Since the pine beetle infestation during the 1980's much of the alpine vegetation as yet to return, resulting in the areas looking bare and uncultivated.

An observer reports a significant decline in flying insects in Chetwynd, British Columbia, noting fewer bugs on windshields and a lack of pollination in blueberry bushes.

For property owners, the beetles present a vexing scenario, as some scramble to keep their trees alive while others mourn the loss and embark on the oftentimes costly removal process.

The ubiquitous midge is almost completely absent from Mývatn, the pointedly named ‘Midge Lake,’ this year. Árni says this happens every seven to nine years—it’s now been about eight since the last time the midge population collapsed. As a result, the bird population will be much smaller for the next two to three years.

Last summer’s unusually warm weather fueled an explosion in the western blackheaded budworm, leaving masses of browning trees in many areas of Southeast. The worm, which is the larval stage of the budworm moth, is known to feed on the new growth of trees, leaving them with a brownish-red appearance.

A resident of Seldovia reported an infestation of worms infesting an area of salmonberry brush and nettle.

This eye catching insect is the adult stonefly.

I saw an extreme amount of spittle bugs not only on grasses and plants but on flowers.

Our Mosquito Magnet trap filled in under a week. We normally empty it once a month or so.

The spraying 20 years ago was effective in reducing the infestation to a manageable level and seemed to do so for quite a while. That is, until now. Merrill Brady told me last week that he is inundated with tent caterpillars this year. His property is down by the greenbelt lots and the caterpillars are stripping the 60-foot cottonwoods and all other vegetation of all of their leaves.

Winter will never be the way it was, according to scientists. Towards the end of the century, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute predicts that the winter weather will gradually disappear from Oslo.

The tick can carry hemorrhagic diphtheria. The disease is widespread in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. In addition, some cases have been seen in southern Europe. The fever can cause serious illness in humans.

This morning it was as hot in Narvik as in Rome and Istanbul, and far warmer than countries in southern Europe. However, the mild air is on the wane.

Volunteers from the Friends of Bowker Creek Society say uncovering caddisfly larvae in the gravel beds of the stream show the water quality has improved to a level sufficient to sustain salmon and cutthroat trout.

"We had never before observed a species of the order Diptera, aside from the mosquitos present every year. Around the middle of September this year, however, there was a large influx of houseflies into our home."

Nina was going for a walk with the dog when she felt a sting on her toe. On the floor lay a European hornet, the largest wasp in Northern Europe. She is allergic to wasps and immediately realized that this could be dangerous. After a few minutes, her foot swelled up. She became dizzy and her pulse raced.

Ants carrying white rice like objects out of their nest.

In the Northwest this summer dry weather conditions resulted in an above average wasp population.

Pennsylvania officials are giving the following advice to those who encounter the pesky invasive insects: "Kill it! Squash it, smash it ... just get rid of it."

Entomologists confirm the report of the world's largest hornet — a worrisome invasive species that originates from East Asia and Japan — by a person in a rural area near the Canadian border.