Aposematic Insects: The Key to New Defense Mechanisms and Possible Cures against Disease

Pill bugs, Armadillidium vulgare, are terrestrial isopods [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Thus, they are not very well adapted to land [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Water loss is a reoccurring theme because terrestrial isopods lack “cuticular lipids and the elaborate spiracular apparatus of insects” [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Most of the water loss is evaporation from the respiratory organs [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. The respiratory organs are called pleopods, and are gill-like organs “located on the ventral abdominal segments” [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Interestingly, pill bugs are capable of conglobation, the ability to roll up in a ball [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. In addition to protection from predation, conglobation may also conserve water [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008].

When relating the information to a wider variety of topics, even though the information was not conclusive, it came to attention that the preference of habitat or food source in sow bugs has a major effect on the areas in which they live and on the organisms survival. Whether it is because of food and/or environmental related issues the fact that the sow bugs preferred to reside in and/or eat the decaying leaves shows that areas with significant quantities of decaying leaves have a chance of being affected by sow bugs. Because decaying matter is a main food source for sow bugs it could be assumed that if sow bugs resided in an area containing decaying leaves, they would also be ingesting them. This would have an impact on that environment. When the sow bugs eat the

We observed Sowbugs in multiple environments to determine which environment they preferred. After the observation, we shared, and recorded our results. The sowbugs spent 77% of their time on the cool, damp soil, as opposed to 23% of their time on the hot, dry sand. We asked ourselves: why is it that sowbugs preferred the cool, damp soil? It was hypothesized that the sowbugs preferred the cool, damp soil to the hot, dry sand, because moisture was the causative agent. If the hypothesis is correct, then the sowbugs will spend more time in damp soil.

A two-part study was recently done to show what natural habitat a Pill bug, Armadillidium vulgare, naturally prefers: wet or dry environments along with a light or dark environment. It was hypothesized that a Pill bug would prefer and wet and dark environment based on its natural habitat of soil. For the wet and dry experiment, a coffee filter and soil were placed in each chamber of a double petri dish with one being dampened before being placed in. For the light and dry experiment a light was hung above one chamber of another double-chambered petri dish while the other chamber was covered with aluminum foil, after placing soil in both chambers. An equal number of Pill bugs was placed in each chamber and a study was taken for

The purpose of this investigation was to test sowbugs preference between grass and sand. The results of this experiment show that sowbugs prefer sand to grass. Of the 20 sowbugs, they preferred sand 11 times, and grass 9 times (Table 1). A possible explanation for this is because of other contributing factors, such as endogenous rhythms (Cloudsley- Thompson, 1951). Our null hypothesis was accepted

In this experiment, we tested three different environments, soil, sand, and a leafy mixture to see which one a pill bug would prefer the most. Originally, we believed that the pill bug would find the leafy substance to be most favorable. Five pill bugs and then a single pill bug was placed in the center so that it could select one of the substrates. The data collected at the end of the experiment opposed our original hypothesis as we discovered that the most favored environment was the soil. This finding could correlate with the dark color of the soil closely matching the color of the pill bug or the moisture in the soil.

Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NCAP) (Winter 1992). Malathion Insecticide Factsheet. Journal of Pesticide Reform 12(4). Retrieved May 4, 2008, from

With government approval, certain beetles have been used to help reduce the number of Purple Loosestrife. Hylobius Transrersovitiatus and Nanophyes Marmoratus are a weevil that lays larvae and adults feed on the Purple Loosestrife roots, along with the Galerucella Pusilla and Galerucella Calmariensis, which are types of beetles that feed on its foliage and flowers. These beetles and weevils have reduced the Purple Loosestrife by at least ninety percent, but for large areas infested by the Purple Loosestrife, herbicidal is required for removal. The only problem with the chemicals used is that it can cause nearby plants to dye. Over a period of several years, the chemicals can reduce to only small areas being infested by the Purple Loosestrife, which promotes other plants to reappear. The Triclopyr and Imazapyr is a chemical used and is

Introduction; The goals and concept of the trap project was to set traps designed by us to determine what insects might exist in Prentiss Woods. It would also help to show relationships between one area in Prentiss Woods and another. Our initial ideas about how to build a trap was that insects are most commonly lured by bait, whether it was food or a smell. Our initial internet resources were more directed towards catching a specific kind of insect.

In this paper I will be focusing my attention on foods modified to produce a certain insecticidal protein known as Bt. I

The pill bugs were affected in a positive way by having strawberries in one of their chambers. When all ten pill bugs were in the bi-camber it was predicted that most of them would go to the strawberries which was true. Their reaction was ẅhat you could have called ¨slow” by looking at the graph when 2 went in the first minutes and 7 a All the pill bugs that went over to the side with strawberries were at first very afraid of them, they would touch it with their antennas and back away from it, but once they found that it was not harmful they were feeding, and climbing on the strawberries.

The heritable symbiont Hamiltonella defensa is present in 40 to 70 percent of the Acrythosiphon pisum population and protects the aphids from their natural enemy, the parasitoid wasp Aphidius ervi. This wasp lays its eggs inside of A. pisum; the eggs then develop and pupate, eventually killing the aphid. H. defensa is able to protect the aphids it infects by killing the wasps before their development is complete. H. defensa is frequently infected by the bacteriophage known as A. pisum secondary endosymbiont (APSE), which has been linked to the H. defensa protective phenotype. It is therefore hypothesized that APSE and the toxins it produces when it infects H. defensa contribute to aphid protection.

Tree resin has helped entomologist piece together the history of insects. First occurring during the Triassic, coniferous trees produced tremendous amounts of resin to protect against attack by pests and other parasites. The sticky sap like substance would trap organisms that came in contact and eventually engulf them. Over time, the tree resin fossilized and became amber, preserving the trapped life form inside. The encasing of the organism allowed for its preservation (Penny et al. 2013). Pieces of amber show a moment frozen in time and let entomologist witness ancient insects and give a screenshot of their behavior. Therefore, entomology has been able to utilize the amber to study the habits and structures of

Other services nature provides are more easily taken for granted. We depend on plant life to replenish the oxygen in the atmosphere, and on insects to replace nutrients in the soil. (31) These insects are especially vital, as they are part of the foundation of nearly all ecosystems. Without insects, plant species that rely on them for pollination would quickly become extinct, including many of the species we rely on for food. Following them would be species that feed on insects, as well as species which rely on vegetation as part of their habitats. Finally, as insects make the prime contribution to soil renewal, even non-insect pollinated plant life would begin to decline. (34) The result, according to Wilson, would

All over the world the demand for food is increasing. The human population is anticipated to grow from six billion in 2000 to nine billion in 2050. Meat production is predicted to double within the same amount, as demand grows from rising wealth. Pastures and fodder already deplete seventy percent of all agricultural land, therefore increasing livestock production would need increasing agricultural land area at the expense of rain forests and different natural lands. Officers at the United Nations Food associated Agriculture Organization recently predicted that beef might become an extreme luxury item by 2050, like caviar, as a result of rising production prices. Edible insects have long been used by ethnic groups in Asia, Africa, Mexico and South America as cheap and sustainable sources of protein, and the major role of entomophagy in human food security is well-documented. Up to 2,086 species are consumed by 3,071 ethnic groups in 130 countries. While more attention is needed to fully assess the potential of edible insects, they provide a natural source of essential carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals and vitamins and offer an opportunity to bridge the gap in protein consumption between poor and wealthy nations but also to lessen the Ecological footprint. Some argue that the combination of increasing land use pressure, climate change, and food grain shortages due to the use of corn as a biofuel feedstock will cause serious challenges for attempts to meet future