Phys.org November 11, 2024 Researchers in Kenya evaluated the ability of the mealworm to consume Polystyrene (PS) its associated gut microbiota diversity. During the PS feeding trials intake increased over a 30-day period and the overall survival rates of the larvae decreased when fed a sole PS diet. The predominant bacteria observed in larvae fed PS diets were Kluyvera, Lactococcus, Klebsiella, Enterobacter, and Enterococcus, while Stenotrophomonas dominated the control diet. According to the researchers their findings demonstrated that the newly identified lesser mealworm could survive on a PS diet and has a consortium of important bacteria strongly associated with PS […]
Tag Archives: Insects
Backyard insect inspires invisibility devices, next gen tech
Phys.org March 18, 2024 The leafhoppers cover their body surfaces with brochosomes, buckyball-shaped, nanoscopic spheroids with through-holes distributed across their surfaces, representing a class of deployable optical materials that are rare in nature. A team of researchers in the US (University of Pennsylvania, Carnegie Mellon University) investigated the optical form-to-function relationship of brochosomes and demonstrated that the hierarchical geometries of brochosomes are engineered within a narrow size range with through-hole architecture to significantly reduce light reflection. They showed that the diameters of brochosomes are engineered to maximize broadband light scattering, while the secondary through-holes are designed to function as short-wavelength, […]