insects

In just a few weeks billions of cicadas are expected to emerge after 17 years underground, swarming portions of the U.S. from Northern Georgia to New York, The Guardian reported. While some people’s skin might crawl upon hearing this news, cicada researchers are hoping to learn more about the mysterious species. Ecology and evolutionary biologists […]

By Daniel Raichel While many know Chicago as the “Second City,” the old stomping grounds of Michael Jordan or Al Capone, or perhaps even still as “Hog Butcher to the World,” I doubt many think of it as a home for endangered wildlife. However, as a recent Chicago Tribune article shows, that’s exactly what it […]

Americans take great pride in their lawns. A centuries-old practice adopted from Great Britain and Northern France, lawns have become a status symbol; a standard fixture of American communities. In the United States, more than 40 million acres of land are covered in grass, making it the single largest irrigated crop in the country, requiring […]

By Brian Lovett As winter phases into spring across the U.S., gardeners are laying in supplies and making plans. Meanwhile, as the weather warms, common garden insects such as bees, beetles and butterflies will emerge from underground burrows or nests within or on plants. Most gardeners know how beneficial insects can be for their plots. […]

By John Cooley and Chris Simon A big event in the insect world is approaching. Starting sometime in April or May, depending on latitude, one of the largest broods of 17-year cicadas will emerge from underground in a dozen states, from New York west to Illinois and south into northern Georgia. This group is known […]

By Kendra Klein Biden’s election has boosted hopes that scientific integrity will be restored in the federal government. To make good on that promise, the administration will need to take action to safeguard against the risks of an entirely new type of pesticide, one developed by genetic engineers rather than chemists. These pesticides will broadcast […]

Butterflies across the U.S. West are disappearing, and now researchers say the climate crisis is largely to blame. A new study published in Science on Thursday looked at three different data sets that cover the last 40 years of butterfly populations across more than 70 locations in the Western U.S. They found that butterfly populations […]

At first glance, you wouldn’t think avocados and almonds could harm bees; but a closer look at how these popular crops are produced reveals their potentially detrimental effect on pollinators. Turns out, bee labor is required to produce most avocados and almonds in the U.S. Honeybees pollinate most fruits and vegetables in the country, The […]