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Category Archives: Chemistry
Do Insects Have Taste Buds?
Insects do smell and taste and the sensation is different. We’re not exactly sure what the insect experiences when they are tasting vs smelling but behavioral studies have shown us that they are are different. If the insect is picking up airborne volatiles we say that they are “smelling”. If they come in direct contact with it – like a fly landing on your pizza – we call it “tasting”. If you want some fancy words to throw around, insect tasting is technically referred to as contact chemoreception or gustatory chemoreception. Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Physiology
Tagged bugs taste, can insects taste, insect taste buds, insects smell, insects taste, maxillary palps, taste buds
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Do male insects have sex hormones?
Written by Joe Ballenger This is a really good question, for a number of reasons. There are sources which claim that male insects don’t contain sex hormones, but as far as I can tell, this goes back to a 1995 … Continue reading
Cockroach milk is not the next superfood. It could be a lot more important than that.
Written by Joe Ballenger A number of articles circulating everywhere online are claiming that a new ‘superfood’ has been found in cockroaches, and although I’m happy popular culture is focusing on the fact cockroaches are good moms…they’re missing a far … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Culture, Developmental Biology, News, Physiology
Tagged Biochemistry, Cockroach, Cockroach milk, Cockroaches, X-ray crystallography
6 Comments
If I am allergic to honeybees, am I also allergic to other bees?
Post written by Joe Ballenger Does the allergy to honeybee stings carry over to other bees like the bumblebees and carpenter bees? Allergies are very complicated, but they also effect a lot of people. So this is a topic … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Physiology
Tagged Allergy, Antibodies, Bees, Beneficial Insects, venom, Wasps
1 Comment
Why is Oxitec using tetracycline for a genetic switch? Why not something else?
Written by Joe Ballenger Here’s where we get to the meat of the question our follower asked…why use the antibiotic tetracycline as a switch? Why not something else? Last week, we discussed a system which could potentially work for this … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Pest Management, Physiology, Research
Tagged Biochemistry, Genetic Control, GMOs, Mosquitoes, Oxitec, Pest Control, Physiology, RIDL, Tetracycline
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So let’s talk about another type of GMO for a minute…
We’ve gotten this question, and it’s a really good question, but I didn’t initially understand what the person was asking. I knew what they were getting at-why is Oxitec using a tetracycline dependent system-but I wanted to wait for them … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Education, Evolution, Insect Rearing, Pest Management, Physiology, Research
Tagged Biochemistry, genetics, Genomics, GMOs
1 Comment
Symbionts in insects part 1: What do they do?
@BugQuestions I was asked today about bacterial symbionts in insects, very disappointed I could only think of half a dozen. Any good ones? — Jimmy Conway (@InsectophileJim) January 22, 2015 This is a question we received a very long time … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Ecology, Physiology
Tagged Microbial ecology, Physiology, Symbiosis, Symbiotes
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What did these wasps manage to get themselves stuck in?
We get a lot of neat pictures in our inbox, and I think this is one of the cooler images we’ve gotten because there’s a lot going on in this picture. I’m not 100% certain of what the wasps are … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry, Ecology, Education, Taxonomy
Tagged Beneficial Insects, Biochemistry, Cockroach, Hymenoptera, Physiology
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I saw some roaches dancing. What are they doing?
Awhile back, we received an astute question from Tabitha who found some cockroaches acting really weird. Your Name: Tabitha Your message: Hey there! I work in an office by a beautiful flowing creek. Every time it rains, brown roaches come … Continue reading
Posted in Behavior, Chemistry, Pest Management, Physiology
Tagged Biochemistry, Cockroach, Physiology
2 Comments
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