Way back in the 1960s and '70s, the nine-spotted ladybug was the most common ladybug in the northeastern US. So beloved was this particular ladybug that it was designated as the official state insect of New York in the late '80s. But even as it received this honor, the bug had already begun to disappear, pushed out by the dastardly seven-spotted ladybug instead. By 1999, scientists believed the nine-spotter had sadly gone extinct. But dry your tears, insect-lovers! Because the nine-spotted ladybug has just been spotted—alive and well—on an Amagansett farm. more ›

After a city bed bug expert announced he had seen bed bugs on benches at subway stations as well as one bed bug "catching a ride on an unsuspecting straphanger's caboose at Brooklyn's Hoyt-Schermerhorn station," we suggested wearing disposable jumpers during your commutes. Well, keep that in mind while you watch this video, which is described on YouTube this way: "On my way to work (11/16/2010) a lady across the aisle had a look of horror upon her face. I looked at her and she said 'the bed bug'. Sure enough there it was. It was brown from being filled up with some poor commuters blood. We had just passed the 36th st in Brooklyn when the lady discovered it." more ›

The Kebab Cobb wrap at Chop't in midtown consists of the following ingredients: grilled chicken, feta cheese, red onions, peppers, and pita chips chop't with romaine lettuce. Giant scary living insects are not included there, but sometimes they throw in a little extra protein free of charge, according to this account on Midtown Lunch. more ›

The NYPD says a computer database glitch is responsible for repeatedly dispatching officers to a Brooklyn house where two law-abiding senior citizens reside. Since 2002, cops have knocked on the door of a Marine Park home owned by 83-year-old Walter Martin and his 82-year-old wife Rose at least 50 times in search of witnesses, accused robbers, and murder suspects. more ›

Remember that conservative kid who punk'd the community organizing group ACORN with a hidden camera, fueling a right-wing backlash against the organization that contributed to Congress cutting their funding? We don't want to disillusion you or anything, but it turns out he's kind of shady. On Monday, James O'Keefe and three pals—all 24 years old—were arrested in New Orleans trying to bug the phones of Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu's office. Naturally, O'Keefe videotaped the whole thing, so there's that to look forward to. more ›

With news that bed bug complaints soared in 2008 and the City Council poised to vote on bed bug legislation this Tuesday, the NY Times spoke to entomologist Louis Sorkin, who works at the American Museum of Natural History. His descriptions are fascinating, if creepy: "Around 1989, someone brought in our first bed bug. Most entomologists had never seen a live infestation before. Now, infestations may be approaching the levels of 50 years ago, before DDT was used." Referring to how the bloodsuckers are becoming more immune to toxins: "That’s why pest control companies do all sorts of things besides using chemicals: heating, freezing, steaming, vacuuming. The hardest part of controlling bed bugs is finding them. Most of the literature out there talks about a quarter-inch-long reddish-brown insect, but a bed bug is a millimeter long when it’s born, about the thickness of a credit card." Sorkin added, "A pest-control company once brought in slippers from an infested apartment. You could see all the eggs that had been plastered onto the soles and all the bugs that were hiding." Blergh. more ›