Posts Tagged ‘butterflies’

In warm climate, early flights for butterflies

BOSTON U. (US) — Unlike birds, butterflies in the US Northeast appear to be flying earlier in warmer years. Continue…

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 11:29 - 0 Comments

Science & Technology - Dec 4, 2012 17:13 - 0 Comments

‘Unique’ butterfly species found in Jamaica

U. FLORIDA (US) — Researchers have discovered a new butterfly that’s about the size of a thumbnail in Jamaica’s last remaining wilderness. (more…)

Science & Technology - Oct 12, 2012 11:20 - 0 Comments

Nano-material copies butterfly colors

U. PENNSYLVANIA (US) — Researchers have figured out how to recreate the bright, beautiful colors of butterfly wings, as well as their ability to strongly repel water. (more…)

Science & Technology - Jun 12, 2012 9:24 - 0 Comments

For butterflies, flashy wings get the girl

YALE (US) — Female butterflies are wired to identify males of their species by the spots on their wings, but new research shows they can learn to like males that evolve flashier patterns. (more…)

Earth & Environment - Mar 22, 2012 10:12 - 0 Comments

Butterflies decline after early snowmelt

STANFORD / U. MARYLAND (US) — The number of Mormon fritillary butterflies in the Colorado Rocky Mountains is on the decline due to earlier spring weather, say researchers. (more…)

Science & Technology - Feb 3, 2012 16:59 - 4 Comments

Spry robot built to zip like the butterfly

JOHNS HOPKINS (US) — High-speed video of butterflies’ agility in flight may help researchers build tiny robots that mimic the insects’ maneuvers. (more…)

Science & Technology - Sep 12, 2011 12:00 - 0 Comments

Rare mix-up results in ‘hybrid’ butterfly

U. TEXAS-AUSTIN (US) — A tiger swallowtail butterfly evolved when two other species hybridized—a common occurrence with plants, but a rarity in the animal world. (more…)

Science & Technology - Jan 10, 2011 12:18 - 3 Comments

Fickle flowers use color to choose

DUKE (US) — Plants use color to discourage butterflies from mingling their pollen, according to new research. (more…)

Science & Technology - Jan 6, 2011 15:14 - 0 Comments

Butterflies see it’s hot to be cool

YALE (US) — To get the girl, male butterflies know their best chance at love will come if they play it cool. (more…)

Science & Technology - Oct 11, 2010 10:46 - 0 Comments

Monarchs use plants to medicate

EMORY (US) — Monarch butterflies appear to use medicinal plants to treat their offspring for disease, according to findings published Oct. 6 in the journal Ecology Letters. (more…)

Science & Technology - Jun 14, 2010 16:53 - 0 Comments

‘Mind-bending’ crystals color butterfly wings

YALE (US)—At the very heart of some of the most brilliant colors on the wings of butterflies lie bizarre structures that may be of use in harnessing the power of light. (more…)

Earth & Environment - May 11, 2010 17:06 - 2 Comments

Monarchs fly north toward uncertain future

U. KANSAS (US)—Low temperatures, storms, and habitat destruction made it a tough winter in Mexico for monarch butterflies, but the news is not all doom and gloom. (more…)

Science & Technology - Mar 31, 2010 12:48 - 0 Comments

Barcodes reveal insects’ hidden habits

U. MINNESOTA (US)—DNA barcoding is giving researchers a faster way to study where insects go and what they eat along the way. (more…)

Science & Technology - Feb 10, 2010 10:19 - 0 Comments

Caterpillars ‘lost’ in space without gravity

U. KANSAS (US)—A recent trip into low-Earth orbit has shown just how much monarch butterflies depend on gravity. (more…)

Earth & Environment - Jan 12, 2010 10:48 - 1 Comment

Western butterflies—nowhere to go but up

UC DAVIS—California butterflies are reeling from a one-two punch of climate change and land development, suggest the results of a study led by butterfly expert Arthur Shapiro. (more…)

Science & Technology - Nov 10, 2009 18:03 - 0 Comments

Space Station to host hatching butterflies

U. COLORADO (US)—When NASA’s space shuttle Atlantis launches for the International Space Station on Nov. 16 it will carry a butterfly experiment that will be monitored by thousands of K-12 students across the nation. The public, too, can view images and keep tabs on the project at http://bioedonline.org and www.monarchwatch.org/space. (more…)

Science & Technology - Apr 13, 2009 8:31 - 0 Comments

Butterfly wings: sexy and repulsive?

YALE (US)—Butterflies have an all-purpose tool for both attracting mates or fending off predators—their wings. According to new research out of Yale University, butterflies use different sides of their wings to accomplish both those vital tasks. (more…)

Science & Technology - Mar 11, 2009 13:33 - 0 Comments

Scientists look to genome to fill evolutionary gaps

YALE (US)—Fossil records tell an incomplete story about our planet’s evolution, and increasingly scientists are looking to genomes to fill in the missing chapters.