Petra 6A
Nov. 26 2011
Notes: Dr mike gerbich professor of biology at u of w on, extremely tiny,
feeding on over 1000 different plant species 150 being of agricultural
importance, ability 2 develop resistance 2 pesticides, takes genes from other
species, ex. Takes gene from bacteria cuz bacteria can break down toxics from
plant, when changing mite 2 different hostthe mites genes change completely,
can counter pesticides too,
Creepy Crawlies
There’s a
new bug in town. A small pest called the spider mite has been studied by a
group of scientists, and many things have been found out. First, it is feeding
on over 1000 species of plants, 150 being of agricultural importance. How? It
steals genes from other organisms that have the ability to break down the plant’s
defensive toxins, thus rendering itself able to do the same. It also has found
a way to break down our pesticides. The scientists have found that when you
change the mite to a different host plant, its genes change completely to adapt
to its new environment. They are still working on how to stop the creepy crawler, but this discovery is a great one.
My thoughts
I think that if we don’t find a way to stop
this mite, it will eat its way through all our agriculture. It is nature’s way,
though, for this mite to adapt the way it has. We adapted to live in this world
in prosperity; why shouldn’t it adapt to survive? This was a very interesting
article for me, and I look forward to learning more about the spider mite.
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