A wide variety of insects cause their host plants to form protective galls. These abnormal growths are rich in nutrients—as well as contaminants the plant might absorb from the soil. New research shows these insect-induced galls can double as highly sensitive pollution detectors.
City insects need native plants just like country insects do. A new study shows even small urban patches of native plants can support far greater insect species diversity than simple grass and tree plots.
Two new studies find even more benefits to tolerating scale insects on urban trees, boosting the abundance of a variety of spiders and attracting predator insects that serve as natural enemies of other pests in both trees and nearby plants.
With ash trees decimated by the emerald ash borer, where do other insects that depend on ash go? A new study shows landscape managers that choosing the right replacements for ash is critical for such ash-reliant native insects.
Studies have shown host plants for fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) potentially numbering in the hundreds, but a group of researchers suggests differentiating between plants that the insect prefers for its full life cycle versus those that are more likely to be secondary food sources.