Creating Fragrant Flowers

When was the last time you got a bouquet of flowers that had a
fragrant smell? While there’s no shortage of beautiful looking flowers
for
sale, many have little if any scent anymore. As the Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Tamar Charney reports it’s a problem one scientist has
gotten a whiff of:

Transcript

When was the last time you got a bouquet of flowers that had a fragrant smell? While there’s no shortage of beautiful looking flowers for sale, many have little, if any, scent anymore. Ast he Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Tamar Charney reports, it’s a problem one scientist has gotten a whiff of:


Flowers have lost their smell as flower growers have bred them to be big and brightly colored. Eran Pichersky is a biologist at the University of Michigan. He studies the smell of flowers. Pichersky is focusing his genetics research on whether it’s possible to bioengineer a flower’s scent.


“We actually have some collaboration with biotech companies who are trying to use some of the genes and enzymes we’ve isolated to put them back into plants so that the plant makes more scent, or even new scent that they didn’t make before.”


But it’s not florists who are interested in this work, it’s farmers. Pichersky’s research means it might be possible to alter the smell of flowers in ways that entice bees to visit crops more often, or even attract other insects to do the pollination work. That increase in pollination could mean an increase in crop yields.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Tamar Charney.

Beetle Controls Purple Loosestife

A European plant called purple loosestrife is increasingly making
itself at home near lakes, wetlands, and meadows throughout the Great
Lakes region. That’s bad news for native plants that are pushed out by
the aggressive newcomer. But help could be on the way. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Tracy Samilton reports on a program to
introduce a loosestrife-munching beetle:

Mayflies Make a Comeback

People have long considered the burrowing mayfly a pest. And 40 years
ago, they were glad when the clouds of bugs virtually disappeared from
the Great Lakes. But the mayfly is making a comeback. And as the Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports, scientists say it’s a sign
of a healthier water system:

Tricking the Gypsy Moth

The U-S Forest Service and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources will
be using pheromone treatments to prevent gypsy moths from mating in wooded
areas along the Lake Michigan shoreline. The effort is aimed at protecting
the large concentration of endangered Karner Blue butterflies along the
shoreline. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Len Clark reports:

An Unusual Northwoods Celebration

The forests, lakes and rivers of northern Wisconsin are popular with many
outdoors enthusiasts. People enjoy everything from hunting and fishing to
hiking and biking. But playing outdoors has its downsides.
The most notable would be the dreaded tick. While most people think the
blood-sucking bugs are creepy, one town has decided to accept them. And
even have a little fun. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Todd Witter has
the story:

New Zoo Exhibit Honors Bugs

  • A $4-million dollar Insectarium is under construction at the St. Louis Zoo. It will be among the large such facilities in the nation. (Photo courtesy of St. Louis Zoo)

Going to the zoo means seeing lions and tigers and bears. But one group
of animals is rarely represented. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Lester Graham reports on a new exhibit to house some of the planet’s
most populous animals insects:

Honey Bees Face Another Threat

A new threat to honey bees that had been isolated to four southern
states has just been spotted in the Great Lakes region……and
agriculture officials are warning beekeepers to be on the lookout. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bill Cohen has more:

Global Worming

Remember when you were a kid, how you’d spend hours poking around,
looking for creepy crawly things? If one woman has her way, a lot more
of us will rediscover that joy…And as adults, also appreciate some
practical benefits. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson
explains:

Lice Exterminators Pluck Profits

Over the past several years, lice outbreaks have become more frequent
and more severe. Some scientists believe it’s because a new strain of
lice have developed resistance to both over-the-counter and prescription
lice treatments. But as researchers scratch their heads and wonder what
to do to control these "super lice", some new businesses are jumping in
with an answer. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson
reports:

Resistant &Quot;Super Lice" Tough to Kill

The mere mention of lice might be enough to make your skin crawl. But the really creepy news is that lice outbreaks are becoming more frequent…and more difficult to control. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports: