Latest Insects Stories
Case Western Reserve University scientists find insect's brain fires out commands to walk and runStudies have indicated that insects rely on their brains to respond to what they feel and see. But for the first time, researchers have shown a direct link between neurons at the center of an insect brain and changes in behavior. The findings and a video are published online in Current Biology at noon U.S. eastern time May 6.A team led by Roy Ritzmann, Case Western Reserve University biology...
An early ancestor of the cockroach that lived around 300 million years ago is unveiled in unprecedented detail in a new three-dimensional 'virtual fossil' model, in research published today in the journal Biology Letters.Scientists at Imperial College London have made a comprehensive 3D model of a fossilized specimen called Archimylacris eggintoni, which is an ancient ancestor of modern cockroaches, mantises and termites. This insect scuttled around on Earth during the Carboniferous period...
SMITHTOWN, N.Y., March 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Termites damage more homes than fires, earthquakes and storms combined. They attack in every state but Alaska, infesting five million homes every year. Yet termite damage is rarely covered by homeowners' insurance. Unfortunately, many homeowners do not protect their homes from likely invasions. "On Long Island, it's not a question of if you have termites, it's a matter of when," said Lynn Frank, Board Certified Entomologist and Technical...
ATLANTA, March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite the wintry mix recently blanketing parts of the country, the Southeast is seeing the first signs of spring: slightly warmer weather and termite swarms. As temperature changes prompt most people to prepare for the balmy months ahead, pests also begin stirring. In fact, Orkin branches in Georgia and Florida reported subterranean termite swarms in late February, marking the onset of pre-spring pest activity in the South. (Photo:...
LAFAYETTE, La., March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The blue house under construction was quite a sight in the Louisiana city of Lafayette, named for the French military hero who fought the British in the Revolutionary War. These days the war is against the legendary Formosan termite, which eats away at homes' foundations, especially in Southeastern U.S. where humidity and moisture are breeding grounds for the destructive pest. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100301/LA62130) For Robley...
Like silkworm moths, butterflies and spiders, caddisfly larvae spin silk, but they do so underwater instead on dry land. Now, University of Utah researchers have discovered why the fly's silk is sticky when wet and how that may make it valuable as an adhesive tape during surgery."Silk from caddisfly larvae "“ known to western fly fishermen as 'rock rollers' "“ may be useful some day as a medical bioadhesive for sticking to wet tissues," says Russell Stewart, an associate...
Research on why early termite offspring remained home with their parents, instead of leaving to create their own colonies, could provide a missing link to the evolution of sterility among social insectsNatural selection argues for small biological changes that yield greater chances of survival and successful reproduction. Yet, that process does not square well with the evolution of social insects, particularly when their colonies can have over a million non-reproductive members.A new study of...
An Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-developed method to safely and reliably mark termites and other insects over vast acreage so their movements can be tracked is just as effective as the previous method"”and more affordable.That's according to recently published research by ARS entomologist James Hagler, at the agency's U.S. Arid-Land Agricultural Research Center in Maricopa, Ariz., and his collaborators at the University of Arizona.They studied the movement patterns of the desert...
A study by scientists from the University of Valencia sheds new light on how the cockroach organism works. A research team from the Cavanilles Institute for Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, led by professors Amparo Latorre and Andrés Moya, has shown why the German cockroach (Blatella germanica) eliminates excess nitrogen by excreting ammonia, in contrast to most terrestrial insects that commonly produce uric acid as a waste compound. The research is published November 13 in the...
MEMPHIS, Tenn., Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Homeowners can help reduce landfill space and protect against pests while saving up to 20 percent on heating and cooling costs with Terminix R-Plus Insulation. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090327/CL89887LOGO-e) Eco-conscious R-Plus Insulation is made from 85 percent recycled newsprint and is bonded, in a patented process, with boric acid that helps eliminate pests. R-Plus is an Energy Star-rated pest control insulation and is proven...
Latest Insects Reference Libraries
A caterpillar is the larval form of a lepidopteran (a member of the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). Caterpillars are characterized by their long segmented bodies and many sets of "legs". They eat voracious leaf eaters and grow rapidly, During growth the caterpillar will shed its skin four to five times before pupating into its adult form. Caterpillars have six true legs (being hexapods) on the thorax, up to four pairs of prolegs on the middle segments of the abdomen, and...
The Dragonfly is an insect belonging to the Order Odonata and suborder Anisoptera. It is characterized by large multi-faceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body. The dragonfly's diet consists typically of mosquitoes, midges and other small insects like flies, bees, and butterflies. They can be found around lakes, ponds, streams, and wetlands because their larvae (known as nymphs) are aquatic. Dragonflies do not bite or sting humans. Instead they are valued...
PHOTO CAPTION: Eriothrix rufomaculata (Photo taken by Keith Edkins) The tachinid flies (family Tachinidae) are by far the largest and most important group of insect parasitic flies, with over 1300 species in North America. It is a diverse group with some resembling drab houseflies and others brilliantly colored. All species are parasitic in the larval stage, and many are important natural enemies of major pests. Many species of tachinids have been introduced into North America from...
PHOTO CAPTION: Scanning Electron Micrograph of a Flea (photo by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) / Janice Carr) Flea is the common name for any of the small wingless insects of the order Siphonaptera. Fleas are external parasites, living by hematophagy off the blood of mammals and birds. Some well known flea species include: Cat Flea (Ctenocephalides felis), Dog Flea (Ctenocephalides canis), Northern Rat Flea (Nosopsyllus fasciatus), Oriental Rat Flea (Xenopsylla...
PHOTO CAPTION: Goliath Beetle Beetles are one of the main groups of insects. Their order, Coleoptera (meaning "sheathed wing"), has more species than any other order in the entire animal kingdom. Forty percent of all described insect species are beetles (about 350,000 species), and new species are regularly discovered. Estimates put the total number of species at between 5 and 8 million. When J. B. S. Haldane, a British geneticist, was asked what his studies of nature revealed about...
