Researchers identify 88 nests of destructive invasive non-native species near Syracuse in Sicily
An invasive non-native ant species has become established in Italy and could rapidly spread through Europe to the UK with global heating, a study warns.
The red fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, has a powerful sting, damages crops and can infest electrical equipment including cars and computers.
Continue reading...London Wildlife Trust asks volunteers to seek out endangered beetles’ strongholds
They were celebrated as “ye country comets” by the poet Andrew Marvell but glowworms are defying light pollution to still shine their lights in the city of London.
Now volunteers and enthusiasts are being sought to count and save the much-celebrated but declining beetles, whose females emit a remarkable bright green bioluminescent beam to attract males.
Continue reading...Researchers used genetic analysis to identify species that cannot be distinguished by appearance alone
Seven new leaf insect species, known as “walking leaves”, have been discovered.
The insects exhibit a sophisticated “twigs and leaf-like” camouflage allowing them to blend into their surroundings without detection, posing a challenge to both predators and researchers.
Continue reading...Beekeepers at site near Toronto in Ontario eventually managed to recapture most of the insects, although some remained on the loose
Police near Toronto have warned drivers to keep their car windows closed after a truck spilled crates carrying five million bees on to a road.
Halton regional police said they received a call about 6.15am on Wednesday reporting the bee crates had come loose from a truck and spilled on to a road in Burlington, Ontario.
Continue reading...Honeypot ant researchers hope to identify compounds that can be used in antimicrobial treatments as western science catches up to Indigenous knowledge
The honey produced by Australian honeypot ants has antibacterial and antifungal properties, researchers have found, in a discovery that brings western science up to speed with Indigenous knowledge.
The Australian honeypot ant, Camponotus inflatus, has been used by First Nations people as a bush food and in traditional medicine for thousands of years, including to treat colds and sore throats.
Continue reading...Nearly 50% of US bee colonies died off last year, although efforts have helped the overall bee population remain ‘relatively stable’
The US’s honeybee hives just staggered through the second highest death rate on record, with beekeepers losing nearly half of their managed colonies, an annual bee survey found.
But by using costly and herculean measures to create new colonies, beekeepers are somehow keeping afloat. Thursday’s University of Maryland and Auburn University survey found that even though 48% of colonies were lost in the year that ended 1 April, the number of US honeybee colonies “remained relatively stable”.
Continue reading...Millions of crickets – or rather shield-backed katydids – migrating across state, after hatching was delayed in spring
Millions of flightless insects known as Mormon crickets have descended across Nevada, alarming residents, blanketing roadways and buildings, and fueling nightmares.
Footage shared on social media and by local news outlets captures six Nevada counties under siege, with thick carpets of bugs moving slowly and efficiently across the state. A local hospital had to deploy brooms and leafblowers to clear the way for patients to get into the building, a spokesperson for the Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital, told local news outlet KSL.
Continue reading...Populations of bees, spiders, ground beetles and hoverflies have declined twice as fast on land farmed for crops in the past 30 years, despite funding for more sustainable farming methods
Conservation measures over the past 30 years have failed to stop the decline of insects on British farmland, a new report shows. Populations of bees, spiders, ground beetles and hoverflies have disappeared twice as fast in areas intensely farmed for crops, according to the paper, which looked at citizen science data on more than 1,500 invertebrate species.
Although there was a push to intensify agriculture after the second world war, since the early 90s more sustainable and wildlife-friendly farming practices have emerged, with EU agri-environment funding made available for farmers to plant hedgerows and wild flowers, alongside better regulation of pesticides. However, these have not managed to stem biodiversity loss.
Continue reading...Flies chilled to sub-zero temperatures amputate one or more of their six limbs to protect their internal organs
Flightless snow flies in the US and Canada can amputate their legs to survive as they begin to freeze, researchers have discovered.
Lab experiments in which the flies were chilled gradually to sub-zero temperatures revealed they can detach one or more of their six legs, an apparent “last-ditch tactic” to protect their internal organs from the advancing cold.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Study finds pests could damage crops, and households would incur costs for pesticides, veterinary bills and electrical faults
Failure to stop the spread of an outbreak of invasive fire ants in south-east Queensland could cost the Australian economy more than $1bn a year, including damage to high-value crops, infrastructure and homes.
A previously unreleased cost-benefit analysis, commissioned by a steering committee managing the outbreak of red fire ants and obtained by Guardian Australia, says that eradication of the species provides “much higher returns” than suppression measures that simply limit its spread.
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Continue reading...With 20m people at the highest risk of famine for 25 years, farmers are desperately trying to kill the pests before vast swarms form
The northern “breadbasket” of Afghanistan is battling a potentially devastating outbreak of locusts that threaten to eat their way through up to a quarter of the country’s annual wheat harvest, the UN has warned.
After three years of disappointing, drought-afflicted harvests, Afghan farmers were expecting better this year – a much-needed boost for a country where nearly 20 million people are thought to be at the highest risk of famine in 25 years.
Continue reading...Experts say neighbourhood varieties will suit an area’s pollinators, and that caution is needed when buying generic seed mixes
Gardeners hoping to establish a wildflower patch in their gardens should be wary of generic seed mixes and stick to local blooms to best serve wild pollinators, experts have said.
Conservationists are urging people to source not just native wildflowers but to find out what grows naturally in their neighbourhood by getting out in their area and looking for inspiration in existing meadows, verges and nature reserves. They should then use this as a guide to ensure they are collecting or buying the most suitable wildflowers for their gardens.
Continue reading...Sixty of the keystone species released near Bordeaux to feast on waste from wild cattle and help restore a vital habitat on the Atlantic coast
In a forest clearing filled with cowpats, French history is being made: the country’s first translocation of dung beetles in a nature reserve near Bordeaux.
With the same pomp and ceremony afforded to the release of an Iberian lynx or a European bison, about 60 “ball rolling” insects were brought to the marshy forests of Étang de Cousseau in south-west France on Wednesday to restore a vital ecosystem function on the Atlantic coast.
Continue reading...The elusive giant willow aphid goes into hiding in spring. Now the Royal Horticultural Society wants volunteers to help find out why
Gardeners have been urged by scientists to help find a mysterious bug which disappears in spring and reappears at the end of summer.
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is asking people to send in sightings of the giant willow aphid (Tuberolachnus salignus) so that they can find out where it goes and how it interacts with garden plants.
Continue reading...Decimated by relentless drought, the population of the common Australian insect is recovering but remains fragile
The bogong moth population has started to bounce back after nearing extinction but the insect’s future remains fragile, a new report has found.
The Australian Conservation Foundation interviewed a number of scientists who collect data on bogong moth populations, finding that experts agree the numbers have increased this season, likely thanks to the deluge brought on by three consecutive La Niña years.
Continue reading...Its enzymes degrade polyethylene within hours at room temperature and could ‘revolutionise’ recycling
Enzymes that rapidly break down plastic bags have been discovered in the saliva of wax worms, which are moth larvae that infest beehives.
The enzymes are the first reported to break down polyethylene within hours at room temperature and could lead to cost-effective ways of recycling the plastic.
Continue reading...Burgundy insect farm ramps up production to offer a meat-free future
In a box-like building on an out-of-town industrial estate in Burgundy, trays of Alphitobius diaperinus – otherwise known as the lesser mealworm – are being fattened up by robots then cooked, dried and turned into protein-rich powder and oil.
This is the headquarters of Ÿnsect a French company that is building the world’s largest insect farm, to open at the end of the year in preparation for what the French company believes will be a large increase in demand for a healthy alternative to meat.
Continue reading...Bee bus stops first appeared in the Dutch city of Utrecht. Now the UK is planning for more than 1,000 and there is growing interest across Europe and in Canada and Australia
Butterflies and bees are getting their own transport network as “bee bus stops” start to pop up around UK cities and across Europe. Humble bus shelter roofs are being turned into riots of colour, with the number of miniature gardens – full of pollinator-friendly flora such as wild strawberries, poppies and pansies – set to increase by 50% in the UK by the end of this year.
Leicester is leading the charge with 30 bee bus stops installed since 2021. Derby has 18, and there are others in Southhampton, Newcastle, Sunderland, Derby, Oxford, Cardiff and Glasgow. Brighton council installed one last year after a petition was signed by almost 50,000 people.
Continue reading...With stealth followed by speedy acrobatics, Euryopis umbilicata can successfully catch banded sugar ants twice its size
A mid-air cartwheel, the judicious use of sticky silk and a quick rappel down a tree, all in the blink of an eye: researchers have identified how the Australian ant-slayer spider captures prey twice its size.
The acrobatic behaviour of the Australian ant-slayer spider, Euryopis umbilicata, as it hunts and eats banded sugar ants has been documented by scientists for the first time.
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Continue reading...Milder winters could threaten crop yields as plant-eating insects spread northwards and become more voracious, researchers say
Agricultural pests that devour key food crops are advancing northwards in the US and becoming more widespread as the climate hots up, new research warns.
The corn earworm (Helicoverpa zea) is considered to be among the most common farm pests in the US, ravaging crops such as maize, cotton, soya and other vegetables. It spends winter underground and is not known to survive in states beyond a latitude of 40 degrees north (which runs from northern California through the midwest to New Jersey), but that is changing as soils warm and it spreads to new areas, according to research led by North Carolina State University.
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