Tag - insects

 
Menu
Search
 
July 16, 2025
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

INSECTS

Outbreaks of rice stink bugs were confirmed in 37 prefectures last year, leading to lower yields in some areas. Similar damage is feared this year.
JAPAN
Jul 10, 2025
Pest outbreaks feared to affect rice harvests again
Last year, outbreaks of rice stink bugs, which prevent rice plants from bearing grains, were confirmed in 37 prefectures.
Jung Yong-sun, a local official tasked with pest-control duties, poses while wearing a plastic netted onion bag for protection from "lovebugs" on the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon, west of Seoul.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jul 9, 2025
South Korea battles 'lovebug' invasion amid climate change
Seoul is now annually hit by a weeks-long infestation of a type of March fly whose distinctive mating behavior earned it the nickname.
Two specimens of the Japanese beetle have been detected for the first time in France.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Jul 9, 2025
France worries about Japanese beetles after finding two
The insects threaten plum trees, apple trees, vines, corn, soy, green beans and asparagus, among other cultivated plants.
The incubation period of “severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome” (SFTS) ranges from 6 days to 2 weeks, with symptoms including fever and diarrhea. It has a fatality rate of 27%.
JAPAN
Jun 25, 2025
Tick-borne disease cases, with one death, confirmed in Kanto region
Of particular concern is SFTS, which is primarily transmitted through ticks infected with the virus and has a fatality rate of 27%.
While a trained beekeeper can quickly look at frames in a hive assess their health, AI can do it even faster.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Jun 24, 2025
How robotic hives and AI are lowering the risk of bee colony collapse
Beewise’s units help cut down on losses by providing a near-constant stream of information on colony health in real time and give beekeepers the ability to respond.
A sign announcing maintenance works stands at the Osaka Expo venue in the city of Osaka on Thursday after chironomid midges were found swarming there in huge numbers.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2025
Swarms of midges plague Osaka Expo site
While the chironomid midges, which closely resemble mosquitoes, are not directly harmful to humans, they are annoying visitors.
Zensho Holdings, operator of fast-food chain Sukiya, said it will close all of its stores in Japan, except for a small number in shopping centers, between Monday and Friday following recent contamination incidents.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2025
Japan's biggest beef bowl chain Sukiya to shut nearly 2,000 stores after rat and bug contamination
As of the end of 2024, Sukiya operated 1,965 stores in Japan.
A monarch butterfly is seen at an enclosure at Boone Hall Plantation and Gardens in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, in August 2019.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Mar 7, 2025
Butterfly populations plummet by 22% in U.S. since turn of century
Studies in some other countries have documented declines at roughly the same rate as in the U.S. data.
Makoto Nakae, a researcher of swallowtail butterflies
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Dec 9, 2024
New museum set to bring butterflies of the world to Fukushima
The collection includes Japan’s only display of an extinct butterfly species native to South America.
Time is nearly up for the hordes of insects that are thriving more than ever in Japan's increasingly boiling summer.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Sep 23, 2024
Saying good riddance to what bugs me about a Japanese summer
For an arachnophobe in Japan, the fall, winter and spring just can’t come quick — and stay long — enough.
Workers prepare processed crickets at Hygente Technology in Shinjo, Yamagata Prefecture, in November.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Apr 8, 2024
Next-gen protein sources explored as meat replacements in Tohoku
While proponents tout the benefits of edible insects and plant-based meat, getting consumers to change their eating habits remains an uphill task.
A live projection from a microscope displays a magnified image of a bedbug during a lecture on bedbug control at the Korea Pest Control Association in Seoul on Nov. 28.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Dec 19, 2023
South Korean blockchain engineer fights bedbugs with data
Self-professed insectophobe maps out reported infestations on a website that also displays real-time news reports to keep track of the outbreak.
The fossil of a new species of dung beetle found during a geoscience class at Keio Senior High School
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 12, 2023
Fossil found in Japan school class confirmed as new beetle species
The almost perfectly preserved fossil was found in a rock during a geoscience class in last year at Keio Senior High School in Yokohama.
A bed bug in Paris in September
JAPAN / Society
Nov 27, 2023
Bedbugs are spreading in South Korea and China. Is Japan next?
Experts caution that it may only be a matter of time, given the number of travelers now arriving in the country.
A worker uses a vacuum cleaner inside a bullet train at Suseo Station in Seoul on Nov. 13. South Korea is launching a four-week campaign against bedbugs after multiple reports of infestations sparked widespread public anxiety.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Nov 19, 2023
Bedbug anxiety comes for Asia, and the pest killers are here for it
Outbreaks in France and South Korea have people across Asia on high alert for bedbugs. Exterminators in the region say business is booming.
A Japanese research team has identified three genetically distinct populations of the Japanese honeybee.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 16, 2023
Three genetically distinct groups found for Japanese honeybee
Temperature rises caused by global warming could lead to a decline in the species.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 13, 2023
One of the world’s most common cockroaches may have origins in Japan
The discovery marks what could be the first evidence of the presence of the species during Japan’s Kofun Period.
Products used to eradicate bedbugs at a pest control shop in Paris. The French government said on Sept. 29 that it was launching a concerted effort to fight the pests. The blood-sucking insects have been spotted in the Paris metro, high-speed trains and at Paris's Charles-de-Gaulle Airport, with disgusted travelers posting videos on social media.
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 4, 2023
France to hold crisis meetings on bedbug 'scourge'
The blood-sucking insects have been spotted in the Paris metro, high-speed trains and at Paris's Charles De Gaulle Airport.
The city of Tamura, Fukushima Prefecture, is known as a haven for insects such as rhinoceros beetles.
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2023
'Insect tourism' launched in rural Fukushima city
Tamura, located in the center of the Abukuma plateau, is known as a haven for insects such as rhinoceros beetles and stag beetles.
Former Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel (left) helps Lewis Hamilton prepare the Mercedes team's "bee hotel" at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 22, 2023
Sebastian Vettel creates a buzz in Japan amid biodiversity crisis
The retired former champion invited current F1 drivers to make a small contribution to nature by building "bee hotels" next to the Suzuka Circuit track.
Students in Japan struggle with Japanese language and math sections on national exam
The correct answer rate for the Japanese language section on a national test dropped to 67.0% from 67.8% the previous year among elementary school sixth-graders.
Japan team finds ancient ocean full of squids
The ancient ocean was full of squids, whose population exceeded that of fish or ammonites, a Japanese research team mainly from Hokkaido University has found through a new method using technology.
Japan researchers identify gut bacteria strain that boosts anticancer drugs
Researchers at the National Cancer Center Japan say a new type of gut bacteria named YB328 could help unlock the potential of cancer immunotherapy.
Tourists in Japan have telemedicine options before calling 119
Foreign tourists at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. More than 1 million international visitors have a medical issue in Japan every year.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan
After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
Japanese scientists discover clue to why women burn more fat than men
Scientists say a recently-published study could help explain why women are typically less prone to weight-related conditions and may lead to new therapies that target calorie-burning mechanisms.
Music idol and anime fandom merch is big business
Businesses who cater to fandoms gathered at Tokyo Lifestyle Week for the second annual Oshikatsu — Merch Collection Expo, a trade show devoted to fandom goods.
U.S. urges clarity on Japan’s role in potential war over Taiwan, report says
A Ground Self-Defense Force member conducts a military drill with an anti-ship missiles unit, at the GSDF's base on Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture in April 2022.
Tourists in Japan have telemedicine options before calling 119
Foreign tourists at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. More than 1 million international visitors have a medical issue in Japan every year.
Is Japanese skin really ‘too smooth’ for Hideo Kojima’s games?
Hideo Kojima, the leading auteur in Japanese video games, has skirted controversy in the wake of the release of Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan
By Megha Wadhwa

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after
Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER