Where Have The Insects Gone?? With Dr. Jessica Ware

Bugs are disappearing at alarming rates, scientists are telling us. Bees, butterflies, beetles: all of them have been dropping like flies. And scientists say there are a bunch of reasons to care about this — for example, fewer bugs means less pollination, which means less pasta in your pantry. But recently, some have suggested that all these scientists crying out about the insect apocalypse might just be crying wolf. They say that the math isn’t math-ing and that the insects are doing all right. And this has been bugging us! So we called up Dr. Jessica Ware, an entomologist and a curator at the American Museum of Natural History, to find out what’s going on here. And Jessica also specializes in dragonfly lovemaking, so of course, we had to ask about that too. 

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/SVInsectApocalypse 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Meet entomologist Dr. Jessica Ware 

(03:27) Dragonflies: Origins and sex lives 

(08:55) The insect apocalypse: How bad is it?

(19:02) What’s causing the decline in insects

(22:24) Bees and pollinator gardens

(27:16) Invasive species: Lanternflies and murder hornets 

(33:46) How to milk a cockroach

(39:07) Is it beeswax?

This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, with help from Michelle Dang, Rose Rimler, and Meryl Horn. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Wendy Zukerman is the executive producer. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Video editing and sound by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bumi Hidaka, Peter Leonard, Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. Thanks to Humdinger Studios in Melbourne, and Wolff Island Studios in New York City. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/SVInsectApocalypse

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Meet Entomologist Dr. Jessica Ware

(03:27) Dragonflies: Origins and sex lives

(08:55) The Insect Apocalypse: How bad is it?

(19:02) What’s causing the decline in insects

(22:24) Bees and pollinator gardens

(27:16) Invasive species: Lanternflies, murderhornets,

(33:46) Cockroaches and cockroach milk

(39:07) Is it beeswax?

This episode was produced by Wendy Zukerman and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, with help from Michelle Dang, Rose Rimler, and Meryl Horn. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Wendy Zukerman is the executive producer. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Video editing and sound by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bumi Hidaka, Peter Leonard, Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. Thanks to Humdinger Studios in Melbourne, and Wolff Island Studios in New York City.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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