Spicy popcorn cicadas, anyone? Not so fast, the Food and Drug Administration warns, if you have a shellfish allergy. The insects are related to shrimp and lobster.
Insects
Clover was once commonly included in lawn seed mixes, but then gained a reputation as a weed. It’s time, horticulturalists say, to revisit clover’s environmental benefits.
Reports that millions of 17-year cicadas will emerge from underground in the Chicago area this spring aren’t true. They’re coming in 2024.
From a sociological perspective, we rake because no one wants to be the neighbor with the messy lawn, but ecologically speaking, the benefits of a little mess outweigh the merits of a pristine yard.
American honeybee colonies have bounced back after a bad year, the annual beekeeping survey finds.
The United Nations created World Bee Day to raise awareness of these pollinators and the threats they face. The honey bee may get all the glory, but there are 400-500 species of bees native to Illinois.
The world’s largest hornet, a 2-inch killer dubbed the “Murder Hornet” with an appetite for honey bees, has been found in Washington state, where entomologists were making plans to wipe it out.
It’s a job as old as time, but one Chicagoan is beekeeping in her own unique way. Meet graphic designer-turned-beekeeper Jana Kinsman.
It’s been a rough few decades for the rusty patched bumblebee. Once widespread in Illinois and throughout much of the U.S., the species has lost nearly 90% of its population over the past 20 years.
Pollinating animals account for an estimated one out of every three bites of food humans eat. “Bees & Beyond” explains how the process works, traces its evolutionary history and demonstrates its impact on our daily lives.
Slight increases in temperature could lead to the extinction of bees in southwestern states in the near future, according to a new study from Northwestern University and the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Not all bugs found in vegetable and ornamental gardens are harmful to plants. In fact, some of them help get rid of common pests. Find out which make the "good" and "bad" lists.
National Medal of Science recipient May Berenbaum is an expert in the interaction of insects with plants, the founder of an annual insect-themed film festival, and the namesake of an X-Files character and new species of cockroach. She joins us on Chicago Tonight.
The discovery of a tiny cricket in a 20-million-year-old piece of amber that was found in the Dominican Republic more than 50 years ago offers new views into an ancient environment and how it once thrived.
