A note on the relationship between outbreaks of the oriental tussock moth,Euproctis flava and weather conditions

A relationship between outbreaks of the oriental tussock moth, Euproctis flava, in Akita Prefecture and weather conditions have been analyzed in the present paper. The results obtained are summarized as follows: Outbreaks were, in most cases, observed at intervals of 7–9 years, and the population fluctuation was considered to be regular, when small rises of population density were taken into consideration. The condition of low temperature and decreased percentage of sunny hours in spring and summer has a great influence upon the occurrence of outbreaks, and a big outbreak seems to come when a peak of the intrinsic population fluctuation occurs just simultaneously with such a weather condition.     

Estimation of BTEX in groundwater by using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Advanced analytical modern technology such as coupling a gas chromatography to a mass spectrometric technique provides sufficient information to the environmental and analytical chemists to identify the presence of a variety of components of the specific volatile organic product, determine the degree of the product weathering and in some instances estimate the age of the product as well in the testing sample. In this study, we estimated BTEX in groundwater sample by using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) after standardization of this technique for advancement towards purification check of water samples in the petro-polluted regions of the soil.     

Nest preference and ecology of cavity-nesting bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) in Punjab,Pakistan

Among bees, 85 % are solitary species, most of them are ground-nester and some are cavity-nesting and construct their nests in pre-existing cavities. This work was conducted to evaluate the substrate preference and nest architecture (acceptance, occupation percentage, seasonality and parasitism) of cavity-nesting bees in different substrates. Trap nests offered comprised five different materials (drilled cavities in wood, bamboo, cardboard tubes, plastic soda straws, and mud blocks). These were installed in four districts for two years. The nesting cavities of five different diameters (6, 8, 10, 12 and 14 mm) were provided in each nesting material with an average length of 180 ± 9.92 mm. In all the materials, 5400 nesting cavities were offered, out of which 628 were colonized by bees from two families (Megachilidae and Apidae) and six species (Megachile cephalotes, M. lanata, M. bicolor, Xylocopa basalis, X. fenestrata and Ceratina smaragdula), including one parasitic bee (Euaspis carbonaria). The bee species differed significantly in occupying five nesting materials. The most preferred diameters were 8 mm and 10 mm, with 52.20% and 29.45% of colonization, respectively. Nesting was done throughout the year except in winter. This study will serve as a baseline for future studies and conservation programs of cavity-nesting bees in Pakistan.