By Donna Ellis, UConn, Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, 2015. The insect that we commonly refer to as a praying mantis is also known as a mantid. Praying mantids earned their nickname because they hold their forelegs bent and raised as if in prayer. These large, beautiful predators belong to the insect order Mantodea. […]
Author: Stacey Stearns
Bug Week Offers Programs for the Whole Family
UConn Extension’s Bug Week is right around the corner, and we have programs for the whole family. Bugs are the unsung heroes of our ecosystem, providing services such as pollination and natural pest control. However, bugs don’t stop at environmental benefits. They have also impacted our culture through the manufacturing of silk, sources of dyes, […]
Want More Bugs?
Are you looking for more bug related activities, and can’t wait for Bug Week? We’ve pulled together a few things of interest for you: WayBack Burgers is offering Cricket Milkshakes. WNPR and the Daily Share both had news stories about it. The milkshakes are only offered for a limited time, stop and visit a Wayback […]
Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Pollinators are responsible for 1 out of 3 bites of food we take each day, and yet pollinators are at critical point in their own survival. Many reasons contribute to their recent decline. We know for certain, however, that more nectar and pollen sources provided by more flowering plants and trees will help improve their health and […]
The Oriental Beetle
Photo and article by Joan Allen Last week, an adult Oriental beetle was spotted on some lettuce in our vegetable garden. This in itself is not really a big deal because, unlike Japanese and Asiatic garden beetles, these adults are not voracious feeders and don’t typically require control. It can be important for a couple of […]
Bug Events with Greenwich Audobon
Wednesday, July 1 Fireflies – Nature’s Mini-Fireworks 8:30-9:30 pm An ideal time of the year to learn about these special insects. Learn how and why fireflies flash and then try your skills at telling the species apart by looking at the different patterns made by the different firefly species. All ages. Space limited. RSVP to […]
National Pollinator Week
Pollinator Week was initiated and is managed by the Pollinator Partnership. Eight years ago the U.S. Senate’s unanimous approval and designation of a week in June as “National Pollinator Week” marked a necessary step toward addressing the urgent issue of declining pollinator populations. Pollinator Week has now grown to be an international celebration of the […]
Citizen Scientists Needed
Citizen Scientists Needed for the Vanishing Firefly Project By Erin Weeks Originally Published on EntomologyToday.org Finding a mate can be hard enough in the animal kingdom, but nocturnal creatures face an added difficulty — locating potential partners in the dark. It’s a problem many insects have solved by evolving an array of mating signals that […]
The Untimely Death of a Worm
By Catherine Hallisey Connecticut FoodCorps As I was kneeling by a raised garden bed, planting snap peas with a couple of students, I heard a third grader scream “NOOOOOO!” from the other side of the garden. An array of thoughts immediately sped through my mind in the split second it took me to get over […]
What’s All the Buzz?
Come join UConn Extension this summer for our annual Bug Week from July 20th -25th. All ages are welcome to attend and explore the activities and events dedicated to insects and their relatives. Bug Week programs include: an educational workshop at the Museum of Natural History an insect collecting event at Spring Valley […]