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Insects

Fireflies in a forest at night in Tennessee.

How Fireflies’ Dramatic Light Show Might Spark Advances in Robot Communication

Researchers say understanding the brilliant display could help them create groups of drones that operate without human control

An entomologist with the Washington State Department of Agriculture vacuums invasive Asian giant hornets out of a nest discovered last week in the city of Blaine on October 24, 2020.

Entomologists Destroy Asian Giant Hornet Nest Found in Washington

The crew sucked nearly 100 hornets from the tree-hollow hive—the first ever found in the U.S.—using a vacuum and captured escapees with nets

A diabolical ironclad beetle can withstand the crushing force of 39,000 times its own body weight.

New Research

The Secrets of the Diabolical Ironclad Beetle’s Almost Unsquishable Strength

Researchers hopped in a Toyota Camry and drove over the beetle twice…for science—and it survived

Agricultural officials in Washington state said Friday, Oct. 2, 2020 they are trying to find and destroy a nest of Asian giant hornets believed to be near the small town amid concerns the hornets could kill honey bees crucial for pollinating raspberry and blueberry crops.

First Live ‘Murder Hornet’ Captured in the U.S.

Scientists aim to eradicate Asian giant hornet nests in the next few weeks so that the insects do not establish a population on the West Coast

Pollinators perceive the higher levels of UV-absorbing pigments as a darker hue, which could be confusing when they try to scope out colorful flowers to land on.

New Research

Flowers Are Changing Color in Response to Climate Change

As temperatures and ozone levels rise, blossoms are adjusting their UV pigmentation

A deadly Australian funnel-web spider bares its fangs.

New Research

Deadly Spiders Evolved Venom to Safely Search for Love

Male funnel-web spiders evolved deadly venom to protect themselves from vertebrate predators when they leave the safety of their burrows to find a mate

The spotted lanternfly has landed. This adult was seen in Pennsylvania, hard hit by the alien species.

Can Scientists Stop the Plague of the Spotted Lanternfly?

The voracious, shape-shifting insect native to Asia is attacking crops, vineyards and trees

The Smithsonian’s National Mosquito Collection has about 1.9 million specimens from around the world that researchers use to study diseases like malaria.

Smithsonian Voices

Meet the Smithsonian’s Mosquito Keeper

Scientist Yvonne Linton reveals what it means to oversee a world-renowned collection of 1.9 million specimens

Archaeologists discovered these fossilized fragments of grass deep inside South Africa's Border Cave.

Cool Finds

200,000-Year-Old Bedding Found in South Africa May Be World’s Oldest

New study suggests ancient humans slept on layers of grass and ash, which was used to ward off insects

The first infestation of spotted lanternflies in the U.S. was found in Berks County, Pennsylvania in 2014.

Invasive Spotted Lanternflies Reach Eight New Jersey Counties

The insect is an ‘excellent hitchhiker,’ says the New Jersey Department of Agriculture

Hopefully the new repellents will smell better too!

The Secret Behind New Insect Repellent’s Potent Punch Is Found in Grapefruit

The EPA just approved nootkatone, a chemical found in grapefruit and cedars that kills and repels ticks, mosquitoes and other insects

A 99-million-year-old piece of amber trapped this worker hell ant grasping an ancient relative of modern cockroaches in its unique jaws, which swung upwards unlike all modern ants.

New Research

Amber Fossil Shows ‘Hell Ant’ Was Unlike Anything Alive Today

The 99-million-year-old ant had scythe-like jaws that swung upward to pin prey against a horn-like head appendage

A wild bumble bee seen pollinating a blueberry bush.

New Research

Wild Bees Are Worth $1.5 Billion for Six U.S. Crops

Study also finds that crop yields are often limited by a lack of pollinators

A hypothetical escape route for Regimbartia attenuata

When This Beetle Gets Eaten by a Frog, It Heads for the ‘Back Door’

New research details how this Japanese water beetle travels through the bowels of its predator to emerge out the other end, alive and unharmed

Jenni Cena, pest biologist and trapping supervisor from the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA), checks a trap designed to catch Asian giant hornets on July 29, 2020.

Scientists Capture First Murder Hornet in Washington State

It’s a step in the direction of eliminating the invasive species, experts say

A thick cloud of smoke floats up from the Notre-Dame Cathedral as it burns, on April 15, 2019.

Lead From Notre-Dame Fire Discovered in Parisian Beehives

The findings indicate that honey can provide important evidence of environmental pollution, scientists say

Mathematically speaking, the honeycombs grow like crystals.

New Research

Scientists Crack the Mathematical Mystery of Stingless Bees’ Spiral Honeycombs

The waxy architectural wonders seem to grow like crystals

Even though social insects tend to live in super-tight quarters, colonies of such species are somehow able to limit the spread of contagions.

Covid-19

In Social Insects, Researchers Find Clues for Battling Pandemics

Studying the ability of some ants, termites, bees and wasps to contain pathogens may help human societies control diseases of their own

A Pinacate beetle explores the UW campus with a camera on its back.

Beetles Wearing Tiny, Robotic Camera Backpacks Give Bugs-Eye View of the World

The wireless, lightweight and steerable device expands the possibilities for miniature cameras

An artist's rendering of Kongonaphon kely, a newly described 4-inch-tall reptile that lived in southwestern Madagascar some 237 million years ago. Researchers think the Triassic creature may be closely related to the common ancestor of dinosaurs and pterosaurs.

Cool Finds

Giant Dinosaurs and Pterosaurs May Have Evolved From This Four-Inch-Tall Reptile

In Madagascar some 237 million years ago, the tiny Kongonaphon kely was chasing down insects on two legs

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