Insects

Oldest Footprints Show When Life On Earth Got Legs

Tiny fossil tracks found in South China firmly date appendages back to the Ediacaran period

These Portuguese Libraries Are Infested With Bats—and They Like It That Way

They actually serve a very specific purpose

Disgusting Things Fall Into Six Gross Categories

Open sores, body odors and other indicators of possible disease transmission top the list of things that gross us out

The team’s findings compared the estimated visual acuity, or sharpness, of about 600 species.

How Does Your Vision Compare to Other Critters in the Animal Kingdom?

A new review of visual acuity compares the sight of 600 species, from mosquitoes to eagles

This insect can survive being eaten by birds, researchers have found.

Do Mama Stick Insects Get Eaten to Transport Their Eggs?

This may explain why the insects, who can't travel far on their own, spread across unconnected lands

A very happy World Bee Day to you. Let's talk pollinators.

How to Protect Your Local Pollinators in Ten Easy Ways

As the first annual World Bee Day looms, insect and garden lovers are abuzz with excitement

Most White Sands moths are white to blend in with their environment, but a select few black species have evolved as well.

Dissecting Moth Genitals In the Name of Science

How “moth evangelist” Eric Metzler uncovered hundreds of moth species in the barren dunes of New Mexico

Good old Number 16 in happier times

The World's Oldest Known Spider Has Died at Age 43

The female trapdoor spider ruled over her burrow in the Australian outback until a parasitic wasp attacked

Attenborougharion rubicundus is one of more than a dozen species named after the legendary naturalist Sir David Attenborough.

Why Scientists Name Species

From the Beyonce fly to the David Attenborough possum, the names we bestow on animals have real conservation impacts

Weaver ants demonstrating exploding behavior in experimental setting

'Exploding' Ant Ruptures Its Own Body to Defend Its Nest

It's the ultimate act of self-sacrifice

Periplaneta Americana

Cockroach Genome Shows Why They Are Impossible to Kill

The massive genome includes code for neutralizing toxins, regrowing limbs and a thousand genes for detecting food and chemicals

Why Don't We See Fireflies in the Western U.S.?

You asked, we answered

Thanks to its neutral taste, cricket flour hides well in oatmeal and baked goods. But a Canadian grocery chain isn't hiding its unusual ingredient: it's putting a picture of a cricket on its logo.

Why Canada Wants You to Know You’re Eating Crickets

In some countries, insects may finally be getting their due as affordable, nutritious protein sources

Scientists Create a Super-White Coating, with Help from a Super-White Beetle

The Cyphochilus beetle’s scales boast intricate networks of chitin, a molecule that reflects light with high efficiency

Termites Are Moving in With Cockroaches, Taxonomically

The wood-munching critters are technically just social roaches

Set to land in mid 2018, the new mosquito emoji will give people a new way to talk about the dangerous insects.

Will a New Mosquito Emoji Create Some Buzz About Insect-borne Diseases?

Available in mid-2018, the emoji could provide a new means for communicating the science and health implications of mosquitoes

How Exploding Beetles Can Survive Being Eaten Alive

Bombardier beetles can escape the stomachs of toads by setting off a powerful chemical reaction

These Ants Give Life-Saving Treatment to Injured Nest-Mates

It is the first time that non-human animals have been documented giving medical care to others

Praying Mantises Don Tiny Goggles to Help Us Understand 3-D Vision

Unlike humans and other animals, the insects rely on movement to judge distances to their prey

Perhaps all this little bug needs is a few good swats.

Swatting May Teach Mosquitoes to Avoid Your Scent

Though it won't work for all species, <em>Aedes aegypti</em> mosquitos seem to have a memory for near-death experiences

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