Zoology

Who is the ugliest? A paper wasp with a deadly sting? A scorpion that crushes its prey? Cast your vote for the ugliest bug by December 15, 2009. --by Carol Hughes

A lack of individual options among ants minimizes their opportunities to make mistakes. As a result, they may be more rational in their decision making than we big-brained humans. --by Margaret Coulombe

Brian Sullivan studies toad toes to understand cross-breeding between two Arizona species. --by Matt Crum

Color might be the key to snagging a mate--at least if you're a male jumping spider. by Margaret Coulombe

It has taken 230 years for scientists to describe 1.8 million species of creatures living on Earth. Quentin Wheeler says that five times as many species need to be described in a fraction of the time before many creatures that are still unknown to science disappear into extinction. --by Adelheid Fischer

It looks like an ant. It moves like an ant. It even smells like an ant. It's an ant--right? Or maybe it's a cleverly disguised spider. --by Margaret Coulombe

Infidelity is found in all sorts of animal and insect groups, including other highly organized social organisms, such as ants. Unlike humans, however, worker ants that stray from social norms are rarely, if ever, successful. Chemical signals give them away. --by Margaret Coulombe

One in four mammal species on Earth is being pushed to extinction, according to a new assessment from more than 1,800 scientists. ASU's Andrew Smith suggests some actions that could help immediately. --by Skip Derra

ASU kicks off a yearlong celebration of the life and work of Charles Darwin with two talks from noted biologist E. O. Wilson, including the launch of a new book on insect societies written by Wilson and ASU biologist Bert Holldobler. --by Margaret Coulombe

Does nature or nurture determine an ant's place in society? A little of both, for one species of harvester ant, at least. This kind of flexibility allows the colony to respond to changing conditions successfully.