New model explains why costly insect 'outbreaks' hard to predict
...accurately than any model yet. "We used gypsy moths as our example, but this theory should apply to an...e general, and there are many insects beyond gypsy moths for which this applies." Approximately 80 species of butterflies and moths undergo outbreaks, ...Study reveals evolution on the (butterfly) wing
...twork to some time after the evolutionary split of moths and butterflies. "These gene expression patterns give us a good model of how a character can evolve, switching between two states, in this case a line and a spot," Reed continued. "This study provides an unusually large sampling of a temporal patt...Altered expression of key developmental genes underlies evolution of butterfly wing patterns
...erse and colorful wing patterns of butterflies and moths provide some of the most iconic examples of the ev...eyespot color patterns. Comparing eight species of moths and butterflies, the researchers found that signature alterations in the timing of expression of two...New study in moths shows insects not entirely ruled by instinct
...earchers hope to develop methods for using trained moths to detect odors of interest for defense industry a...d tiny electrodes implanted in the heads of sphinx moths to continuously monitor the insect's neuronal activity and feeding behavior before, during and after...Tests show biotech corn rules need revision
... are rare at first, and only a few resistant adult moths emerge from Bt corn fields. But refuges of non-Bt ...ble moths. The idea is that the uncommon resistant moths will mate with the more abundant susceptible moths. Their hybrid progeny would be killed by feeding ...Busy weeks ahead for high-flying students
...seats in the front cabin area. Jelly balls and moths The students have already had to work hard to ge...lege, London. They will be observing the flight of moths in weightlessness. By looking at how the moths adapt to their new environment, the team hopes to gai...UCR to cosponsor workshop to discuss latest genetic research on invertebrates
... pests -- for example, mosquitoes, fruitfiles, and moths -- with the aim of furthering our knowledge about controlling the population of these pests." The keynote address -- "Transgenic control of insect pests: promise, peril, politics" -- will be given by Daniel Hartl, Higgins Professor of Biology in the ...New book entertainingly tells 'What Good Are Bugs'
...e pantry. It was discovered that seed-eating meal moths came home aboard "two necklaces of prettily dyed corn kernels" he had purchased for his wife on a trip to an Indian pueblo in New Mexico. Insects, he writes, helped curtail unwanted rabbits in Australia. In 1950, 91 years after the intentional impor...Scientists find new way to assess where cotton-killing pests develop
...e study, which looks at the characteristics of the moths that the larvae turn into, shows that a large majority of late-season moths in the Cotton Belt - specifically Helicoverpa zea, a major pest of cotton commonly known as the cott...Genetically modified crops may pass helpful traits to weeds, study finds
...is case, the Bt toxin repelled moths and butterflies, whose larvae are prime sunflower predators. The scientists focused on the second generation of wild sunflowers that contained the transgene. The experimental ...Study offers a rare view of how species interactions evolve
...jacent areas of Washington and Oregon. The female moths of G. politella lay their eggs in the flowers of L...tting into the flower's ovary. In the process, the moths pollinate the flowers, carrying pollen from one flower to another on their abdomens. After the eggs ...Lakeshore development affects birds
...n check, plant-eating insect larvae, such as gypsy moths and tent caterpillars, could cause serious damage to trees. What can lake-dwellers do? Keep lawns small, and encourage native vegetation, Lindsay suggests. And keep pets away from areas where birds may be nesting or feeding....Tropical scientists find fewer species than expected
...eetles, whose food preferences are quite broad, or moths and butterflies, which are more particular, they estimated that the world contains a total of between about 4.8 million and 6 million species. "Our estimates bring some reality to predictions about declining biodiversity in the sense that the consequ...Predators drive evolution of virtual prey appearance
...n a virtual ecology -- a population of 200 virtual moths whose wings had relatively similar cryptic marking... computer display mimicking the appearance of live moths on a tree trunk. The appearance of the moths was developed from virtual genomes that were based on ...Fragmentation can make seedlings wimpy
...earchers speculate that fragmentation may keep the moths fromvisiting enough paternal trees to maintain gen... as important"stepping stones" for the pollinating moths -- and thus gene flow --between S. saman populations....Scientists find genetic basis of insect's resistance to engineered crops
...the insecticidal Bt toxin, which kills all budworm moths except rare individuals that contain a pair of the...cotton to ensure the dominant genes of susceptible moths remain common in moth populations. While resistant budworm moth strains have not yet caused damage ...All specialized insect predators not suitable for biological control
...ing to a Penn State entomologist. "Indian meal moths are a serious stored-food pest, and pathogens such...ced mortality is partially compensated for by meal moths that survive to adulthood. While the virus does affect the meal moth, it does not form a strong enem...Can a deadly spider replace chemical pesticides?
... baculoviruses, common viruses that infect certain moths and butterflies, and have long been used as "biopesticides". When the modified baculovirus infects an insect, the insect's cells should start to produce the toxin, killing it faster than wild viruses. Because the host dies quickly, before much virus...Modern-day butterflies 'invented' by bats
...s a common defence and communication mechanism for moths and other nocturnal insects but not butterflies. "The discovery of ultrasonic hearing in this species of night-flying butterflies in Panam is quite remarkable," says Fullard. "Clearly, bat predators imposed a great selection pressure on the evolution...Researchers say hormones are key to evolution of insect metamorphosis
...r insect groups comprising beetles, bees and ants, moths and butterflies, andflies and mosquitoes make up nearly 60 percent of the more than 1 million knownanimal species. They are so prolific and exhibit great diversity because ofmetamorphosis, a process in which larval, pupal and adult stages differ grea...