Monthly Archives: September 2013

The Big Shutdown

Posted on September 30, 2013 by jjneal

Many moths find mates through the use of pheromones. The female releases a pheromone into the air in a behavior known as calling. Male moths are well endowed with arrays of olfactory receptors fine tuned to detect the slightest traces … Continue reading →

Posted in behavior, Biomaterials, by jjneal, News, Pest Management, Policy | 1 Comment

Living With Insect Music

Posted on September 29, 2013 by jjneal

Musician and author, David Rothenberg, like many musicians is in tune to the sounds of nature. His album, Bug Music, uses recordings of insect sounds to set the rhythm, then overlays them with more traditional musical instrumentation. Among the insect … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, behavior, by jjneal, Environment, Insect Inspired, Literature, Music | 1 Comment

Paving the Way For Invasive Species

Posted on September 28, 2013 by jjneal

Horticulturalists help bring beauty to our gardens and landscapes by introducing plants from other parts of the world and breeding them for aesthetic characteristics. In the past, not enough attention was paid to the potential for these plants to become … Continue reading →

Posted in by jjneal, Environment, Invasive Species | 5 Comments

Friday Cat-erpillar Blogging: Character Character Sketch IV

Posted on September 27, 2013 by jjneal

In previous posts, I have commented on the art of Alice in Wonderland Caterpillars here, here and here. A new version of the Caterpillar appears on the TV series, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. This caterpillar art was created … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, by jjneal, Caterpillar Blogging | Leave a comment

Insect Study Tools

Posted on September 26, 2013 by jjneal

X-ray computed tomography is widely used in the medical fields to provide internal images without invasive procedures. Miniaturization has led to Micro-CT that is being used increasingly to produce high quality internal images of insect internal anatomy. Techniques for staining … Continue reading →

Posted in by jjneal, Taxonomy | Leave a comment

Living With One Ovary

Posted on September 25, 2013 by jjneal

Many insects are prolific producing large numbers of offspring each of which has low probability of reaching the adult stage, the so called R-Strategists. Other insects are K-Strategists, investing many resources in a few offspring. Dung Beetles provide parental care … Continue reading →

Posted in by jjneal, Environment, Taxonomy | 1 Comment

Butterflies are Blameless?

Posted on September 24, 2013 by jjneal

Butterflies have attractive colors, are aesthetically pleasing visitors to flower gardens and inspire with their free flight. Adult butterflies have sucking mouthparts and feed on nectar. They do no damage to plants and can be important pollinators. Most people like … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, by jjneal, Environment, Insect Inspired | 18 Comments