Dandelions are a lifeline for bees on the brink – we should learn to love them

Before you reach for the weed killer, spare a thought for struggling pollinators.

Philip Donkersley, Senior Research Associate in Entomology, Lancaster University • conversation
April 27, 2023 ~7 min

How beetles use their butts to suck water from the air

Beetles can survive their entire lives without drinking liquid water. New research gets to the bottom of how they use their butts to do it.

Michael Skov Jensen-Copenhagen • futurity
March 22, 2023 ~7 min


How we created the first map of an insect brain – and what it means for our understanding of the human brain

This new study could help researchers understand conditions such as autism and help fight climate change by reducing the carbon footprint of AI.

Michael Winding, Group Leader, The Francis Crick Institute • conversation
March 16, 2023 ~7 min

Smell is the crucial sense that holds ant society together, helping the insects recognize, communicate and cooperate with one another

Researchers explore what happens when ants can’t properly use smell to detect friend from foe.

Stephen Ferguson, Postdoctoral Scholar in Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University • conversation
March 13, 2023 ~7 min

Tequila worms are an unexpected larvae

Scientists have identified the so-called worm, or gusanos de maguey, at the bottom of some bottles of tequila.

Jerald Pinson-U. Florida • futurity
March 10, 2023 ~7 min

Unlocking secrets of the honeybee dance language – bees learn and culturally transmit their communication skills

Honeybees possess one of the most complex examples of nonhuman communication. New research suggests that it is learned and culturally passed down from older to younger bees.

James C. Nieh, Associate Dean and Professor of Biology, University of California, San Diego • conversation
March 9, 2023 ~8 min

Mutant queens are clues to social parasite ants

Most ants are hard workers, but some are total layabouts. A new study shows how social parasite ants become the leisure class of the colony.

Rockefeller University • futurity
March 3, 2023 ~10 min

Lost insect reappears at Arkansas Walmart

Michael Skvarla was grabbing some milk at Walmart when he spotted a huge insect on the side of the building. It was quite a discovery.

Adrienne Berard-Penn State • futurity
March 1, 2023 ~9 min


Pollinator habitat is good, but not quite the bee’s knees

Researchers collected more than 16,000 bees from 128 different species to evaluate pollinator habitats in North Carolina agricultural areas.

Mick Kulikowski-NC State • futurity
Feb. 27, 2023 ~6 min

Tsetse fly pheromone could cut disease spread

A newly-identified tsetse fly pheromone reveals new insights into how the insects communicate—and may help in reducing disease spread.

Yale • futurity
Feb. 17, 2023 ~6 min

/

36