explore these questions in a new review of the expansion of the non-native mason bee Osmia taurus since its U.S. arrival in 2002 and its effects on closely related native species.

side-by-side image of two spiders. at left, a brown widow, hanging vertically in webbing, showing its underside toward the viewer. the spider is dark brown to black in color, with an bright orange blotch on the bottom of its abdomen. at right is a black widow spider, hanging vertically on a stick, viewed from the side. the spider is dark black in color with a bright red splotch visible on the underside of its abdomen.

Brown Widow Spiders’ Aggression Likely Driver of Black Widow Decline

Black widow spiders have earned a fearsome reputation for their venomous bite. But in parts of the southern U.S. these spiders have much to fear themselves—from spider relatives who really don't like their company. A new study shows that brown widow spiders, of a species in the same genus, have a striking propensity to seek out and kill nearby black widows.

The Entomology Profession ›

a fuzzy bee, yellowish-brown in color, perches vertically on a grass blade next to the edge of a piece of corrugated plastic sheet, which is blue-ish green in color.

Is This Non-Native Mason Bee an Invasive Species?

What makes a non-native species "invasive"? And can a typically beneficial insect like a bee be deemed a threat to native species? Researchers explore these questions in a new review of the expansion of the non-native mason bee Osmia taurus since its U.S. arrival in 2002 and its effects on closely related native species.

a field of yellow wildflowers extending to the horizon, with a wire fence with wooden posts in the foreground, and a blue sky with fluffy white clouds above.

Supporting Pollinator Habitats Through Operation Pollinator

Sponsored post: Biodiversity is essential for effective crop production and the health of our natural resources. Ensuring a sustainable food supply requires each of us to play a role in preserving our land and protecting pollinators and other beneficial insects and animals. Syngenta understands the importance of the interconnectedness of agriculture and nature and is committed to helping biodiversity flourish.

closeup of house fly facing to right, viewed from side, standing on the surface of a green leaf

Insects Taste More Than Food and With More Than Mouths

From mouthparts and antennae to legs, wings, and even ovipositors—insects taste with a host of body parts that far outpaces mere tongues. A new review in Annals of the Entomological Society of America tallies tasting techniques in insects and finds a line of research ripe for deeper exploration.

Closeup overhead view of a soldier Asian subterranean termite on a light gray background. Termite body is slightly tear-drop shaped and light yellowish brown in color. Its head is nearly as large as its body, also tear-drop shaped but darker honey brown in color with two long reddish brown mouthparts extending forward from its face.

Nitro-Nosh: Why Termites’ Molted Exoskeletons Never Go to Waste

Termites' wood-heavy diet offers little nitrogen, a critical nutrient for growth and reproduction. But their exoskeletons are nitrogen rich, and new research shows that eating shed exoskeletons after molting is a core strategy for recycling nitrogen throughout the termite colony and boosting the queen's egg-laying.