An ant colony is sustained through complex social dynamics, with each member—the queen, males and workers (sterile females)—contributing to the greater community. Some species add complexity to this dynamic with the addition ...
Ecology
Mar 28, 2024
0
214
The queens in colonies of social insects, such as ants, bees, and wasps, are considered the veritable embodiment of specialization in the animal kingdom.
Plants & Animals
Mar 26, 2024
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140
Arachnophobia can make humans flee at the sight of a brown recluse, black widow or even a daddy long legs, but animal predators of spiders know no such fear.
Ecology
Mar 22, 2024
1
197
Ants transported by humans out of their native zones reshape ant communities worldwide. A recent study in Nature Communications by the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) shows that our ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 20, 2024
0
77
Insects are typically unwelcome visitors to a picnic, but they could be a flavorful, nutritious and sustainable addition to the menu. Eating insects is common in some parts of the world, and some species are even considered ...
Biochemistry
Mar 17, 2024
3
683
Two natural scientists at Macquarie University, working with an evolutionary specialist at the University of New South Wales, all in Australia, have found that imperfect mimicry in spiders and insects is likely mainly shaped ...
They are only a few centimeters tall and their brains have a comparatively simple structure with less than 1 million neurons. Nevertheless, desert ants of the Cataglyphis genus possess abilities that distinguish them from ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 13, 2024
0
13
Scientists have spent decades finding ways to efficiently and affordably degrade plant materials so that they can be converted into useful bioproducts that benefit everyday life.
Ecology
Feb 1, 2024
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129
In a study published in the journal Science, a team of scientists report that a tiny and seemingly innocuous invasive ant species is changing tree cover in an East African wildlife area, making it harder for lions, the world's ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 25, 2024
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67
Despite being a renewable energy source, the use of biofuel is controversial, as growing few, highly productive crops for fuel can lead to biodiversity loss in the cropping systems where biomass is produced. A cropping system ...
Ecology
Jan 23, 2024
0
63
