Juvenile hormone regulation on the flight capability of Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae)

The oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae), is considered a major economic threat in many regions worldwide. In order to better understand the flight capacity of B. dorsalis and its physiological basis, the functions and regulatory roles of juvenile hormone (JH) in the flight muscle of B. dorsalis were studied under a controlled environment. JH titer of B. dorsalis varied with age and sex. Females have higher JH titers and better flight capabilities than males, given that the increase in JH also corresponded to the ovarian development and maturation in females. The flight duration and distance of both males and females increased with the gradual increase of JH titer after adult emergences. Both JH titer and flight capability peaked in 15-d-old adult and declined subsequently with age. Flight activity stimulated the production of JH as adults flown for 24 h on the flight mills have the highest JH titers compare to adults flown on shorter flight durations. Adults treated with 0.5 µg and 5 µg of JH III were able to fly long durations and long distances, nevertheless when JH titer was too low or too high, it would restrict the flight ability of the fly. The mutual reinforcement of JH and flight activity provides fundamental understanding on the physiological aspects of the flight capability and dispersal, which facilitates strategies for the long-term control of this destructive pest.     

Pathogens of the bark beetle Ips cembrae: microsporidia and gregarines also known from other Ips species

The objective of the current study was to identify pathogens of the large larch bark beetle, Ips cembrae, which is a secondary pest that has produced several local outbreaks across Europe in recent years. Beetles were collected from pheromone traps, trap trees and emergence traps (Larix decidua) during 2007 to 2011 at 10 study sites in central Europe. A total of 3379 mature and callow beetles were examined with a light microscope, and only two microsporidian pathogens [Chytridiopsis typographi and a diplokaryotic microsporidium (probably Nosema sp.)] and two gregarines (Gregarina typographi and Mattesia schwenkei) were found. Within the I. cembrae populations, the infection rate for C. typographi ranged from 2 to 58%. Nosema sp. occurred in only two beetles in 2007 (at two study sites). G. typographi was recorded only in Austria and Croatia and only in 1–2% of the beetles in those countries. Mattesia schwenkei was observed solely in Croatia in 0.6% of the beetles in that country. Only one fungal pathogen in the genus Fusarium was found and only in two mature beetles (0.7%) in 2010. The pathogen species found during our study of I. cembrae were very similar to the pathogens previously identified for Ips typographus. No species‐specific pathogen was detected.     

THE MORPHOLOGY OF MATURE LARVAE OF THREE ENNOMINAE SPECIES IN KOREA (LEPIDOPTERA: GEOMETRIDAE)

Abstract The larval external morphologies of Ectropis crepuscularia (Denis & Schiffermüller), Zamacra juglan-siaria (Graeser) and Phigalia verecundaria (Leech) of Ennominae are described and illustrated.     

Effect of six sugars on the longevity,oviposition performance and nutrition accumulation in an endoparasitoid,Meteorus pulchricornis (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)

The effects of six sugar resources (fructose, glucose, sucrose, trehalose, raffinose and honey) on the longevity, oviposition performance and nutrition levels of Meteorus pulchricornis, a thelytokous larval endoparasitoid of the common cutworm Spodoptera litura were examined under laboratory conditions. Female adults of M. pulchricornis fed 1 M fructose, glucose, trehalose or sucrose solutions survived longer than those fed on other sugar solutions or water. When provided with honey or sucrose solutions, the female parasitoids laid more offspring than those fed other sugar diets or the control. The body size of offspring driven from honey-, fructose-, sucrose-, and glucose-fed females, along with water-fed group, were larger than the trehalose- and raffinose-fed females. However, the emergence rates of all offspring generated from different sugars- and water-fed females were similar. When separately given honey, sucrose or fructose, M. pulchricornis females accumulated fructose at a higher level than the other groups. Parasitoid wasps fed trehalose solution accumulated the highest level of total sugar. Glycogen levels and lipid content were highest at emergence and then decreased across all diets. In addition, females fed on trehalose had the highest level of glycogen compared to other sugar diets and water control regardless of emergency level. Females fed trehalsoe, fructose, and glucose solutions had a higher level of lipid than those fed other sugar solutions and water at life end. The outcome of this study can benefit both laboratory rearing and management interventions that improve sugar sources for the parasitoid in the field.     

Presence of the endosymbiont Wolbachia among some fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) from Iran: A multilocus sequence typing approach

Wolbachia is a widespread endosymbiont of insects with a diverse range of biological effects on its hosts. We studied the prevalence of Wolbachia in some important species of tephritids in Iran. Among different populations of five fruit fly species, Dacus ciliatus (cucurbit fly), Rhagoletis cerasi (cherry fruit fly), Ceratitis capitata (Mediterranean fruit fly), Myiopardalis pardalina (melon fly) and Carypomya vesuviana (jujube fly), two species, R. cerasi and C. vesuviana, showed infection with separate Wolbachia strains, namely wCer6 and wVes1, respectively. C. vesuviana is introduced here as a novel host for Wolbachia. Genotyping of Wolbachia strains in 12 populations of five fruit fly species, using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and the wsp gene sequence showed the occurrence of two new strains as well as a new strain type (ST) belonging to the A supergroup. On the basis of the results of this study, 12 barcodes under five species of Iranian tephritids have been added to the database of DNA barcodes. Inter- and intra-specific differences among COI sequences showed a clear gap in barcoding among most fruit flies.     

Life history parameters of three phytophagous spider mites,Tetranychus piercei,T. truncatus and T. bambusae (Acari: Tetranychidae)

Tetranychus piercei McGregor and Tetranychus truncatus Ehara are major pests of many crops in Bangladesh, while Tetranychus bambusae Wang and Ma is found only on plants in the family Bambusaceae. We compared the development, survivorship, and life table parameters of T. piercei and T. truncatus on bean leaves and of T. bambusae on bamboo leaves at 25 °C, 60–70% RH and a photoperiod of 16:8 h (light:dark). The development times of T. piercei and T. truncatus from eggs to adult females were 10.2 and 8.8 days, respectively, when fed on bean leaves, while it took 9.5 days for T. bambusae feeding on Bambusa sp. leaves to develop from eggs to adult females. Mated T. piercei, T. truncatus, and T. bambusae females laid 186.9, 132.5, and 46.3 eggs on average over oviposition periods averaging 22.3, 13.5, and 20.2 days, respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase (r_m) was 0.275 for T. piercei, 0.301 for T. truncatus, and 0.182 for T. bambusae; meanwhile the net reproductive rate (R₀) was 114.5/female for T. piercei, 101.9/female for T. truncatus, and 25.4/female for T. bambusae. The doubling time (t_D) was lowest in T. truncatus (2.3 days) compare to T. piercei (2.5 days) and T. bambusae (3.8 days). The two polyphagous Tetranychus mites collected in Bangladesh were found to share similar life table parameters with Tetranychus mites from various other regions irrespective of food sources. This is the first report of the life table parameters of T. bambusae reared on bamboo leaves.     

Ground beetle community in suburban Satoyama — A case study on wing type and body size under small scale management

A Satoyama landscape is an important reservoir of biodiversity; however, in post-industrial era traditional Satoyama management became economically unfeasible.To maintain Satoyama, labor-saving management styles have begun to be implemented. In contrast to the traditional styles based on labor-intensive practices such as rotational tree clear-cutting, the labor-saving styles consist mainly in tree thinning and ground vegetation cutting within a small spatial range. The consequences of this new approach are unclear, and our study aimed at filling this gap in our knowledge by analyzing the effects of small scale management on ground beetle community in suburban Satoyama (Kashiwa city, central Japan). We applied labor-saving management at limited spatial range, and sampled and analyzed ground beetles both before and after management. Cluster analysis revealed three groups of beetle assemblages, corresponding to three habitats: forest, bamboo stand and grassland. Comparison of wing traits showed that, before management, brachypterous beetles dominated forest plots and macropterous beetles were more prominent in the grassland plot, while in the bamboo stand both types of wing morphology were evenly represented. This trend can be linked to habitat structural stability driven by vegetation regeneration cycles which reflect dominant plant longevity. After management, macroptery increased in all three habitats. Probably, habitat disturbance created by vegetation management gave advantage to macropterous beetles over brachypterous beetles. These results suggest that wing type can be linked to vegetation structural stability. In some species, decline in abundance was accompanied with decline in body size. Our study shows that small scale Satoyama management can have pronounced effects on beetle assemblages.     

Revision of the genus Hemisaprinus Kryzhanovskij, 1976 (Coleoptera,Histeridae, Saprininae)

The monophyletic genus Hemisaprinus Kryzhanovskij in Kryzhanovskij & Reichardt, 1976 is revised herein. All three species Hemisaprinus subvirescens (Ménétries, 1832), H. lutshniki (Reichardt, 1941) and H. cyprius (Dahlgren, 1981) are found to be correctly assigned to the genus and their monophyly is supported by the synapomorphy of the presence of prosternal foveae. The three species are re-described and supplemented with colour photographs as well as SEM micrographs outlining their differences. Male genitalia drawing of H. subvirescens and H. lutshniki are provided and a key to the species is given. Hemisaprinus subvirescens (Ménétries, 1832) is newly reported from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Jordan, Cyprus and Mongolia. The lectotypes and paralectotypes of the following species are designated herein: Saprinus foveisternus Schmidt, 1884, Saprinus syriacus Marseul, 1855 and Saprinus viridulus Marseul, 1855.