The global impact of climate change on biodiversity
New research led by the University of York which retraced the steps of a 1965 survey on Mount Kinabalu in Borneo has discovered that, on average, species had moved uphill by about 67 m over the...
View ArticleLittle did we know about beetle diversity: Astonishing 138 new species in a...
The tropics are home to an extraordinary diversity of insect species. How great is it, exactly? We do not know, but today, researchers at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History published a study...
View ArticleInsects: A must for a protein-rich diet
Arnold van Huis is an expert on tropical insects specialised in pest management and biological control based at Wageningen University. He advocates growing insects as feed for livestock and for human...
View ArticleFood security for leaf-cutting ants: Workers and their fungus garden reject...
New diseases directly affect human survival and food security, especially as population density climbs. Leaf-cutting ants, one of a few groups of social insects to cultivate crops, have harvested plant...
View ArticleAncient 'monster' insect offers Halloween inspiration
Just in time for Halloween, researchers have announced the discovery of a new, real-world "monster" - what they are calling a "unicorn" fly that lived about 100 million years ago and is being described...
View ArticleBt protein found effective against parasitic roundworm infections
Biologists at UC San Diego have discovered that a protein from a soil bacterium used to kill insects naturally on organic crops is a highly effective treatment for intestinal parasitic roundworms....
View ArticleResearch shows it is not about more sunlight and higher temperatures
The tropics owe their stunning biodiversity to consistent year-round temperatures, not higher temperatures or more sunlight, according to a novel survey of insect diversity at different latitudes and...
View ArticleMighty predatory mite and oil sprays may save eggplant production in Micronesia
Guam has been an important military, communication, aviation, and shipping hub of Micronesia for many years. The importation of vegetables from Korea and the Philippines has resulted in the arrival of...
View ArticleDisfiguring tropical disease surges in Afghanistan
(AP) -- An outbreak of a tropical disease caused by sand fly bites that leaves disfiguring skin sores has hit Afghanistan, with tens of thousands of people infected, health officials said Friday.
View ArticleNot-so-sweet potato from Clemson University, USDA resists pests, disease
Scientists from Clemson University and the USDA Agricultural Research Service have developed a new variety of not-so-sweet potato, called Liberty.
View ArticleMental time-travel in birds
(PhysOrg.com) -- Certain types of birds may track army ant swarms using sophisticated memory and the ability to plan for the future.
View ArticleAnalysis reveals malaria, other diseases as ancient, adaptive and persistent...
One of the most comprehensive analyses yet done of the ancient history of insect-borne disease concludes for the first time that malaria is not only native to the New World, but it has been present...
View ArticleChemical warfare of stealthy silverfish
A co-evolutionary arms race exists between social insects and their parasites. Army ants (Leptogenys distinguenda) share their nests with several parasites such as beetles, snails and spiders. They...
View ArticleA new species of bamboo-feeding plant lice found in Costa Rica
Several periods of field work during 2008 have led to the discovery of a new species of bamboo-feeding plant lice in Costa Rica's high-altitude region "Cerro de la Muerte". The discovery was made...
View ArticleNew miniature grasshopper-like insect is first member of its family from Belize
Scientists at the University of Illinois, USA have discovered a new species of tiny, grasshopper-like insect in the tropical rainforests of the Toledo District in southern Belize. Dr Sam Heads and Dr...
View ArticlePest insects to help produce ethanol
Pest insects in tropical rainforests can be a valuable natural asset. So believes Lisbeth Olsson, who is hunting for new enzymes in partnership with Vietnamese researchers.
View ArticleMaths experts question key ecological theory
Mathematicians at the University of York in the UK and the University of Canterbury in New Zealand say they have disproved a widely accepted theory underpinning the operation of complex networks of...
View ArticleA charismatic new lacewing from Malaysia discovered online by chance
Green lacewings are delicate green insects with large, lace-like wings that live in a wide variety of habitats, especially tropical forests. Adults mostly feed on flowers, but the larvae are ferocious...
View Article24 new species of flower fly found in Central and Southern America
A team of scientists have described twenty four new species of dipterans belonging to Quichuana genus, of which only a further 24 species were known. The researchers, including two Spanish biologists,...
View ArticleResearchers use DNA to quickly unravel relationship between plants and insects
It can take years of direct observation for a researcher to fully understand the diets of a community of herbivorous insects in a tropical rain forest. Now, five Smithsonian scientists are paving a...
View ArticleGetting to the bottom of the zombie ant phenomenon
(Phys.org) —While unraveling a dramatic case of mind control, biologist David Hughes is taking calls from Hollywood—and gaining new insights into the role behavior plays in spreading disease.
View ArticleLeaf chewing links insect diversity in modern and ancient forests
Observations of insects and their feeding marks on leaves in modern forests confirm indications from fossil leaf deposits that the diversity of chewing damage relates directly to diversity of the...
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