Ask An Entomologist

Real Entomologists, @Stylopidae, @Ms_Mars, and @SciBugs answer your questions about bugs!

Shoot us a question below!

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

Announcement: In a few days, we will be locking this account and moving over to BlueSky.

https://t.co/oRx81fAISs

[🐞 Nancy Miorelli 🐞 @SciBugs]

I had such a great time interviewing @Stylopidae about the one time he got bitten by a black widow.

Spoiler Alert: The US health system is worse than the bite.
https://t.co/fojGn13VG1

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@Akaeruhydroxide @simonmaechling The Non-GMO project specifies that ingredients derived from GMOs are considered GMOs.

I know you like to see dunks, but try to at least do a little reading and not get your opinions from a Bayer employee half-assedly spouting talking points that are twenty years old.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@MaxDWolf @simonmaechling He knows.

I received the same talking points when I worked at Bayer, and was aware of this then.

These talking points are like a decade old, at least…and they’ve never worked.

Just look at their court cases.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

Note that these people never actually bother to tell you anything about what’s packed in the salt.

Salt frequently has additives-cellulose, dextrose, corn starch, maltodextrin, etc- made from GMO ingredients.

These are all totally safe, but this sort of denialism looks like…

[Simon Maechling @simonmaechling]

Non-GMO Salt.
Utter nonsense.

The idea of "non-GMO salt" is fundamentally flawed and reveals a misunderstanding of what GMOs (genetically modified organisms) actually are.

To clarify, GMOs refer to living organisms - plants, animals, or microbes - whose genetic material has been intentionally modified.

Salt, however, is not an organism. It’s an inorganic compound, primarily sodium chloride (NaCl), with no DNA or genetic material to modify.

For something to be genetically modified, it must have genes. This is why GMO applies to living things like crops or bacteria, but not to non-living, inorganic substances like salt.

Labeling salt as "non-GMO" is scientifically meaningless. It’s a marketing gimmick designed to exploit consumer fears about GMOs, even though GMOs have no relevance to a substance like salt.

These labels don’t inform—they mislead, creating unnecessary confusion and fostering misconceptions about basic science. Far from protecting consumers, they undermine scientific literacy and fuel mistrust in legitimate food labeling practices.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@simonmaechling Again, these additives are completely safe.

Anytime you eat any plant material, you’re eating cellulose. GMO plant or not, it doesn’t matter. Cellulose is cellulose.

It’s when folks pretend that these additives don’t exist that it seems like there’s a conspiracy.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

People like @simonmaechling are the worst type of bad actor because they:

A.) Do not understand the food system
B.) Only address strawman arguments that nobody actually puts forward.

You can’t defend science by gaslighting concerned people.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

Expect our next #DeepDive on December 14th, exclusively on BlueSky!

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

Announcement: In a few days, we will be locking this account and moving over to BlueSky.

https://t.co/oRx81fAISs

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

We would like to thank everyone who's made this platform what it's been for the past decade, and sincerely hope you'll join us at BlueSky.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@KrishnaMathias There's a number of things which could be going on here.

The holes seem to be a bit too large and irregular for most wood-boring insects.

I would guess it's a fungal issue, but I am not well connected with plant pathology Twitter.

@WyoWeeds might know someone in this area.

[Dr. Raven the Science Maven @ravenscimaven]

This is an EMERGENCY. WE NEED ATTENTION ON THIS RIGHT NOW. https://t.co/LxuLAEEYaZ

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@__PhoenixIsHere *RFK Jr.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

I would be very interested in a risk analysis comparing caffeine and the pesticide residues farmworkers are exposed to.

[Simon Maechling @simonmaechling]

We're eating natural chemicals that plants use to kill insects.

We eat roughly 1,500mg of them per day.

There are 10mg of known carcinogens in a cup of coffee.

That is more carcinogens than you get from pesticide residues for a year.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@__PhoenixIsHere They function to essentially promote scientific racism, and disguise these intentions by hiding their pseudoscience with more legitimate articles.

They’re every bit as pseudoscientific as RFL Jr, but just on different topics.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@simonmaechling Either way, the document mentions potential effects on nontarget organisms as a concern.

Nontarget effects are why caffeine is no longer used as a frogicide(?) in Hawaii.

So, like, it's not approved here either. At least, there's no EPA RED that I can find.

[Ask An Entomologist @BugQuestions]

@simonmaechling I don't exactly expect GLP fans to be able to do their homework, so it would take about a liter of pesticide solution to overdose.

However, the issue in question is what happens with repeated exposures to higher doses of caffeine than is found in consumer products.