A bright red cardinal, viewed from the side and looking to the right, perches on a dead tree branch in front of a blurry brown and gray mottled background.

Even at the Zoo, Mosquitoes Favor Local Wild Birds for Meals

In a study of mosquitoes in and around the Nashville Zoo, northern cardinals were found to be the most common source of the mosquitoes' blood meals, despite more than 300 species of animals on exhibit. None the less, the study suggests zoos are a valuable resource for monitoring mosquito species diversity, biology, and pathogen presence.

Three-part image. At left, a woman in a white lab coat and black sterile gloves sits at a lab bench looking at a piece of paper and a set of small clear vials. In the middle, the same woman sits in a chair at the corner of a table and inserts a needle into the arm of a person seated out of frame. At right, the woman walks in a wild grassy field near a fence and drags a large white cloth along the ground.

One Health: Where Entomology and a Host of Scientific Fields Intersect

For students and researchers in a variety of biological sciences, One Health is where many may first encounter entomology. And, conversely, entomologists working in One Health find their work intersects with a host of other fields within public health. One recent Ph.D. graduate shares her experience discovering entomology through her work in vector-borne and zoonotic diseases.

Green Light: New ID Test Ready for Invasive Mealybug Pest

Identifying mealybug species is often a challenge, but the hibiscus mealybug (Nipaecoccus viridis) turns green in an alkaline solution—a unique indicator among mealybug species in Florida. Researchers have turned this discovery into a safe, accessible field diagnostic kit to aid growers and IPM pros in slowing the spread of this invasive pest.

Approximately two dozen spotted lanternflies amass in a sunny spot on the side of a tree in a shady forest.

Does Multiple Mating Help Spotted Lanternflies Spread?  

Producing offspring from multiple fathers can add much-needed genetic diversity to populations of invasive insects, which often arise from a small number of individuals. New research confirms such multiple paternity occurs in spotted lanternflies, though to what degree it aids their spread needs further study.