January 2008 | Volume 6 | Issue 1 | e12 Internal clocks govern the daily rhythms of the most basic functions of waking, eating, and sleeping. The molecular basis of such pacemakers is best understood in fruit flies, where the interactions of a small set of molecules drive the insects’ behaviors just as they do our own. The precise inner workings of each species’ clock differ, however, as do the...

On 20 May, most UK newspapers carried large colour photographs of the monarch butterfly. Some were even bigger than the accompanying reports, with headlines typified by the Daily Mail’s “GM pollen that can mean a cloud of death for butterflies.” The implication was that genetically modified plants in general threaten butterflies in general — even the environment in general. The articles stemmed...

Much evolutionary theory assumes that parasite virulence (i.e. parasite-induced host mortality) is determined by within-host parasite reproduction and by the specific parasite genotypes causing infection. However, many other factors could influence the level of virulence experienced by hosts. We studied the protozoan parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha in its host, the monarch butterfly, Danau...

Educational Data Mining (EDM) is an emergent discipline that concentrates on the design of self-learning and adaptive approaches. Higher education institutions have started to utilize analytical tools improve students’ grades retention. Prediction performance a difficult process owing massive quantity educational data. Therefore, Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques can be used for data mini...

Most insects produce two or more storage hexamers whose constituents and developmental profiles are sufficiently different to suggest specialization in the ways that they support metamorphosis and reproduction. Hexamerin specializations are compared here in the Cecropia moth (Hyalophora cecropia), which produces eggs during the pupal-adult molt, and the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), whi...

Natural selection should strongly favour hosts that can protect themselves against parasites. Most studies on animals so far have focused on resistance, a series of mechanisms through which hosts prevent infection, reduce parasite growth or clear infection. However, animals may instead evolve tolerance, a defence mechanism by which hosts do not reduce parasite infection or growth, but instead a...

Adult parasitoids of pest insects rely on floral resources for survival and reproduction, but can be food-deprived in intensively managed agricultural systems lacking these resources. Stink bugs are serious pests for crops in southwest Georgia. Provisioning nectar-producing plants for parasitoids of stink bugs potentially can enhance biocontrol of these pests. Knowledge of spatial and temporal ...