harlequin bug thermal plasticity lab experiment
In a study at Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Richmond, researchers examined how harlequin bugs (Murgantia histrionica), a pest of cabbage and other cruciferous crops in the southern United States, can adapt their pigmentation based on external environmental conditions. Nymphal-stage bugs were fed collard green leaves and kept in chambers with varying levels of light and temperature through the course of the experiment. (Photo credit: University of Richmond)