Vacuum cleaning for conservationists: a new method for inventory of Osmoderma eremita (Scop., 1763) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) and other inhabitants of hollow trees in Natura 2000 areas

Recording the insect species of hollow trees, particularly in larger cavities, presents a major methodological challenge. A whole range of endangered saproxylic beetles and other wood-inhabiting species live together in this habitat. In order to conduct preliminary surveys and monitor populations of the hermit beetle (Osmoderma eremita) in Natura 2000 areas designated for nature conservation according to the EU Habitats Directive, a vacuum cleaner has been used for the first time. Sampling of 127 trees with cavities revealed 39 trees in which O. eremita was present and for which submission of a report is mandatory. A total of 35 species was found, including 17 species in the German red data book as well as six species which are classified as relict species of ancient woodland. The method has therefore proved itself to be very appropriate and is now routinely used in southern Germany.     

Do the amount of sex pheromone and frequency of calling behavior in females affect the mate-searching behavior of males in <Emphasis Type=Italic>Dasylepida ishigakiensis</Emphasis> (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)?

The white grub beetle Dasylepida ishigakiensis Niijima et Kinoshita (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is a serious sugarcane pest on the Miyako Islands, Okinawa, Japan. Because this beetle stays underground for most of its lifetime, mating disruption using a synthetic sex pheromone has been suggested as a promising control measure. The amount of pheromone (2-butanol) released by the females is known to decrease drastically as they repeat calling each day. In this study, we determined the response of males to different concentrations of (R)-2-butanol, both in the laboratory and in the field. Males showed typical pre-mating behaviors and they were attracted to (R)-2-butanol even at a concentration 1/100 of the amount typically emitted by a female during the 1st period of calling. We examined whether female attractiveness to males was reduced with the frequency of calling, by counting the number of males attracted to females that had called during zero to five periods beforehand. Our results indicated that a high level of female attractiveness was maintained even after three periods of calling. Based on these findings, we propose that releasing synthetic sex pheromone shortly before the start of the mating season and into the late mating season may be optimal for disrupting the mating of this beetle.     

First detection of a human astrovirus type 8 in a child with diarrhea in Belém, Brazil: comparison with other strains worldwide and identification of possible three lineages

This study describes the genetic relationships of the first human astrovirus type-8 (HAstV-8) detected in Belém-Brazil, during a public hospital-based study. This strain was compared with other HAstV-8 strains identified elsewhere which have sequences available at GeneBank. The regions ORF1a (primers Mon348/Mon340) and ORF2 (primers Mon269/Mon270) were analyzed by nucleotide sequencing and a high similarity rate was observed among the Belém strain and other HAstV-8 strains. In ORF1a, homology values of 93-100% were detected, and in ORF2 96-99%. Considering the sequence variation (7%) observed in ORF2 region, it was suggested that HAstV-8 strains could be divided in three different lineages.     

“A Résumé for the Baby”: Biosocial Precarity and Care of Substance-Using,Pregnant Women in San Francisco

Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry - In the United States, the historical condemnation and punitive legal consequences of substance use during pregnancy—ranging from incarceration to...     

Could research in the native range, and non-target host range in Australia, have helped predict host range of the parasitoid Microctonus aethiopoides Loan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a biological control agent introduced for Sitona discoideus Gyllenhal (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in New Zealand?

It is generally accepted that knowledge of the natural and novel host range of proposed biological control agents can help to inform predictions of potential host range in new areas of introduction. To test this hypothesis, this paper describes a retrospective study conducted to contrast and compare the natural host range of Microctonus aethiopoides Loan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) with its novel host range found in Australia and New Zealand, where it has been introduced to control the adult stage of the weevil Sitona discoideus Gyllenhal (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a pest of lucerne. Surveys carried out in and near lucerne crops in Morocco and Australia each resulted in collections of over 3,000 weevils, of which respectively 84?% and 93?% were S. discoideus. The host ranges determined from these surveys for each M. aethiopoides population were then compared with information already available for field host range in New Zealand. In Morocco, species in the genera Sitona and Charagmus (Curculionidae: Entiminae: Sitonini) and Hypera (Curculionidae: Hyperinae: Hyperini) were found to be parasitised by M. aethiopoides. In Australia, an earlier record of non-target parasitism of ‘Prosayleus’ sp. 2 (Curculionidae: Entiminae: Leptopiini) is still the only known instance of non-target parasitism by M. aethiopoides. The known non-target field host range in New Zealand is much greater, comprising 19 native and introduced weevil species mainly in the subfamily Entiminae (tribe Leptopiini) but also in Curculioninae, Cyclominae and Lixinae. This is discussed in the context of predictions that could have been made at the time of introduction 30?years ago had the Moroccan and Australian data, modern molecular technologies and current understanding of weevil classification been available. The absence of Leptopiini in Morocco and the record of a native Australian leptopiine host could have indicated that native weevils in this tribe in New Zealand might be at risk of attack by M. aethiopoides.