News stories tagged with "insects"

(03/15/12) A common (if unwelcome) sight on trees in the apple and cherry family is the nest of the tent caterpillar, whose voracious appetite can completely strip a tree of foliage. These moth larvae are unusual, both in their engineering feats and their social organization. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager explore the life cycle of this nemesis of orchard and yard.

(02/09/12) In the second in our series about the biological marketplace, Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager look into the beehive. While some worker bees might try to "cheat," introducing their own eggs into the genetic pool of the hive, other workers will detect and destroy them. The queen presides over a society that shares her DNA, but it is run more like a police state than a family.

(09/28/11) You might be enjoying the warm days this September - but experts say those high temperatures are also attracting some unwanted guests. Mosquitoes are usually gone for the year by now - but just walk outside at dusk, and you'll know they're still with us. Tim Mihuc is coordinator of the Lake Champlain Research Institute at Plattsburgh State. He with Julie Grant about how many mosquitoes might be out there, and why they're still bugging us.

(06/29/11) Most people in Asia, Africa and South America eat bugs--prepared with shallots, lettuce, chilies, lime or spices. So, why not the rest of us? Seattle-based naturalist and author David George Gordon has written 19 books on a subject that makes some people squirm.

Orzo with Crickets? Three Bee Salad? Waxworm cookies? Gordon says it's all good for us. Todd Moe spoke with him as he was about to bake European house crickets for one of his favorite creepy-crawly dishes. He says it's cuisine he'll share during BuzzFest at the Wild Center in Tupper Lake this Saturday.

(06/23/11) As painful and annoying as they are, Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss deerfly - their beauty, the multiple species and why their bites hurt so badly.

(04/28/11) Wood ant colonies create noticeable hummocks in clearings and fields. The elaborate structures create a temperate micro-climate ideal for protecting larvae, the queen and her workers. Dr. Curt Stager and Martha Foley talk about insect architecture.

(02/03/11) Bees need to be warm in order to fly. That's usually not a problem, since it takes millions of round trips to flowers to make a pound of honey. But should they fall idle long enough to cool down, bees fire up their wing muscles by shivering. Dr. Curt Stager and Martha Foley, with more about bees.

(08/09/10) Martha Foley and horticulturist Amy Ivy talk about beneficial garden bugs: ladybugs, praying mantis, and other good garden insects provide safe, natural biological solutions to pest control problems in flower and vegetable beds.

(06/22/10) A week ago, we heard from Cornell Cooperative Extension's Amy Ivy that there was a new pest to watch for in North Country gardens. The Clinton and Essex counties extension office had confirmed the leek moth last year in Plattsburgh. It attacks the onion family -- garlic, leeks, onions and chives and their relatives.
A Canton gardener who'd heard the broadcast went straight to the Canton extension office, with suspicious little caterpillars they'd just found on their garlic. Sure enough...leek moths. Martha Foley has more. more

(06/21/10) Sunny skies, warm temperatures, and plenty of rain. Perfect for the flowers and vegetables. Also great weather for bugs of all kinds, good and bad. Cornell Cooperative Extension horticulturist Amy Ivy takes direct action when she fights the "bad" insects in her garden. She tells Martha Foley in their weekly chat that her first strategy against pests like rose chafers, Japanese beetles and Colorado potato beetles is hands-to-bug combat. She's armed with a keen eye, can of soapy water, and maybe rubber gloves.