entomology

Jun 19, 2013

How Do Bees Make Honey? (It’s Not Just Bee Barf)

Last weekend, my daughter asked me how bees made honey, and I realized that I didn’t know the answer. How do bees make honey? I did some homework, and can now explain it to her – and to you. Different honey bees have different jobs. Some of these bees are “forager” bees, which collect nectar… 

Jan 16, 2013

Racing to Stop the Cankerworm

Who do you call when the pesky cankerworm is out of control? Entomologist Steve Frank and his team at the Urban Ecology Lab. See them in action. 

Jan 7, 2013

Drawing on Real Life

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Jennifer Landin, a teaching assistant professor of biology at NC State who teaches a course on biological illustration. Check out why she thinks biological illustration is valuable – and some of the art created in her classroom. While other universities have biological illustration courses, as far as I… 

Nov 8, 2012

Stick It to Cankerworms

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Steve Frank, an assistant professor of entomology at NC State. You can learn more about the Cankerworm Project here, and keep up with Steve’s entomological pest alerts and updates by following @OrnaPests on Twitter. In spring 2012, a cankerworm outbreak occurred in many North Carolina cities. Students became… 

Oct 5, 2012

Bringing Bugs Into the Classroom

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Dr. David Buchwalter, a researcher in NC State’s Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology. Every so often, The Abstract likes to highlight outreach efforts by NC State researchers. This one sounded like fun. Last month, I teamed up with other biological researchers to conduct a workshop for high school… 

Sep 26, 2012

Researchers Learn to Remotely Control Cockroaches

Researchers from NC State have developed a technique that uses an electronic interface to remotely control, or steer, cockroaches. 

Sep 5, 2012

Researchers Develop Technique to Remotely Control Cockroaches

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a technique that uses an electronic interface to remotely control, or steer, cockroaches. “Our aim was to determine whether we could create a wireless biological interface with cockroaches, which are robust and able to infiltrate small spaces,” says Alper Bozkurt, an assistant professor of electrical engineering at… 

Aug 29, 2012

Bee Economy: Honey, Mites and Diesel Drive Pollination Fees

Many crops rely on pollination by honey bees and, as a result, there’s a market for the services of professional beekeepers and their bees. And the cost of those services has been on the rise. What’s driven the increase in pollination fees over the past 20 years? A new study from North Carolina State University… 

Jul 5, 2012

Researchers Seek Public’s Help to Aid Trees

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Rosemary Hallberg, of USDA’s Southern Region Integrated Pest Management Center (SRIPMC), which is housed at NC State. The SRIPMC is launching a “tiny terrors” initiative to help protect hemlock species in the region. Those interested in learning more about the project can visit www.threatenedforests.com/tinyterrors, or contact Erin Mester,… 

Jun 27, 2012

On the Front Lines of an Invasion

A new invasive pest from Asia likes fruits and berries as much as you do. An NC State entomologist is working to stop the hungry fruit fly, or at least slow it down. 

Jun 18, 2012

Got Ticks? There’s an App for that.

We’ve all heard the stories – Mild winter!  Longer tick season!  Disease! Pestilence! Hide your pets and children!  But it’s summer, and at some point you’re most likely going to be out and about amongst the blood-sucking vermin.  And even when you take the recommended precautions – protective clothing, insect repellents, flea and tick treatments… 

Jun 13, 2012

What Exoskeletons Are Hiding in Your Closet?

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Dr. Holly Menninger, director of public science for the Your Wild Life program at NC State, which explores the biodiversity that lives on, in and around us. Your Wild Life is the brain child of NC State professor Rob Dunn. Several months ago, Rob Dunn issued a challenge –… 

Jun 8, 2012

Mosquitoes, Ticks and Horse Flies, Oh My!

The warm weather of summer often draws us out of the house for a trip to the pool, a hike in the woods or (less fun) to mow the lawn. And all that time outdoors means we’re more aware of the ticks, mosquitoes, horse flies and other pests that are also more active in warm… 

Jun 7, 2012

Corn Conundrum

How do you keep destructive insects from developing resistance to the toxins in genetically modified plants – resistance that turns insects into efficient and effective crop-killing machines? In the case of corn plants and the western corn rootworm beetle, you need to more than double the amount of non-toxic corn that is planted around the… 

May 8, 2012

Why Don’t We Study Bed Bugs?

Bed bugs have garnered a lot of attention over the past few years, including coverage from mainstream media outlets (e.g., a search of the New York Times website for “bed bugs” calls up 4,270 mentions over the past 12 months). But their high profile has not led to a commensurate increase in related research. Bed…