松墨天牛成虫交配与产卵行为的观察

观察了养虫笼中松墨天牛Monochamus alternatusHope的交配和产卵行为。描述了雌、雄虫在交配过程中的多种行为,雌、雄虫间的交配时间可持续23~540 min,平均约200 min;有重复交配现象,重复交配次数可达2~18次;每次交配持续时间为2~100 s。雌虫背负雄虫,边取食边产卵;也可脱离雄虫单独产卵。雌虫在寄主枝条上咬槽产卵,通常日产卵1~2粒,最多3粒。产卵期的长短和产卵量的多少取决于雌虫个体寿命的长短。     

蚊蝎蛉捕捉足构造

依据光学显微镜和扫描电镜观察,对扁蚊蝎蛉Bittacus planus Cheng和缠绕蚊蝎蛉Bittacus implicatus Huang et Hua成虫足的外部形态、肌肉组织及超微结构进行了描述和绘图。蚊蝎蛉成虫三对足结构相似,均为捕捉式,以高度特化的跗节捕捉猎物,各跗分节间具发达的关节、凹槽和爪缩肌肌腱膨大区,第4和5跗分节的齿形成嵌合构造,在昆虫纲中为该类群独有特征。首次发现胫节伸肌b由腿节基部发出的一小块三角形肌肉组织和一条长肌腱组成; 爪缩肌肌腱在第5跗分节凹槽末端有一突起,收缩时突起羁绊于凹槽内的“Y”字形底托。分析了成虫捕食行为与捕捉足构造之间的关系,并简要比较了蚊蝎蛉捕捉足与螳螂捕捉足的结构特点。     

龟纹瓢虫的行为学观察

通过以洋槐蚜Aphis robiniae Macchiati为食物对龟纹瓢虫Propylea japonica(Thunberg)进行室内饲养和观察,记述了龟纹瓢虫幼虫的孵化、蜕皮行为,成虫的羽化、捕食、交配、产卵行为,并对幼虫成虫的自残行为进行了初步观察。结果表明幼虫孵化、蜕皮,成虫羽化后均有取食自己蜕皮时产生的残皮的行为;龟纹瓢虫成虫捕食行为分为搜寻、捕捉、清洁、静止排泄4个步骤;交配一般由雄虫发起,雌虫背负成虫进行交配。龟纹瓢虫每产一粒卵平均耗时3.75秒,两粒卵之间产卵时间间隔约31.75秒,每次产卵量平均12枚;龟纹瓢虫存在自残行为,成虫在食物不足时会取食幼虫和虫卵,高龄幼虫在饥饿的状态下也取食低龄幼虫和卵,且同龄幼虫之间也会出现相互咬食的现象。     

两种草蛉对取食棉花的扶桑绵粉蚧的嗅觉反应（英文）

捕食性的普通草蛉Chrysoperla sp.（carnea group） 和安平草蛉Mallada desjardinsi（Navas）（脉翅目:草蛉科）的寄主-生境定位取决于其觅食行为以及对各阶段释放的植物气味的行为反应.本研究调查了这两种交配的草蛉成虫以及取食棉花的扶桑绵粉蚧Phenacoccus solenopsis的反应,以便了解它们之间的三重营养关系.结果表明：草蛉雄虫和雌虫均能感受到棉花植株释放的绿叶挥发物;植株的各个阶段均可使捕食性昆虫和绵粉蚧定位.在受绵粉蚧为害的棉叶上饱和烃含量高,说明草蛉成虫的反应更为强烈;在植株受为害期和开花期释放捕食性昆虫,可提高田间捕食性昆虫的作用.这些结果提示有效的生物防治取决于捕食性昆虫在植株上的天然定殖能力以及对害虫的吞食能力.     

中国大巴山蚊蝎蛉属一新种(长翅目,蚊蝎蛉科)

记述采自中国大巴山的蚊蝎蛉属1新种,周氏蚊蝎蛉Bittacus Choui sp.nov.,模式标本保存于西北农林科技大学昆虫博物馆,并通过人工饲养获得卵、幼虫和蛹等所有虫态,提供了成虫、卵、幼虫和蛹等虫态照片,绘制了雌雄外生殖器特征图,简要报道了新种的生物学和生活史.     

捕虱管蓟马的捕食、交配和产卵行为

观察了捕虱管蓟马的多种行为,认为该虫的日常行为为取食、行走、搜索、休息、交配和产卵;对所试验的5种害虫的喜好程度依次为椭圆蚧卵,柑桔木虱卵、褐圆蚧卵、柑桔粉虱卵、桔全爪螨若虫,褐圆蚧若虫、桔全爪螨卵、椭圆蚧若虫、柑桔木虱一龄 若虫,除柑桔木虱一龄若虫外,取食差异不显;捕虱管蓟马取食卵的量比若虫多,经T－检验分析,两无明显差异;室内饲养蓟马和田间采获蓟马的行为,及各行行为间差异,通过二因素方差分析显示不显;不同虫态蓟马取食时间长短依次为雌成虫、雄成虫、若虫、在食物充足的情况下,不同虫态之间几乎没有竞争,偶有成虫捕食幼虫现象发生。对该虫的交配行为及产卵行为作了详细的观察,发现雌蓟马成虫和雄蓟马成虫都多次交配;雄虫之间的性竞争十分激烈,而雌虫之间几乎没有竞争。     

丽草蛉对螺旋粉虱的捕食作用

实验室内观察了丽草蛉Chrysopa formosa Brauer各龄幼虫对螺旋粉虱Aleurodicus dispersus Russell的取食行为,并研究了3龄幼虫对螺旋粉虱的捕食作用.结果表明,丽草蛉各龄幼虫具有背负杂物习性,其幼虫利用双颚夹取螺旋粉虱若虫的蜡粉背负于背部,并取食螺旋粉虱的若虫和蛹.丽草蛉2龄、3龄幼虫还取食螺旋粉虱成虫.丽草蛉3龄幼虫的功能反应属于HollingⅡ,方程为Na=0.9287 N/1+0.9287×0.0078 N;对螺旋粉虱若虫具有较强的捕食能力,日最大捕食量为127.8149头.丽草蛉可作为一种捕食性天敌在螺旋粉虱的生物防治中加以利用.     

南美斑潜蝇成虫的生物学特性与行为

通过室内饲养观察及野外调查,研究了昆明地区南美斑潜蝇（Ｌｉｒｉｏｍｙｚａ ｈｕｉｄｏｂｒｅｎｓｉｓ）成虫的生物学特性,包括羽化、日活动规律、寿命、求偶与交配、取食和产卵。通过观察成虫的行为,发现雄虫在求偶过程中用腿节摩擦腹部摩擦器以吸引雌虫交配。在较高的种群密度下,雄虫之间在交配过程中表现出强较的攻击性。雌虫在搜索寄主时利用跗节、产卵器和喙上的感受器对寄主植物进行探查和评估。本研究的结果为斑潜蝇的     

锈翅蚁蛉(脉翅目:蚁蛉科)的发育生物学研究

锈翅蚁蛉为全变态类昆虫,在贵州省一年发生1代,11月下旬开始越冬,各龄幼虫均可越冬,次年3月苏醒.在室内饲养条件下,卵期13 d±0.56 d,幼虫期63.58 d±1.81d,蛹期26.35 d±1.14 d,成虫期20 d± 1.06 d.结合野外调查和室内饲养,详细描述了锈翅蚁蛉各虫态的形态特征,幼虫的筑穴、捕食、蜕皮、化蛹、羽化以及成虫的捕食、交配等行为习性.     

室内饲养油棕象甲的行为观察

本文研究了油棕最有效的授粉昆虫油棕象甲Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust的成虫交配、产卵行为,并对交配和产卵过程中发生的多种行为进行了描述。结果表明：油棕象甲一次完整的交配过程可以划分为交配前、交配、交配后三个阶段,在交配过程中雄虫会发生多次插入授精。油棕象甲一次完整的交配过程平均需要43733 s,其中授精前的抱对时间平均为2233 s,交配过程中每次授精插入时间平均为533 s,配后保护时间平均为8567 s。油棕象甲的卵为单产,在一朵油棕雄花内一般只产1粒卵,产卵前雌虫用喙在雄花上制造产卵孔,同时用触角辅助完成。观察油棕象甲幼虫取食和蜕皮等行为。     

Spider predators of lepidopteran eggs in south Texas field crops

Observations were made of spiders attacking lepidopteran eggs in south Texas field crops (cotton, corn, and soybean) from 2001 to 2004. Twelve species of spider from seven families were observed feeding on the eggs during the 4 years. These spiders were primarily cursorial hunting spiders, and they were observed feeding on eggs most frequently in cotton, representing 26.6% of all observations in cotton over the 4 years. Spider predation on eggs was proportionally less frequent in corn and soybean with 6.3% and 15.4% of observed predation in those crops, respectively. Four species of spider were responsible for 86.1% of the predation by spiders. The anyphaenid Hibana futilis (Banks) was the spider most frequently observed feeding on lepidopteran eggs during the 4 years of this study, constituting 45.1% of all spiders observed. Grammonota texana Banks (Linyphiidae), Hibana arunda Platnick (Anyphaenidae), and Cheiracanthium inclusum (Hentz) (Miturgidae) were the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th most frequently observed spiders constituting 15.6%, 12.8%, and 11.7% of all spiders observed, respectively. Most spiders represented taxa that are known to forage without a web. However, G. texana was observed feeding on eggs independent of a web, which is uncharacteristic of linyphiids. Other cursorial hunting spiders feeding on eggs included members of the Clubionidae, Corrinnidae, and Salticidae. Ninety-eight percent of all observations of egg predation by spiders were nocturnal; only the Salticidae were diurnal. It is likely that previous studies of predation in crops have vastly underestimated the importance of spiders as predators of lepidopteran eggs due to inadequate evaluation of nocturnal predation.     

Feeding behaviour of the bats Nycteris grandis and Nycteris thebaica (Nycteridae) in captivity

The feeding and hunting behaviour of Nycteris grandis and N. thebaica was observed in captivity at the Sengwa Wildlife Research Area in Zimbabwe in January and February 1982. Both species preferentially selected katydids and beetles over moths, and relied heavily on acoustic stimuli emanating from prey to detect targets. Nycteris grandis readily consumed frogs and bats and appeared not to use the calls of male frogs or the echolocation calls of other bats to locate prey. Both species produced echolocation calls during attacks on prey, increasing the rates of pulse repetition as they closed with targets and suggesting the use of echolocation in hunting. The echolocation calls of N. grandis are described along with general observations of the behaviour of both species.     

Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) abundance and protected areas in central-southern Spain: why they do not match?

European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), a keystone species in the Iberian Mediterranean ecosystem, are the staple prey of the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) and the Spanish imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti). These predators require medium to high rabbit densities and a low degree of human disturbance. We compared rabbit abundances in areas of central-southern Spain under three levels of protection and management: protected areas, intensively managed (nonprotected) hunting estates, and other nonprotected areas. We used pellet abundance indices to estimate rabbit density in 118 surveys conducted during the summers of 2002 and 2003. We observed greater rabbit abundance in intensively managed hunting estates compared to protected areas and other nonprotected areas, perhaps because policy makers did not consider rabbit numbers when selecting priority areas. Alternatively, differences in game management practices (e.g., predator control or habitat management) may explain the higher rabbit densities observed in managed hunting estates. Our results suggest that the best feeding conditions for the Iberian lynx and the Spanish imperial eagle occur in intensively managed hunting areas, where such predators are frequently persecuted. The conservation of these endangered predators may require efforts to increase rabbit densities in protected areas.     

A field study of the ecology and behavior of the black-mantle tamarin (Saguinus nigricollis)

The author made an ecological study of the black-mantle tamarin (Saguinus nigricollis) in the primary forest in the basin of the River Caquetá in the upper Amazon in Colombia for 88 days during a study period from August 1975 to February 1976. The tamarin group repeats three activity patterns — feeding, resting, and moving — regularly in a day. In their feeding activity, the tamarins preferred to eat small insect and resin. They showed a special liking for large grasshoppers, 6–8 cm long, and spent much of the day to capture them. Moving in search of the grasshoppers, which are hard to capture in the forest, is closely related to the tamarin group's daily nomadism. From this evidence it can be concluded that the behavior which forms the basis of the tamarins' daily activity is the hunting of grasshoppers. In the transition time from the feeding activity, principally the hunting of grasshoppers, to the resting activity, a fruit eating behavior was always observed. At this time the tamarins ate well-ripened sweet fruit intensively for a short time. This behavior is thought to have the effect, in one respect, of easing strained relations arising among group members during the grasshopper hunting activity. It was also observed that mother tamarins shared their hard-to-capture grasshoppers with their offspring although the latter had already become independent of their mothers. In general, the tamarins lived in a small and compact group consisting of an adult male, an adult female, and their offspring. Some of these small groups had amicable interrelationships and often moved together, whereas other groups kept aloof from each other. These facts indicate that, besides the groups as the social units, large-groups comprising some of these unit groups moving together, exist in the social structure of the tamarins, and form the upper structure of the social unit. See the note added to the end of this article.     

Hunting success of lions affected by the moon's phase in a wooded habitat

Variation in moonlight affects foraging, hunting and vigilance behaviours in many nocturnal species. Here, we explore the effect of moonlight on the movement and hunting behaviour of African lions. Previous studies found bright moonlight is associated with reduced hunting success; however, those studies were largely undertaken in open habitats where predators are easily seen by prey species on moonlit nights. In this study, we explored whether moonlight affected hunting behaviour and success in a largely wooded environment. Measures of short‐term lion movements (distance moved, displacement and path tortuosity) derived from GPS telemetry data were used as indicators of movement behaviour. Field observations of belly distension were used to assess recent food intake. Lions had greater belly distension (indicating feeding success) on dark nights. However, this change in feeding success was not reflected by lion movement patterns—there was no evidence that these changed across moon phases. There was no evidence that lions used more covered habitats on brighter nights to facilitate concealment.     

Choosing where to feed: the influence of competition on feeding behaviour of cod, Gadus morhua L.

Groups of cod, Gadus morhua L, presented with two feeding patches with a food abundance ratio of 2:1, distributed themselves between the patches in a ratio of 2.5:1. This is slightly higher than the 2:1 ratio predicted by the ideal free distribution theory. Large differences were observed in competitive ability between individual fish. A strong correlation was found between feeding success of individuals and time spent in a feeding patch. The more successful competitors caught about 2.5 times as many food items in the rich patch as in the poor patch. The less successful competitors caught an equal amount of food in both patches. All competitors, however, spent significantly more time in the rich patch. These results suggest that hunting success is the most important factor in assessing patch quality. However, it is not the only parameter which cod use in deciding where to feed.     

First evidence of prey capture and meat eating by wild Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys Rhinopithecus bieti in Yunnan,China

Most extant nonhuman primates occasionally prey on fast-moving, warm-blooded animals; however, Indriidae, Lepilemuridae, and Colobinae either scavenged for meat or did not eat meat at all. Here we report six cases of animal consumption by the snub-nosed monkey Rhinopithecus bieti in a wild, habituated group between 2004 and 2009 in Yunnun, China. At present,only males in an all-male unit within the study group were involved in active hunting. Such a male-biased activity may be related to the group structure and spatial spread of R. bieti. Two females were observed eating freshly killed birds. The findings confirmed that R. bieti engaged in scavenging and, when hunting, employed a cranio-cervical bite to kill their prey. Meat eating is likely a nutrient maximization feeding strategy in R. bieti, especially in males. A begging behavior occurred after successful prey capture. Although begging was observed, no sharing of the meat was seen. The present findings illuminate the dietary diversity of R. bieti and their ability to expand their dietary spectrum.     

Behavioral evidence of hunting and foraging techniques by a top predator suggests the importance of scavenging for preadults

Scavenging may be a regular feeding behavior for some facultative raptor species occupying low quality habitats and/or with little experience in hunting techniques. However, its importance has been largely underestimated due to methodological limitations in identifying the real proportion in the diet. Here, through direct observations, we assessed the hunting and foraging success of the threatened Spanish imperial eagle Aquila adalberti determining the influence of age, sex, breeding status, habitat quality, prey type, and landscape characteristics. From 465 observations, Spanish imperial eagles used hunting in flight (42%), scavenging (30%), hunting from a perch (16%) and kleptoparasitism (12%). Our model suggests that Prey size and Prey type best explain hunting success, followed by Landscape and Sex. Our findings suggest that Spanish imperial eagles increase hunting success with age, with scavenging and kleptoparasitism regularly used as juveniles. The absence of relationships with any of the variables considered suggests that kleptoparasitism is an opportunistic behavior used sporadically. Scavenging is also independent of habitat quality and landscape characteristics. Accordingly, low prey density is not a driver of carrion use for preadult individuals, suggesting that a lack of hunting ability obliges this age‐class to use this alternative feeding technique regularly. As a result, the threatened Spanish imperial eagle population is also prone to mortality related to the illegal use of poison baits and, potentially, veterinary drugs (i.e., diclofenac).     

Co-operative Group Predation in a Sit-and-wait Cheyletid Mite

The Cheyletidae is a family of trombidiform mites with more than 100 predatory and parasitic species. The cheyletid Hemicheyletia morii Ehara is a predatory species occurring on leaves of tropical trees. Observations on the life history and behaviour of this species revealed a new type of sit-and-wait predacious tactic and a sociality previously unknown in Acari. In addition, nest cleaning by a member of the colony was observed. Our results show that this species possesses subsociality. These results are remarkable as group living, co-operative hunting and feeding are rare phenomena in this subclass. Furthermore, the occurrence of thelytoky observed suggests the importance of kin selection.