Spiders liquefy their prey in order to consume it, and this makes it challenging to determine what spiders eat. A new approach that uses DNA barcoding is helping researchers figure out spider diets.
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Articles on Bugs
Displaying 1 - 20 of 29 articles
Nigerians are fond of beans but they need to preserve them without using toxic chemicals.
New research from China shows how the loss of insects is destabilising food webs.
Wet weather is great for some species of bugs. But Christmas beetle swarms look to be a thing of the past
A small congregation of the cockroaches was under the first rock scientists looked under, by sheer accident.
Mosquitoes can track down potential hosts using the CO2 released by humans’ metabolic processes, a medical entomologist explains.
A fly does some of its digesting outside its body before it even eats any food.
Parasitic wasps are body-snatchers — if you’re an insect. But these much-maligned creatures have saved millions of human lives by controlling the spread of the cassava mealybug.
A hands-on approach to learning about bugs can help students from urban communities take an interest in science.
There is much more to these chunky beetles of early summer than what first meets the eye.
Learn how cicadas, the world’s loudest insects, create their cacophony, and why people in ancient Greece and ancient China admired them.
Australia’s invertebrates have an ancient lineage and a fascinating evolution. Get up close with macrophotography to discover tiny, unique animals you’ve probably never seen before.
Gene drive guarantees that a trait will be passed to the next generation. But should society use this tool to control insect populations?
The largest study of insect declines to date gives us the best indication of how species all over the world are faring.
The coronavirus, like many infectious diseases, can live and spread on inanimate objects in the world around us. An epidemiologist explains how and gives some advice on how to minimize the risk.
Insect populations are falling as what they eat becomes more like iceberg lettuce and less like kale.
Mosquitoes have intricate and essential relationships with plants. Understanding their important work as pollinators would help to understand their role in different ecosystems.
For many people, the gentle blinks of fireflies flashing are a favorite part of summer evenings. An entomologist explains some lightning bug basics.
Ladybirds do not have tails because they have no backbones.
Tickling is an important sign that someone – or something – is touching you. An expert explains how it works.
Top contributors
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Cameron Webb is a Friend of The Conversation.Clinical Associate Professor and Principal Hospital Scientist, University of Sydney
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Emeritus Professor of Biology, University of Bath
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Researcher, Macquarie University
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Lecturer in Zoology, University of Hull
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Research Scientist, The University of Queensland
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Postdoctoral fellow, Harvard University
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Assistant Professor, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University
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Director, Glowpear, Board member, ISDRS, Vice President, AHA and Senior Lecturer in Industrial Design, RMIT University
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Biodiversity Management Officer, University of Sydney
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Professor, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney
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Postdoctoral Research Associate, Florida International University
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PhD Candidate, University of Bristol
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Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering and IT, UNSW Canberra (@adfa), UNSW Sydney
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Lecturer in Zoology, Western Sydney University
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Professor of Entomology, North Carolina State University
