Researchers from The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK wanted to know how effective DEET really is against mosquitoes. Most bugs are strongly repelled by DEET, and DEET remains a consumer favorite for outdoor summertime fun free of bugs. However, it is believed that DEET does not work quite as well on mosquitoes due to the mosquitoes unique olfactory system, which does not respond negatively to DEET. Therefore, a mosquito's immunity to DEET was explained by a mosquito's different genes. However, a recent study demonstrated that a mosquito's response to DEET has more to do with short-term changes and not permanent genetic differences

We are currently dead in the middle of winter, and temperatures are at their lowest. The one good thing about the freezing cold temperatures is that we don't have to tolerate spiders and insects, especially mosquitoes. Thank god insects and spiders are cold blooded. Obviously a cold-blooded animal will migrate south to more accommodating climates. However, not all insects migrate south, as you probably know, but which ones stay? During the winter the insects that remain in cold weather will enter a state of arrested development

There has been a lot of news lately about bed bugs in Florida. Not only does acquiring bed bugs seem more likely in the state of Florida, but this year researchers discovered a second active bed bug in Florida that they thought was extinct. So it is fair to say that Florida has a bit of a bed bug problem. In response to Florida's bed bug problem, many schools have integrated bed bug education

Researchers have recently taken note of the golden silk orb weavers' migratory patterns. The GSOW is known for inhabiting the coastlines of South Carolina. However, researchers are now finding them more inland. Many of these spiders are congregating at Congaree National Park. Federal officials are saying that this particular case of spider migration occurred as a result of climate change.

A new ninety nine million year old beetle has been found encased in amber. The beetle probably lived among certain insects that demonstrated eusocial behaviors, such as insects and termites, which indicates that insects developed the ability to behave in a eusocial manner very early on during insect evolution. The evolution of eusocial behavior in insects occurred at a much faster pace

Public health officials from Texas have officially announced the first case

A certain arthropod known as tardigrade has been around for hundreds of millions of years. It seems that this creature has evolved into an organism that possesses a single head as its sole feature, not including its many tiny legs. For years researchers have been trying to identify which family of arthropod the tardigrade is most closely related. This has been a difficult task since the creature seems to be missing its entire midsection.

Robert Hollingsworth, a research entomologist with the US Department of Agriculture, discovered a new species of slug in Hawaii. After a bit of research it was determined that this type of slug is a more dangerous carrier

We all know that there exists several different insect species that destroy structures, such as termites, which feed on wood based structures like houses. But as far as bees go, we can hate them for stinging us on past occasions, but we definitely cannot accuse honeybees of damaging man made structures, right? After all, bees do not chew through wood, stucco or metal, so they cannot damage your home or other manmade human dwelling. Actually bees do, of course, cause extensive structural damage. However, the bees do not cause immediate damage to structures, instead a week passes before bees begin to threaten the structural integrity of manmade structures. Perhaps the most serious example of bee induced structural damage would be their ability to destroy the felt as well as the vapor and moisture barriers between the walls of buildings. This is caused by the presence of an expanding beehive growing between two walls. According to a professional insect nest removalist, he sees about forty beehives wedged within walls each year. Now I feel lucky that there are only rats dwelling within my walls. Have you ever had a professional remove an insect nest from your home?