Parasitoid insects, unlike parasites, kill their hosts by consuming them during their larval stage. Most parasitoids are small wasps and flies, and they infect a wide range of insects and arachnids.

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Sometimes, when an animal comes in contact with a predator, its ...

The animal kingdom can be even stranger than fiction. Case in point: a larva that looks more like it was made-for-TV than ...

Above: lady beetles are being released into Purdue greenhouses as a biological control agent. Photo by Purdue University. Some insects are pests, but not all insects are bad. Overwhelmingly, the ...

With striking high-speed video footage, scientists have for the first time detailed how predatory mosquito larvae attack and capture prey in aquatic habitats. This new research sheds light on behavior ...

The summit of Flagstaff Mountain is dominated by old ponderosa pines. Within the last several decades, drought, high winds, mountain pine beetles and mistletoes have taken their toll, leaving numerous ...

David Kuchta, Ph.D. has 10 years of experience in gardening and has read widely in environmental history and the energy transition. An environmental activist since the 1970s, he is also a historian, ...

A light crackling sound floats above a field in northern Switzerland in late summer. Its source is invisible, tucked inside a dead, dried plant stem: a dozen larval mason bees striking the inner walls ...

Insect repellents containing picaridin can be lethal to salamanders. So reports a new study that investigated how exposure to two common insect repellents influenced the survival of aquatic salamander ...

A study shows that pretending to be immobile — sometimes for an hour or more — helps larvae of insects called antlions outlast hungry predators. By Cara Giaimo Antlion larvae are famously ferocious: ...