Use this tag for questions on insects and spiders. Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology. Historically this also included other arthropods such as arachnids (spiders).
Questions tagged [entomology]
63 questions
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Will there be millions of cicadas per acre when Brood X emerges this year?
A Time article about the upcoming emergence of Brood X cicadas in the U.S. has the following quote from a biologist:
“It’s not something you can ignore,” says John Cooley, a biologist at the University of Connecticut. “When they come out it’ll be…
pacoverflow
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Are artificial sweeteners useful as insecticides against ants?
My dad uses Fun Light (a brand of Light Lemonade), which contains aspartame and acefulfam K, to kill ants. He claims that the human body can't process the artificial sweeteners and they just pass through, but that they actually are quite toxic to…
Wertilq
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13
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Can a house spider survive being vacuumed up?
There are a lot of Q&A/forums where it is suggested that it is possible these spiders can survive being vacuumed ("hoovered") up (and in some cases crawl back out the vacuum cleaner later).
Is it possible for these spiders to survive the vacuuming…
staticbeast
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Does slapping biting mosquitoes attract more mosquitoes?
I've heard it several times as "common wisdom" that killing mosquitoes that bite you releases some chemicals that could be sensed by their kin from great distance.
Thus, slapping mosquitoes would attract more mosquitoes.
Is this true?
ADEpt
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Can butterflies break off tree branches?
The are some fir tree forests in Mexico that are reputed to have butterfly populations so dense that their collective weight is sufficient to occasionally break off tree branches.
An example of this claim:
Monarchs living east of the Rocky…
Peter Olson
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Can maggots live in your digestive system?
I was reading several articles about Casu Marzu, a kind of Sardinian cheese delicacy that is infested with maggots.
Many websites claim that these maggots may pass through the digestive tract alive because human stomach acids are unable to kill…
Twilight Sparkle
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Do horse chestnuts deter spiders?
In my area, there is a common belief that conkers (horse chestnuts) spread throughout the house deter spiders from entering.
A writer for About.com heard similar tales:
With a little more digging, I learned that conkers are thought to repel spiders…
Rudi
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7
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Do wasps and yellow jackets leave pheremones that attract them to return to old nests?
I decided to ask this question based on the following question a user posted on DIY.
https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/16965/dealing-with-a-wasp-nest
According to the user quoting his local pest control company:
I called a exterminator…
maple_shaft
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Do "yellow"-light bulbs attract fewer bugs than standard bulbs?
I read a article on eHow which claims that that yellow light-bulbs attract fewer bugs.
Replace outdoor lights with "yellow" bulbs which attract fewer bugs than standard outdoor bulbs.
Is it true?
Ali Ba Ba
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Can the Australian funnel-web spider bite through fingernails?
National Geographic says the following about the Australian funnel-web spider:
The fangs of a funnel-web spider are very strong—they can pierce through shoe leather and fingernails.
I'm not skeptical about the shoe leather since leather is not a…
pacoverflow
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Do cockroaches eat margarine?
There is a belief that cockroaches will not eat margarine.
Angie's Option Blog
only humans are foolish enough to eat [margarine] – rats and cockroaches won’t touch the stuff.
Facebook post
Even the humble cockroach won’t eat margarine.
A…
Mindwin Remember Monica
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