scientists describing a new species of ant, strumigenys ayersthey, have broken with conventional naming traditions and used the pronoun “they” instead of the traditional male or female form to promote nonbinary gender inclusivity.

the new ant, described in a recent paper in zookeys, was named after the late artist and human rights activist jeremy ayers. traditionally, a species named after a person would have an “i” appended at the end of the name for males, or “ae” for females; in this case, ayersi or ayersae. instead, the researchers went with ayersthey.

they did this to honor ayers and the large number of people who do not identify with either the male and female genders, according to study author douglas booher, a yale postdoctoral researcher, and co-author philipp hönle, a doctoral student at the technical university of darmstadt, germany.

“in contrast to the traditional naming practices that identify individuals as one of two distinct genders, we have chosen a non-latinized portmanteau honoring the artist jeremy ayers and representing people that do not identify with conventional binary gender assignments, strumigenys ayersthey,” the authors wrote in the study.

ayers was an eclectic artist, publishing photography books, authoring a column in andy warhol’s interview magazine, and writing lyrics for both r.e.m. and the b-52s. indeed, r.e.m. lead singer and songwriter michael stipe joined booher in writing the etymology section of the paper explaining the decision to use the pronoun “they” to honor the artist. ayers is remembered today as a fixture of the athens, georgia, art community, according to a local paper.

hönle first encountered the ant while working on his doctoral thesis at darmstadt, researching ant communities in the chocó area of ecuador. of the specimens he looked at, one stood out for its unique shiny exoskeleton, for which hönle couldn’t find a matching species. hönle then contacted booher, an expert on the ant genus strumigenys, also known as trap-jaw ants for their trap-jaw mandibles. booher quickly identified the specimen as a potentially undescribed species, kicking off the work to describe the new ant.

what sets s. ayersthey apart from other ants in the genus is its signature shiny and smooth outer “skin,” or cuticle, as well as its long trap jaws, described by the researchers in the paper as a “biological mousetrap.”

the strumigenys genus itself is quite diverse. the various species’ trap-jaw mandibles can range from short to long, with the newly described species having large mandibles; some species lack the trap jaw entirely. one common identifying feature of the genus is a sponge-like structure toward the base of the abdomen. according to booher, the function of the sponge structure remains a mystery to scientists.

in a study published in plos biology in march 2021, booher explores the evolution of the trap-jaw mechanism and its gradual increase in length. the trap-jaw mechanism itself is one of the fastest movements in any living creature, with the jaws snapping shut at a rate of up to 1.2 million meters per second squared.

the newly described species is found in the chocó region of ecuador, a biologically rich and diverse coastal rainforest that is simultaneously understudied and under threat due to human activities. logging, mining and oil palm plantations have resulted in a 61% reduction of the chocó region’s forests.

“[the chocó] features a plethora of endemic species. there is one critically endangered subspecies of [brown-headed] spider monkey, ateles fusciceps fusciceps, that only lives in the forests of this part of ecuador,” hönle said. “however, the insect fauna and especially the ants there are poorly known, as only very few researchers did sample the area.”

the region is so understudied that last year hönle and other scientists described another species of native ant, odontomachus davidsoni, calling this one “large and conspicuous.”

hönle’s fieldwork collecting specimens in the chocó takes place on land preserved by jocotoco, an ngo that buys threatened land to conserve it.

“the fact that no one has described this species before highlights how much else might be out there. the new strumigenys is just one more little piece toward a more complete understanding of the fauna,” hönle said.

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citations:

booher, d. b., gibson, j. c., liu, c., longino, j. t., fisher, b. l., janda, m., … economo, e. p. (2021). functional innovation promotes diversification of form in the evolution of an ultrafast trap-jaw mechanism in ants. plos biology, 19(3), e3001031. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.3001031

booher, d. b., & hönle, p. o. (2021). a new species group of strumigenys (hymenoptera, formicidae) from ecuador, with a description of its mandible morphology. zookeys, 1036, 1-19. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1036.62034

hönle, p. o., lattke, j. e., donoso, d., von beeren, c., heethoff, m., schmelzle, s., … blüthgen, n. (2020). odontomachus davidsoni sp. nov. (hymenoptera, formicidae), a new conspicuous trap-jaw ant from ecuador. zookeys, 948, 75-105. doi:10.3897/zookeys.948.48701

hanging like “shimmering dark clouds on the horizon,” these catastrophic swarms can reach the size of moscow, eating and destroying everything in sight. the locusts are a product of extreme weather swings, and pose deadly consequences for the people who rely on the crops they feed on. their rapidly increasing numbers are likely to present “an unprecedented threat to food security and livelihoods in the horn of africa,” as illustrated by the u.n. food and agriculture organization on jan. 29. 

kenya hasn’t had a locust outbreak to this magnitude in 70 years, and it is the worst that somalia and ethiopia have seen in 25 years. a typical desert locust swarm contains 150 million locusts per square kilometer, which is hard to imagine, but on average can destroy enough crops in one day that would have fed 2,500 people. 

what are the regional implications? 

the impacts of these swarms are immense, but also vary greatly depending on the region. the regions currently affected by the outbreak stretch across the horn of africa, so far reaching ethiopia, somalia, and northeast kenya. some say that the locusts have traveled from as far as yemen. however, if favorable breeding conditions persist, the u.n. fears these swarms could reach over 30 additional countries in africa and asia. south sudan and uganda are already bracing for their arrival, as predictions show that “current numbers could grow 500 times by june.”

unsurprisingly, scientists have declared a clear culprit: climate change. nairobi-based climate scientist abubakr salih babiker stated that 2019 was one of the wettest years on record due to rapidly increasing water temperatures in the indian ocean. warmer ocean temperatures furthermore caused an unusually high number of tropical cyclones off of africa, providing the perfect conditions for locust breeding. 

tom twining-ward, a senior technical advisor for the united nations development program with expertise in climate change adaptation (and, full disclosure, the author’s father), said “historically, the most important natural factor controlling populations of locusts is the weather,” and that “the current invasion in east africa is no doubt intensified by climatic changes that are neither caused nor fully understood by the local farmers.”

another challenge is that the only effective method to battle the insects is by the aerial spraying of pesticides, which is not only very expensive, but difficult to implement in many regions due to military presence. it’s also dangerous: for livestock, farmers, and the environment alike. 

so what should be done? a previous outbreak from 2003 to 2005 in northern africa cost more than $500 million to control and more than $2.5 billion in harvest losses. are big organizations and donors willing to step up and fund these efforts? 

twining-ward also highlighted that “while the focus in the medium- to long-term should be on coping measures and adaptation to climate change, there is an urgent need for donors to address the significant drop in agricultural output in the region, and provide the necessary resources to address food shortages and hunger in the affected countries.”

unfortunately most media coverage of the swarms are focusing predominantly on the disastrous effects and implications of the swarms, rather than proposing realistic solutions for controlling them.

a call for action, not a plea for help

the urgency of the situation has not been talked about nearly enough. now that the u.n. has shared its serious concerns, and somalia has declared a national emergency, news media is beginning to give the story a bit more attention, but not enough to reflect that this may very well affect millions of people. photographs have been an effective way to give people abroad some perspective. pictures and videos show hundreds of millions of locusts’ darkening horizons for miles, forming dense, ravenous, clouds. 

but, as with what has been written in the articles themselves, the pictures in the media portray reoccurring themes of devastation and helplessness: crops wilted, farmers in distress banging on metal pots and pans while whistling, using whatever means they have to scare away the locusts. 

as a concerned environmentalist and humanist, the lack of action and attention to combat this crisis is even more disappointing, especially when recalling the media attention and public outcry in response to the shocking australian wildfires. the comparison between coverage, and lack thereof, between the two emergencies is tragic, especially considering the impactful role that the media has in helping create action and awareness —  information that could benefit the countries in need.

i can’t help blaming the tendencies of certain media to make untrue generalizations and to portray africans as helpless or as careless perpetrators of an environmental crisis, while negating the relevant historical factors that have contributed to the environmental vulnerability of many africans. 

one aspect of the stories told about african countries — particularly the environmental ones — that i think often goes undiscussed, is that much of this vulnerability is in fact due to legacies left behind by colonial development policies. let us remember that all countries south of the sahara, excluding liberia, have at some point been under european colonial rule, and these structures significantly contributed to the uneven development felt in regions today. african countries dominated by colonial rule were impacted by policies that often promoted unsuitable and environmentally damaging agricultural systems, polluted industrial sectors, furthered inadequate workers rights, disrupted ecosystems and communities with big infrastructure projects, created violent arguments over land dispossession, and so on. 

exasperation steadily accumulated the more that i investigated this story, reading articles scattered with fragments of outdated stereotypes and tropes, but lacking in relevant historical factors that inevitably impact the severity of the locust outbreak. it is unfair not to consider the geographical, geopolitical, and historical ramifications that have shaped, and that will continue to shape, the way these events unfold. 

i sincerely hope that somehow perceptions sculpted by the mainstream media will begin to fade, as people rely more heavily on local and regional news sources. it is our own duty as consumers of media to expect stories that tell the whole story, and to call out discrepancies when we see them. we should expect equal coverage of stories that tell both the triumphs and tragedies. i hope that the tendencies to depict environmental disasters in vulnerable regions will shift from focusing solely on the crisis and its negative consequences, to more on the solutions that can be implemented to mitigate them.

they bite and sting me, mooch off my meals, and intrude upon my personal space. kind of like my roommate.

some of them are creepy, crawly and often found in dirty, smelly places. every time i see a bug, i am disgusted and annoyed.

eating them seems taboo too, but many cultures think the opposite.

in thailand, for example, locals find bugs tasty and nutritious. street carts give buyers a wide range of choices, similar to walking into a candy store. some of the crowd favorites include grasshoppers (which taste like crispy chicken), water bugs (more like licorice), and silk worms (with a familiar nutty taste). though i may be skeptical, 2 billion people eat 1,900 bug types as part of their regular diet. i can’t see myself hating all of them.

still despite the variety, bugs have not yet captured american hearts and stomachs. can this change?

one person who hopes so is andrew zimmer, host of bizarre foods. while i may not take up zimmer’s recommendation of dung beetles, the most bizarre thing about the show is the normalcy of insect based meals in certain parts of the world. in fact, he says most cultures find some aspects of western diets bizarre.

“why do we let milk rot and dry into squares and call it cheese?” zimmer asks. “many aspects of our dining and eating life leave the rest of the world shaking their heads.”

“i stand by the position that anyone who tried half the stuff we see on our travels would become a convert to many foods that only appear strange but taste delicious.”

but i’m not like zimmer. i tend to stick to eating what i’m used to…unless there is some other value to having a wider culinary palette.

did someone say, ‘it can help save the planet!?’ you had my curiosity, now you got my attention. and it’s true. let me walk you through.

over the next few decades, we’ll need to produce enough protein for billions more mouths while also limiting our impact on the earth’s climate. insects could be our savior. a single kilogram of feed yields 12 times more cricket protein than beef protein. 

insects could also reduce emissions. livestock accounts for about 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than planes, trains, and automobiles combined. on the other hand, insects could reduce these emissions by 60 percent. insects also don’t need as much land and water so they would be cheaper and more plentiful.

of course, while saving the planet is nice and all, i would like to eat a healthy alternative as well. and insects deliver once again. not only do most non-americans find them delicious, but they are also high in protein, less fattening, and high in vitamins and minerals. can i still avoid them after all this?

maybe one day, i’ll see a bug and be fascinated rather than disgusted. maybe one day, i’ll see a bug and be appreciative of its role in our ecosystem rather than a disease spreading pest. maybe one day.

for now i can keep my irrational hatred toward bugs, but still enjoy them as a sustainable substitute for beef.

eric osman is a senior majoring in journalism at the george washington university.

mosquito control is a challenge when taking into account global climate changes. computer models have shown researchers that the southwestern u.s. is predicted to have drier conditions, but would not decrease mosquito populations in may and june, which extends the length of the season since mosquitoes rely heavily on water sources that are not controlled by precipitation (i.e. man-made, permanent sources such as irrigation networks). research done in 2007 and 2008 indicates that the mosquito aedes aegypti takes at least six days to develop from egg to adult and culex quinquefasciatus takes a minimum of a week. given that information, scientists recommend intervention early on in the mosquito season in order to control their numbers later.

researchers conclude that mosquito control methods will have to begin earlier and extend later into the year than it has in the past, potentially competing with other seasonal concerns. researchers are also evaluating the institutional arrangements of the agencies and departments that are in charge of controlling and monitoring mosquitoes, and aim to help improve the way state and government programs handle mosquito populations.

in addition to my scooter, probably the only street legal licensed and insured solar powered scooter in the world, i am working on a larger, 3 wheeled version that will be capable maintain safer road speeds under the motorcycle class. (scooter is moped class).

i am also working on a solar charged thermoelectric water condenser to water garden plants, condensing the water from the ambient air around the unit. the size will be like placing a sunflower in the ground next to a prized plant and provide water at no cost to produce. the water will be a constant low feed trickle. this will take the water from the air around the unit, condense it (look under your car the next time your air conditioner is running). the goal is to make them about the size of many of the solar charged yard lights everyone is now purchasing. bringing the cost to under $20. per unit so everyone could use. an additional application would be producing water for drinking with larger solar powered units.

problem, too much herbicide used in our world creating pollution and medical problems. solution:
working on a solar charged robotic field cultivator cultivator to travel up and down rows, cultivation the crops automatically. the unit, dubbed “ladybug” would recognize the plants and weeds and keep itself aligned between the rows by recognizing crop plants and weeds. “ladybug” will turn around and follow the next row back and forth until the entire field is done, then start over, keeping the weeds at bay. hygrometers would stop operation when the field is too wet. this would be great for organic and conventional farmers with a labor and chemical reduction thusly created. this would also create a circumstance where gmo (genetically engineered plants) would not be necessary as mechanical week control is safer than chemical.