Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Insect
Insects are invertebrate animals of the Class Insecta, the largest and (on land) most widely-distributed taxon within the Phylum Arthropoda. Insects comprise the most diverse group of animals on the earth, with around 925,000 species described—more than all other animal groups combined.
Related Stories
1
2
Plants & Animals News
April 14, 2026
Apr. 14, 2026 A new study from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is overturning a decades-old belief that Indigenous Hawaiians hunted native waterbirds to extinction. Instead, researchers found no scientific evidence supporting this claim and propose a more ...
Apr. 13, 2026 Mitochondria don’t just generate energy—they also carefully organize their own DNA in a surprisingly elegant way. Scientists have discovered that a long-overlooked phenomenon called ...
Apr. 13, 2026 Spending time with close companions might do more than strengthen bonds—it could also reshape your gut bacteria. In a study of island birds, those with stronger social ties shared more gut microbes, especially types that require direct contact to ...
Apr. 13, 2026 Gray whales are beginning to break their long-established migration patterns, venturing into risky new territory like San Francisco Bay as climate change disrupts their Arctic food supply. But this unexpected detour is proving deadly: nearly one in ...
Apr. 9, 2026 Dragonflies may see the world in a way that pushes beyond human limits—and surprisingly, they do it using the same molecular trick we evolved ourselves. Scientists discovered that these insects can detect extremely deep red light, even edging into ...
Apr. 9, 2026 Not all parts of our genetic code are equal, even when they appear to say the same thing. Scientists have discovered that cells can detect less efficient genetic instructions and selectively silence ...
Apr. 1, 2026 Cells aren’t as passive as scientists once thought—they actively create internal currents to move proteins quickly and efficiently. These “cellular winds” push materials to the front of the ...
Apr. 1, 2026 Old canned salmon turned out to be a time capsule of ocean health. Researchers found that rising levels of tiny parasitic worms in some salmon species suggest stronger, more complete marine food ...
Mar. 27, 2026 Species are vanishing faster than ever, and many are disappearing before scientists even know they exist. Now, an international team is racing against time to uncover hidden life beneath the waves by building a massive open-access genomic database ...
Mar. 26, 2026 A sweeping global report finds that migratory freshwater fish are in steep decline, with populations down roughly 81% since 1970. These species depend on long, connected rivers, but dams and human pressures are cutting off their routes. Hundreds of ...
Mar. 26, 2026 By closely monitoring fish throughout their lives, researchers found that simple behaviors in midlife—like movement and sleep—can predict lifespan. Fish that stayed active and slept mostly at night tended to live longer, while those slowing down ...
Mar. 22, 2026 Beavers may be unlikely climate heroes, but new research suggests they could play a powerful role in fighting climate change. By building dams and transforming streams into wetlands, these industrious animals dramatically reshape how carbon moves ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
Apr. 14, 2026 In the aftermath of Earth’s most catastrophic extinction event, one unlikely survivor rose to dominate a shattered world: Lystrosaurus. Now, a ...
Apr. 13, 2026 Light doesn’t just help plants grow—it may also quietly hold them back. Researchers have uncovered a surprising mechanism where light strengthens the “glue” between a plant’s outer skin and ...
Apr. 12, 2026 Mars may be hostile, but it might not be entirely unlivable. In lab experiments, yeast cells survived simulated Martian shock waves and toxic perchlorate salts—two major environmental threats on ...
Apr. 8, 2026 Early wheat didn’t just grow—it fought. When humans began cultivating fields, plants that could outcompete their neighbors for sunlight and space quickly took over, evolving upright leaves and ...
Apr. 8, 2026 A new international study is shaking up how we think about elite sprinting, arguing there’s no single “perfect” running style behind the world’s fastest athletes. Instead, speed emerges from ...
Apr. 7, 2026 Scientists have zoomed in on how phosphoric acid moves electrical charges so efficiently in both biology and technology. By freezing a key molecular pair to extremely low temperatures, they found it ...
Apr. 7, 2026 A famous “oldest octopus” fossil has been exposed as a case of mistaken identity. Advanced imaging revealed hidden teeth showing it was actually related to a nautilus, not an octopus. The ...
Apr. 6, 2026 A remarkable fossil discovery in southwest China is rewriting the story of how complex animal life began, showing that many key animal groups appeared millions of years earlier than scientists once ...
Apr. 6, 2026 Earth may have won a cosmic chemistry lottery. Researchers found that during the planet’s earliest formation, oxygen had to be in an extremely narrow “Goldilocks zone” for two life-essential ...
Apr. 6, 2026 A newly discovered group of tarantulas is so bizarre that scientists had to invent a whole new genus—Satyrex—to describe them. With unusually long mating appendages and fierce, hissing defenses, ...