“Rare” Butterfly Feeds on Oak Galls and Other Non-Nectar Sources
By Ed Ricciuti In an era when reports proliferate about species careening towards extinction, field research by two University of Connecticut (UCONN) entomologists has turned up refreshing news: a subspecies […]
A Strange Butterfly-Ant Relationship Discovered in Peru
By Aaron Pomerantz Phil Torres and I recently described the never-before-seen life history of Adelotypa annulifera, a metalmark butterfly in the family Riodinidae. While many riodinid butterfly species are known […]
Scientists Document Illegal Logging in Monarch Butterfly Reserve by Using Drones and Satellite Photos
By Richard Levine Today I wrote a guest article for the Oxford University Press Blog. The monarch butterfly is famous for its migratory route, which can be as long as […]
Here’s How Homeowners Can Avoid Problems with Wasps
By Tom McShane Summer is right round the corner. As the weather changes, so does the life cycle of a number of insects, especially wasps. It won’t be long before […]
Can Genetically Modified Trees Save American Forests?
By Richard Levine Yesterday I attended the sixth North American Forest Insect Work Conference, a meeting that has been held every five years since 1991. This one is taking place […]
Biological Control in Brazil is Used on an Area that is Larger than Belgium
By Alexandre Diniz, José Roberto Postali Parra, and Aloisio Coelho Jr. Some biological control programs involve large-scale rearing of millions insect predators that are released near agricultural crops. In Brazil, […]
Tiger Moths Use Acoustic Aposematism to Deter Bat Predators
Acoustic warning signals emitted by tiger moths to deter bats, a behavior called acoustic aposematism, was previously proven to occur in the laboratory. Now researchers from Wake Forest University have […]
Video: This is What a Major Termite Swarm Looks Like
In March 2016, Thomas Chouvenc, a research assistant at the University of Florida Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, noticed a major swarm of Asian subterranean termites (Coptotermes gestroi) in […]
A Cockroach and a Cacophonous Case of Careless Characters
By Dominic Evangelista As a subject editor for the journal Zookeys, I recently officiated one paper that recounted an incredible story. The paper by Xin-Ran Li and Zong-Qing Wang addresses […]
In Subterranean Termite Colonies, Older Workers Change the Diapers
By Thomas Chouvenc Well, they don’t exactly change diapers, but when it comes to the latrine and nest sanitation, old termites are in charge. Age polyethism, where workers change tasks […]
How Do Cicadas Know When to Emerge from the Ground?
By Kevin Fitzgerald If you’ve never seen a cicada, you’ve certainly heard them, filling summer days and nights with their loud, raspy love songs. If you’ve seen any, you’re not […]
A Nearly Extinct Butterfly Makes a Comeback in South Florida
By Richard Levine An article published in the journal Florida Entomologist tells the story of a butterfly that was nearly gone, but is now recovering. In fact, it’s doing so […]
Did the Malaria Parasite First Evolve in the Insect Vector or the Vertebrate Host?
By John P. Roche Malaria is a terrible problem, killing nearly half a million people per year, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. This serious disease is caused by a protozoan parasite […]
Video on How to Make Delicious Cockroach Tapioca
By Richard Levine This week I attented the joint annual meeting of the Entomological Society of Brazil and the Latin American Congress of Entomology in Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil. One day […]
A Report from the Summit on the Aedes aegypti Crisis in the Americas in Brazil
By Richard Levine Yesterday, March 13, 2016, nearly 70 scientists, public-health officials and other participants attended the Summit on the Aedes aegypti Crisis in the Americas, a one-day meeting convened […]
This Dragonfly’s Migratory Route is Even Longer than the Monarch Butterfly’s
A dragonfly called Pantala flavescens that is barely an inch and a half long appears to be the animal world’s most prolific long distance traveler, flying thousands of miles over […]