Animal habitats are the places where animals find the conditions they need to survive, feed, hide, move, breed, and raise young. A habitat can be as large as a mountain forest or as small as the damp underside of a fallen log. What matters is not only where an animal is found, but whether that … Read more
Ladybugs in the garden are usually a good sign. These small beetles, more accurately called lady beetles or ladybird beetles, are best known for eating aphids and other soft-bodied insects that can weaken vegetables, roses, fruit trees, and ornamental plants. They are not a magic cure for every pest problem, but they are important natural … Read more
Yes, wasps are important. They are not just picnic pests or angry insects near a nest. Many wasps help ecosystems by hunting other insects, visiting flowers, feeding birds and other animals, and taking part in the natural recycling of nutrients. Some wasps are also pollinators, although most familiar wasps are not built for pollen collection … Read more
Why are monarch butterflies endangered, threatened, or described as at risk? The short answer is that North American migratory monarchs have lost too much of the habitat they need across their life cycle. Caterpillars need milkweed. Adults need nectar plants. Migrating monarchs need safe stopover habitat. Wintering monarchs need protected forest groves in Mexico and … Read more
Animals that pollinate plants include bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, flies, beetles, hummingbirds, sunbirds, honeyeaters, nectar-feeding bats, some small mammals, and a few highly specialized insects such as fig wasps and yucca moths. Bees get the most attention because many species are especially good at collecting and moving pollen, but they are only one part of … Read more
How pollination works is simpler than it first sounds: pollen has to move from the pollen-producing part of a flower to the pollen-receiving part of a compatible flower. That transfer can happen by bees, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, birds, bats, wind, water, or even within the same flower in some plants. When the right pollen … Read more
Butterflies vs moths is one of the easiest insect comparisons to start with, but it is also one of the easiest to oversimplify. In general, butterflies are day-active insects with clubbed antennae and wings often held upright at rest, while many moths are night-active insects with feathery, threadlike, or saw-edged antennae and wings often held … Read more
Bees are important because they are among the most effective animals at moving pollen between flowers. That pollen movement helps many flowering plants make seeds, fruits, nuts, and the next generation of plants. Bees also support gardens, wild plant communities, farms, orchards, and the animals that depend on flowering plants for food and shelter. The … Read more
Pollinators are animals that help move pollen from one flower to another, making it possible for many flowering plants to form seeds, fruits, nuts, and the next generation of plants. Bees are the best-known pollinators, but they are only part of the story. Butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, wasps, hummingbirds, bats, and even a few other … Read more
Conservation controls invasive species by trying to stop new introductions first, then finding new populations early, responding quickly, and managing established populations with methods that fit the animal, habitat, law, and risk. The work can include inspections, public reporting, monitoring, barriers, targeted removal, habitat restoration, and long-term suppression. It is rarely as simple as “remove … Read more
