Category Archives: Chemistry

Do wasps bite, and does their saliva have any defensive properties?

Posted on August 17, 2015 by joeballenger2005

Today’s question comes to us from a friend of mine, through a conversation on FB instant messenger. Wasps are a huge group, and at least 150,000 types of bees, wasps and ants have been described by scientists. Despite the fact … Continue reading →

Posted in Behavior, Chemistry, Ecology, Evolution, Physiology, Pollination, Research, Taxonomy | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Honeybee genetics: how do they work?

Posted on August 5, 2015 by joeballenger2005

Your Name: Farhad Your Bug Question: Hello. I read in a book that worker bees are clones. But how this can happen? Can you explain? Tonight’s question comes from Farhad, who emailed us and asked how bees can be clones. … Continue reading →

Posted in Chemistry, Developmental Biology, Evolution, Physiology, Pollination | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Chemical Warfare and Evolution

Posted on July 30, 2015 by SciBugs

Written by Nancy Miorelli Just this week I had the unique opportunity to give a joint presentation with Jon Perry from Stated Clearly. Jon and I worked for several months together, in combination with a team of other scientists and … Continue reading →

Posted in Behavior, Chemistry, Physiology, Taxonomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Why are caterpillar hairs itchy? Why do caterpillar hairs cause abortions in horses? Can they hurt other pets?

Posted on April 30, 2015 by joeballenger2005

Written by Joe Ballenger The great thing about being on social media is that we run into a lot of questions and conversations that are very closely related to each other despite the fact that the participants might not realize … Continue reading →

Posted in Chemistry, Physiology | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

What does an osmeterium smell like? Does the smell differ between species?

Posted on December 23, 2014 by joeballenger2005

Written by Joe Ballenger After our initial launch, we had a number of people submit questions. One of the first, from Antnommer on Twitter, I found particularly interesting because it aligns with my interest in biochemistry. @SciBugs @BioInFocus @BugQuestions What … Continue reading →

Posted in Chemistry, Physiology | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments