Ladybug scents offer a more ecologically friendly way to protect crops

The use of pesticides, while beneficial for global food security, wreaks havoc on natural ecosystems and human health. To address this issue, Penn State researchers have turned to an unlikely enforcer to protect crops: the ladybug. The team, led by Sara Hermann in the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, developed a novel pest management tool by leveraging the chemical ecology of predator-prey interactions between ladybugs and aphids.