Tag Archives: Bugs

Don’t Get Choked Up Over It! Can Insects Choke?

Written by Nancy Miorelli This brilliant gem came from a five year old. Kids ask the best questions, don’t they? https://twitter.com/voraciousbrain/status/913123165735354368 And here’s the thing. We have covered spitting and vomiting which insects definitley can do. But insects can’t actually choke … Continue reading

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Changing Times: How Will Climate Change Affect Insects?

Written by Nancy Miorelli During my week curating Real Scientists, a twitter account with rotating scientists, communicators, and artists, I had some really great questions about insects come in. One I thought was particularly insightful was about climate change and … Continue reading

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Stink bugs: Telling the good ones from the bad ones.

At about this time of year I expect to start getting a lot of questions about the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, or the BMSB as I like to call it. It’s an introduced stink bug from Asia, which has quickly … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Ecology, Education, News, Pest Management | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

What Is That Bug? Thank a Taxonomist!

Written by Nancy Miorelli We normally reserve our energy for writing about insects,  but we often get inquiries asking us to identify insects. This isn’t our main purpose. We’ll help you as far as we can and then refer you to other blogs, Facebook groups, and websites where entomology … Continue reading

Posted in Taxonomy | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Can I Bring That On a Plane?

Written by Nancy Miorelli It’s happened to all of us. You go to the pet store or the adoption agency and fall in love with a big sweet pair of eyes. Or like, 4 pairs of eyes. And 8 legs. Okay, … Continue reading

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How do I deal with an infestation?

Post written by Joe Ballenger and Nancy Miorelli By far the most common question we receive is about infestations and having just found a cockroach in my house myself, I thought it would be a good time to say something … Continue reading

Posted in Behavior, Culture, Ecology, Pest Management | Tagged , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Will That Bug Hurt Me?

Written by Nancy Miorelli We have to get something out of the way first. A lot of people use the word “poisonous” to mean “It hurt me more than just a bite and I could probably die”. However, “Poisonous” and “Venomous” … Continue reading

Posted in Ecology | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Can Bugs Spit, Puke, or Do Both?

Written by Nancy Miorelli Simple answer is yes and yes! There’s a couple reasons why insects spit or vomit. The first is to protect itself. To help digest food. But lets look at some specific examples.

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What Do Bugs Do When It Rains?

Written by Nancy Miorelli It’s been raining here for the past week and a half. I feel like I should have invested in an ark instead of a new computer. And if you think I’m exaggerating (okay, but only slightly) we’ve gotten … Continue reading

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

Does UV light kill insects? What about other types of light?

Written by Joe Ballenger Ultraviolet light is pretty nasty stuff. It’s known to cause skin cancer in humans. UV light is a standard material for inducing mutations in lab experiments. It’s also used to sterilize biological safety hoods. It has … Continue reading

Posted in Physiology | Tagged , , , , , | 16 Comments