insects

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USDA: Time for 'Sea Change' in Fighting Pests

Officials release list of top 15 threats

(Newser) - Pests are causing billions of dollars of agricultural damage—the Asian citrus psyllid alone has cost Florida growers $4.5 billion—and it's time for a "sea change" in how we deal with them. Today, the USDA is releasing its list of the top 15 pest threats, USA ...

Freezing Temps Wipe Out ... Entire Flea Circus

300 fleas in Germany meet tragic end

(Newser) - It's a pint-sized tragedy in Germany, where freezing temperatures have claimed their latest victim: An entire flea circus. As the AP reports, flea circus director Robert Birk opened his transport box Wednesday morning, only to find all 300 fleas dead. The mass die-off left Birk scrambling to keep a...

Giant Mosquitoes May Strike Florida

'Gallinippers' are mean and bite hard, experts say

(Newser) - As if deadly sinkholes and Burmese pythons weren't enough, now Florida may find itself contending with another summer of giant mosquitoes that pack a ferocious bite, LiveScience reports. Dubbed gallinippers, the quarter-sized mosquitoes hatch after a flood or rainstorm, and saw a bumper crop after Tropical Storm Debby struck...

Your Christmas Tree: Home to 25K Bugs?

The good news is, they'll end up dead

(Newser) - Santa may be sneaking down your chimney, but he's not the only one making his way into your home. An avalanche of bugs is likely riding the Christmas Tree Express straight into your living room, reports the AFP . It spoke to a scientist who cited research that has found...

Man Wins Roach-Eating Contest, Dies

Eddie Archbold died after downing dozens of live roaches

(Newser) - A Florida man won first prize in a pet store's insect-eating contest by gobbling dozens of live cockroaches and other insects, but he didn't get a chance to savor the victory. He collapsed in front of the store soon afterward and was pronounced dead at the hospital, the...

Wasps: The Wine Lover's Best Friend?

The insects leave behind yeast from their guts

(Newser) - Wasps: What are they good for, again? Wine-making, for one thing. Scientists say that wine drinkers can thank wasps and hornets for the complex aroma and taste of their favorite vino, NPR reports. The insects help by biting grapes on the vine and leaving behind yeast from their guts that...

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks
 Elderly Termites 
 Grow Suicide 
 Backpacks 
weird science
Jul 27, 2012 4:58 PM CDT

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks

... and then explode them when enemies invade

(Newser) - Some termites grow up to be suicide bombers. Researchers observing the termite species Neocapritermes taracua found that certain workers, when they became elderly, grew a pair of dark blue spots between their abdomen and torso. When invaders raided their colony, these aging workers bit the intruders and then exploded the...

Possible Malaria Weapon: Bug-Killing Paint

It could be a breakthrough against insect-borne diseases

(Newser) - A new paint that contains insecticide lasts longer than traditional bug-killing agents and is more effective in many circumstances, researchers say, making it a hopeful option for curbing insect-borne illnesses. It's already helped cut infestations of bugs like the vinchuca, which carries the often-fatal Chagas disease, in homes in...

Look Out Black Widow, Here Comes Brown Widow

Less toxic rivals may be taking over in West

(Newser) - Good news: You may now be slightly less likely to find a black widow spider hiding in your shoe. Researchers discovered that the deadly arachnid is being crowded out of swaths of its native US territory by a new creepy crawler to the scene—the brown widow, reports LiveScience . The...

World's Tiniest Fly Beheads Tiny Ants

Found in Thailand, E. nanaknihali smaller than a grain of salt

(Newser) - It's the tiniest fly species known in the world, smaller than a grain of salt, and apparently it likes to eat ant heads, reports LiveScience . Euryplatea nanaknihali, a newly discovered species from Thailand, is from a fly genus known for decapitating ants and is believed to attack some of...

Rather Than Dodge Deadly Raindrops, Mosquitoes Catch a Ride

It's how they survive water's impact

(Newser) - How can a tiny mosquito survive the force of an incoming raindrop—which, to them, is like a three-ton ball of water falling at 20mph? "They're basically plummeting comets falling all around you," if you're the bug, a scientist tells NPR . He and colleagues set out...

Street Lights Change Insect Ecology
 Street Lights 
 Change Insect 
 Ecology 
study says
May 23, 2012 12:10 PM CDT

Street Lights Change Insect Ecology

More bugs live under them, even during the day: study

(Newser) - If you're not a fan of bugs, you may not want to hang out near street lights: A new study finds that insects are more numerous in the areas under such lights, even during the day, when they're not on. The study suggests that street lights significantly influence...

Bees Might Have Personalities

Some are more adventurous than others: Study

(Newser) - Bees are not merely mindless, mechanical insects with rigid behavior patterns. They may actually exhibit personalities and feelings. A new study from the University of Illinois reveals that some bees display a higher willingness to head off on adventures than others, which can be interpreted as a personality trait, reports...

Researchers Name Fly After ... Beyonce

It has a big golden butt

(Newser) - It's been quite a week for Beyonce. First, Blue Ivy and now the honor of having a horse fly scientifically named in her honor. The Scaptia (Plinthina) beyoncea fly hails from Australia, and, crucially, it has a golden rear end. "It was the unique dense golden hairs on...

Body Hair Is Bedbug Warning System

 Body Hair Is Bedbug 
 Warning System 
STUDY SAYS
Dec 19, 2011 11:35 AM CST

Body Hair Is Bedbug Warning System

Our layer of fine hairs aids parasite detection: study

(Newser) - Scientists who wondered why human skin still boasts as many follicles as that of great apes—ours, of course, grow hair much, much finer—believe our species' continued hairiness serves as an alarm system that protects us from bedbugs and other biting insects, the Economist finds. The researchers, who shaved...

New York's State Bug Reappears

Native ladybug had been missing for decades

(Newser) - It had been almost 30 years since anyone had seen New York’s state bug in New York—so long that legislators almost changed the official insect. But on July 30, a volunteer with the “Lost Ladybug Project” discovered a nine-spotted ladybug in Amagansett. Now, enough have been found...

Insects, Diseases Invaded US Borders After 9/11
 Insects, Diseases 
 Invaded After 9/11 
ap study
Oct 10, 2011 7:13 PM CDT

Insects, Diseases Invaded After 9/11

Tiny terrors infect food supply, bump prices

(Newser) - America's obsession with terrorism after 9/11 has left our borders prone to the tiniest of invaders, an AP study finds. Focused on guns and bombs, inspectors have overlooked foreign insects and plant diseases that menace the country's food supply, send prices soaring, and leave pesticide residue on food....

United Nations Probes Benefits of Insect Diet

 Insects: Our 
 Next Food Craze?   
 
'Guardian' blog
Sep 17, 2011 4:16 PM CDT

Insects: Our Next Food Craze?

UN agency considers benefits of a critter diet

(Newser) - Cambodian deep-fried tarantula, anyone? A chocolate ant wafer or curried cockchafer? Such meals are already popular in many nations, but now the UN is investigating whether we should all munch on the critters. In his Guardian blog, Fraser Lewry says stats favor an insect diet: After all, the world population...

Get Ready for Even More Stink Bugs

Scientists consider introducing Asian wasp to kill invading crop-destroyers

(Newser) - If your town is already overrun with stink bugs, bad news: There's little relief in sight. Last year, the non-native brown marmorated stink bug sunk its proboscis into the Mid-Atlantic apple crop, ruining $37 million of fruit; after that, they swarmed into local houses to hibernate. Now they've...

City-Loving Mosquitoes Invade the US

Asian invaders like metro areas and bite during the day

(Newser) - Apparently mosquitos have big-city dreams, too. American cities are under siege by so-called "urban mosquitos" that are attracted to metropolitan areas, are ferocious, and bite during daytime. One big offender is the Asian tiger mosquito, which first arrived in the US in 1985 via eggs hidden in a shipment...

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