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In the early 2000s, researchers found that holding their breath for days helps insects stay aliveMore than twenty years after those early studies attracted attention, scientists continue investigating how insects breathe, survive, and a...- In 1935, an Australian entomologist shipped 102 cane toads from Hawaii to fight crop beetles; 2,400 were released before anyone tested the planAustralian scientists introduced toxic cane toads to control sugar cane pests in 1935. These toads failed to eat the target beetles and spr...
- In 1869, a French entomologist breeding European moths for an American silk industry let some escape; their descendants defoliated entire forestsAn amateur entomologist's escaped moths in 1869 led to widespread forest defoliation across America. This invasive insect has since damaged...
- In 1872, a Jamaican planter imported nine mongooses to kill rats in his sugarcane fields; the predators then turned on native birds and reptilesJamaican planters introduced mongooses to combat rat infestations destroying sugarcane harvests. These predators, however, did not stop at ...
- In 1934, a New York socialite bought the Pennsylvania mountain where hunters shot hundreds of hawks; the killing stopped almost overnightRosalie Edge established Hawk Mountain Sanctuary after seeing a photograph of dead hawks. This sanctuary holds the world's oldest continuou...
- They say cockroaches survived the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Can the small insect survive a nuclear blast? The truth behind one of science's biggest mythsCockroaches are not indestructible and cannot survive nuclear explosions. Their cells divide less frequently, making them more radiation re...
- Since 1969, Florida has battled the giant African land snail, smuggled in as exotic pets; the fist-sized invader eats 500 plant species and even the plaster off housesGiant African land snails, introduced as pets, caused a major Florida crisis. These hermaphroditic snails reproduce prolifically, laying hu...
- Quote of the day by Harrison Ford, 'Nature Doesn't Need People – People Need Nature; Nature Would Survive the Extinction of the Human Being and Go on Just Fine, but Human Culture, Human Beings, Cannot Survive Without Nature', shows nature's influence on human health, happiness and human civilization's dependence on natureQuote of the day by Harrison Ford expresses a profound truth about humanity's place in the world. Nature has sustained life for millions of...
- Want fewer flies at home? These 7 carnivorous plants can help get rid of them naturallyCarnivorous plants offer a fascinating glimpse into evolution and survival strategies. These unique plants actively trap and digest insects...
- Fruit Fly problems: Homemade simple red wine vinegar trap and importance of preventionFruit flies may be small, but they can become a persistent problem if ignored. A homemade trap using red wine vinegar or apple cider vinega...
- Britain in the 1920s planted millions of Sitka spruce trees for timber, but scientists now say the country's forests support far fewer birds, plants, and insects than native woodlandsBritain's vast Sitka spruce plantations, while economically vital, host a surprisingly limited number of species compared to native trees. ...
- Israel, in the mid-1900s, planted millions of pine trees, and ecologists later found that the Mediterranean shrubs that grew back underneath decided which birds would move inPine forests teeming with birdlife have a secret: it's not the trees, but the undergrowth. A study reveals that dense shrub layers dramatic...
- Scientists found a desert-adapted pest-fighting mite that could help protect crops across the world's driest regionsChilean researchers have stumbled upon a population of the beneficial predatory mite, Phytoseiulus persimilis, thriving in the extremely ar...
- In the 1940s, the brown tree snake reached Guam hidden in post-WWII cargo and set off a chain reaction that scientists are still measuring today; birds gone, tree seedlings down by up to 92%, and spiders multiplying up to 40-fold on an island that once had neitherAn invasive brown treesnake on Guam has decimated native bird populations, leading to a silent forest. This loss has crippled the island's ...
- American scientists and ranchers are racing to stop a flesh-eating fly after 15 animal cases turned up in Texas and New Mexico, and the battle could take more than a yearFlesh-eating maggots, the New World screwworm, have reappeared in Texas and New Mexico, infecting livestock and at least one dog. Driven by...
- A parasite that attacks other parasites? What scientists found in Borneo’s rainforest sounds like something out of science fictionHyperparasite fungus found in Borneo rainforest: Borneo's rainforests have yielded a remarkable discovery: a fungus that preys on the notor...
- Italy planted Norway spruce across the Alps in the 1930s, a deliberate-but-naive reforestation drive, but 90 years on, plant diversity is 50% lower than in native forestsA 90-year-old reforestation project in Italy's Prealps planted Norway spruce. A new study reveals this decision drastically reduced plant d...
- From pet to pest: A 2026 experiment reveals that releasing goldfish into lakes triggers a full ecosystem regime shift, and no lake type is immuneReleasing pet goldfish into local waters causes extensive ecological damage. These fish grow large, stir up sediment, consume prey, and out...
- 18 koalas moved to Kangaroo Island in the 1920s; a century on, 27,000 descendants are stripping eucalyptus bare and risk mass starvationKoalas are overpopulating in South Australia's Mount Lofty Ranges. This boom threatens eucalyptus forests, their food source. Scientists pr...
- Over 1,500 bat species carry thousands of deadly viruses but rarely get sick, and scientists are only just beginning to understand whyBats possess a unique, preactivated innate immune defense that stops viruses from fully replicating, even after cell entry. This remarkable...
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