University of Maryland entomology professor Raymond St. Leger has discovered how to use scorpion genes to create a hypervirulent fungus that can kill specific insect pests, including mosquitoes that carry malaria and a beetle that destroys coffee crops, but does not contaminate the environment as chemical pesticides do.

As spring gardening approaches, concern has spread about the risk of the Formosan subterranean termite (Coptotermes formosanus) moving to other states in mulch produced from Katrina and Rita debris. The termite wreaks millions of dollars of damage annually to wooden structures, live deciduous trees and other woody plants in a dozen southern states, including Louisiana. Barbara Thorne , professor of entomology and termite expert at the University of Maryland, comments on the situation.