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The ant genus Temnothorax is one of the most diverse in the Palearctic region, comprising several species with different life histories and uncertain taxonomic backgrounds. Socially parasitic Temnothorax ant species were typically described decades ago, primarily based on traditional morphological traits. In some aspects, these species have come back into the spotlight in recent years, necessitating a comprehensive taxonomic revision of the species of the genus. In this paper, we present a quantitative morphology-based taxonomic revision of the Temnothorax corsicus species group (formerly called Myrmoxenus genus) based on the analysis of 20 continuous morphometric traits collected from 394 worker and 19 traits from 473 gyne individuals belonging to 240 samples. Based on morphometric analyses, we propose junior synonymy for Temnothorax tamarae (Arnol'di, 1968) under T. ravouxi (André, 1896), and T. microcellatus (Soudek, 1925) is revived and is considered a senior synonym of T. menozzii (Finzi, 1924). Detailed descriptions, measurements, distribution, and host usage of all ten species are given. Dichotomous keys to workers, known gynes, and photographs of all species are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolution of convergent phenotypes is of major interest in biology because of their omnipresence and ability to inform the study of evolutionary novelty and constraint. Convergent phenotypes can be combinations of traits that evolve concertedly, called syndromes, and these can be shaped by a common environmental pressure. Parasitoid wasps which use a wide variety of arthropod hosts have also repeatedly and convergently switched host use across their evolutionary history. They thus represent a natural laboratory for the evolution of trait syndromes that are associated with parasitism of specific hosts and host substrates. In this study, we tested the evolution of co-evolving characters in the highly diverse family Ichneumonidae associated with ovipositing in a specific and well-defined substrate: wood. Using a newly constructed phylogeny and an existing morphological dataset, we identified six traits correlated with the wood-boring lifestyle that demonstrate convergent evolution. At least one trait, the presence of teeth on the ovipositor, typically preceded the evolution of other traits and possibly the switch to parasitism of wood-boring hosts. For each trait, we provide a historical review of their associations with wood-boring parasitoids, reevaluate the function of some characters, and suggest future coding improvements. Overall, we demonstrate the convergent evolution of multiple traits associated with parasitism of woodboring hosts and propose a syndrome in a hyper diverse lineage of parasitoid wasps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Species richness is one of the fundamental metrics of biodiversity. Estimating species richness helps spotlight taxonomic groups that are particularly under-studied, such as the highly diverse Darwin wasps. The only available estimate of the number of Darwin wasps in the Afrotropics proposed almost 11,000 species, compared to the 2,322 recorded species. However, it relied exclusively on the ratio of morphospecies to described species in Henry Townes' personal collection. We provide an updated estimate of the Afrotropical Darwin wasp species, using empirical data from multiple sources, including the increase in species numbers following generic revisions, morphospecies sorting in natural history collections, and diversity patterns of better-studied insects (butterflies) for extrapolation. Our analyses suggest that our knowledge of Darwin wasps is highly incomplete, with only 13–22% of species known in the five most extensively studied countries in the Afrotropics. We estimate 9,206–15,577 species of Darwin wasps within the entire Afrotropics, with the highest concentration expected in the Equatorial Afrotropics and Madagascar. Due to data constraints, our approach tends to underestimate diversity at each step, rendering the upper estimate (15,577 species) more realistic. We highlight reasons contributing to the gap between recorded and estimated species richness, including logistical and financial factors, as well as post-colonial influences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vanilla planifolia is native to the Mexican tropics. Despite its worldwide economic importance as a source of vanilla for flavoring and other uses, almost all vanilla is produced by expensive hand-pollination, and minimal documentation exists for its natural pollination and floral visitors. There is a claim that vanilla is pollinated by Melipona stingless bees, but vanilla is more likely pollinated by orchid bees. Natural pollination has not been tested in the Yucatán region of Mexico, where both vanilla and potential native bee pollinators are endemic. We document for the first time the flowering process, nectar production and natural pollination of V. planiflora, using bagged flower experiments in a commercial planting. We also assessed the frequency and visitation rates of stingless bees and orchid bees on flowers. Our results showed low natural pollination rates of V. planifolia (~ 5%). Only small stingless bees (Trigona fulviventris and Nannotrigona perilampoides) were seen on flowers, but no legitimate visits were witnessed. We verified that there were abundant Euglossa and fewer Eulaema male orchid bees around the vanilla plants, but neither visited the flowers. The introduction of a colony of the stingless bee Melipona beecheii and the application of chemical lures to attract orchid bees failed to induce floral visitations. Melipona beecheii, and male orchid bees of Euglossa viridissima and E. dilemma may not be natural pollinators of vanilla, due to lack of attraction to flowers. It seems that the lack of nectar in V. planifolia flowers reduces the spectrum of potential pollinators. In addition, there may be a mismatch between the attractiveness of vanilla floral fragrances to the species of orchid bees registered in the studied area. Chemical studies with controlled experiments in different regions would be important to further elucidate the potential pollinators of vanilla in southern Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Niche evolution refers to the process by which species undergo changes in ecological interactions, as well as their ability to disperse over time. Our study focuses on the widely distributed neotropical genus of social wasps, Synoeca (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Epiponini). We use ecological niche modeling to investigate the niche evolution of this insects, to explore how species have evolved within and across distinct environmental boundaries, as well as to explore the overlap, equivalence, and similarity between their niches. Our analysis of Predicted Niche Occupancy reveals that species occupy heterogeneous niches in relation to temperature, precipitation, and altitude, similar to the patterns observed in the analysis of the evolutionary history of climate tolerances, which shows that species have evolved to occupy distinct niche ranges. In addition, our niche comparisons indicate that the species do not share similar niches with each other. All these results suggest that Phylogenetic Niche Conservatism may be playing a significant role as a process contributing to the allopatric pattern observed in this genus. This study represents the first investigation of niche evolution in Vespidae, providing valuable insights for future research into the evolutionary dynamics of insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Formica is a large genus in the family Formicidae with high diversity in its distribution, morphology, and physiology. To better understand evolutionary characteristics of Formica, the complete mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) of two Formica species were determined and a comparative mitogenomic analysis for this genus was performed. The two newly sequenced Formica mitogenomes each included 37 typical mitochondrial genes and a large non-coding region (putative control region), as observed in other Formica mitogenomes. Base composition, gene order, codon usage, and tRNA secondary structure were well conserved among Formica species, whereas diversity in sequence size and structural characteristics was observed in control regions. We also observed several conserved motifs in the intergenic spacer regions. These conserved genomic features may be related to mitochondrial function and their highly conserved physiological constraints, while the diversity of the control regions may be associated with adaptive evolution among heterogenous habitats. A negative AT-skew value on the majority chain was presented in each of Formica mitogenomes, indicating a reversal of strand asymmetry in base composition. Strong codon usage bias was observed in Formica mitogenomes, which was predominantly determined by nucleotide composition. All 13 mitochondrial protein-coding genes of Formica species exhibited molecular signatures of purifying selection, as indicated by the ratio of non-synonymous substitutions to synonymous substitutions being less than 1 for each protein-coding gene. Phylogenetic analyses based on mitogenomic data obtained fairly consistent phylogenetic relationships, except for two Formica species that had unstable phylogenetic positions, indicating mitogenomic data are useful for constructing phylogenies of ants. Beyond characterizing two additional Formica mitogenomes, this study also provided some key evolutionary insights into Formica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In insects, the innate immune system is subdivided into cellular and humoral defenses. When parasitoids attack insects, both reactions can be activated and notably, the phenoloxidase (PO) cascade and lytic activity are part of both cellular and humoral defenses. However, to our knowledge, no study has characterized any immune response of the whitefly Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) to the attack of Eretmocerus eremicus (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae). Therefore, the first objective of the present study was to determine whether whitefly nymphs recently parasitized by E. eremicus exhibit any immune response. For this, we estimate the level of prophenoloxidase (proPO), phenoloxidase (PO), and lytic activity by colorimetric assays. A second objective was to assess whether the observed whitefly immune response could be related to a previously reported preference of the predator Geocoris punctipes (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae) for non-parasitized nymphs. We therefore offered non-parasitized and recently parasitized nymphs to the predator. Our results show that parasitism of whitefly nymphs by E. eremicus induced a highly estimated level of proPO and PO, and a lower level of lytic activity. In addition, we found that G. punctipes did not show a preference for non-parasitized over recently parasitized nymphs. The nymphs of T. vaporariorum activated the PO pathway against E. eremicus; however, the increase in proPO and PO levels was traded-off with decreased lytic activity. In addition, the previously reported preference for non-parasitized nymphs was not seen in our experiments, indicating that the induced immune response did not affect predator behavior by G. punctipes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pteromalidae and Eulophidae are predominant and abundant taxa within Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera: Apocrita). These taxa are found in diverse ecosystems, ranging from basin deserts (200 m) to alpine grasslands (4500 m). Mitochondria, cellular powerhouses responsible for energy production via oxidative phosphorylation, are sensitive to various environmental factors such as extreme cold, hypoxia, and intense ultraviolet radiation characteristic of alpine regions. Whether the molecular evolution of mitochondrial genes in these parasitoids corresponds to changes in the energy requirements and alpine environmental adaptations remains unknown. In this study, we performed a comparative analysis of mitochondrial protein-coding genes from 11 alpine species of Pteromalidae and Eulophidae, along with 18 lowland relatives, including 16 newly sequenced species. We further examined the codon usage preferences (RSCU, ENC-GC3s, neutrality, and PR2 bias plot) in these mitochondrial protein-coding sequences and conducted positive selection analysis based on their Bayesian phylogenetic relationships, and identified positive selection sites in the ATP6, ATP8, COX1, COX3, and CYTB genes, emphasizing the crucial role of mitochondrial gene adaptive evolution in the adaptation of Pteromalidae and Eulophidae to alpine environments. The phylogenetically independent contrast (PIC) analysis results verified the ω ratio of 13 PCGs from Pteromalidae and Eulophidae increased with elevation, and results from generalized linear model confirm that ATP6, ATP8, COX3, and ND1 are closely correlated with temperature-related environmental factors. This research not only enriched the molecular data of endemic alpine species but also underscores the significance of mitochondrial genes in facilitating the adaptation of these minor parasitoids to plateau habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species of encyrtid wasp, Ooencyrtus pitosina Polaszek, Noyes & Fusu sp. n., (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae: Encyrtinae) is described as a gregarious parasitoid in the eggs of the endemic Samoan swallowtail butterfly Papilio godeffroyi (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) in the Samoan archipelago. It is described here because it is an important natural enemy of this butterfly, and to facilitate identification for future work with this parasitoid and its host. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aphelinus mali (Haldeman) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) in China is comprised of two clades (termed, the Shandong and Liaoning clades). In order to clarify the genetic relationship between these two clades, we compared and analyzed the morphological characteristics and the mitochondrial genome of each, and performed a hybridization experiment. Morphological results showed that both males and females of the Liaoning clade were larger than Shandong clade, in terms of whole body, abdominal, wing and antennal lengths, however, there were no significant differences between clades for total length of the middle or hind leg of females. The length of the mitochondrial genome of the Shandong clade was 14415 bp and, for the Liaoning clade, it was 14804 bp. Each contained 31 genes, including 13 protein-encoded genes, 16 tRNA genes, and 2 rRNA genes. The highest AT level among the 13 protein-coding genes for the two clades were the same gene (ATP8) (Shandong clade, 91.52%; Liaoning clade, 90.91%). By hybridization and backcrossing, we found that there was no cross incompatibility between these two clades of A. mali. Our results indicate that the historic geographical isolation between these clades has not yet caused reproductive isolation of these populations, and they belong to the same species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anaphes (Anaphes) flavipes (Foerster), a fairyfly (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) native of Europe, is an economically important egg parasitoid for the natural control of Oulema spp. leaf beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) pests of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rye, and wheat in Europe, and for the classical biological control of the invasive Oulema melanopus (L.) in North America. A morphologically very similar Anaphes (Anaphes) nipponicus Kuwayama, known from mainland China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Far East of Russia and Taiwan, is an egg parasitoid of Oulema oryzae (Kuwayama), a pest of rice mainly in temperate parts of East Asia. The nuclear 28S-D2 and ITS2 and the mitochondrial COI genes were used as markers to compare specimens of A. (Anaphes) flavipes reared from eggs of an Oulema sp. on barley in Germany with those of A. (Anaphes) nipponicus reared from eggs of O. oryzae on rice in Honshu Island, Japan. Because the resulting sequences are practically identical, within an expected intraspecific genetic variability, conspecificity of these two nominal species has been confirmed, and consequently A. (Anaphes) nipponicus Kuwayama, 1932, syn. n. is synonymized with A. (Anaphes) flavipes (Foerster, 1841). Taxonomic notes and illustrations are provided for the specimens of both sexes of A. (Anaphes) flavipes from Japan to facilitate their recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linking fossil species to the extant diversity is often a difficult task, and the correct interpretation of character evidence is crucial for assessing their taxonomic placement. Here, we make use of geometric morphometrics of fore wings to help classify five fossil Darwin wasps from the Early Eocene Fur Formation in Denmark into subfamilies and often tribes. We compile a reference dataset with 342 fore wings of nine extant subfamilies and nine relevant fossil species. Since geometric morphometrics was mostly ignored in the past in Darwin wasp classification, the dataset is first used to examine differences and similarities in wing venation among subfamilies. In a next step, we used the reference dataset to inform the classification of the fossil species, which resulted in the description of one new genus and five new species, Crusopimpla weltii sp. nov., Ebriosa flava gen. et sp. nov., Entypoma? duergari sp. nov., Lathrolestes? zlatorog sp. nov., and Triclistus bibori sp. nov., in four different subfamilies. Carefully assessing data quality, we show that the fore wing venation of fossil Darwin wasps is surprisingly suitable to assign them to a subfamily or even lower taxonomic level, especially when used in conjunction with characters from other parts of the body to narrow down a candidate set of potential subfamilies and tribes. Our results not only demonstrate a fast and useful approach to inform fossil classification but provide a basis for future investigations into evolutionary changes in fore wings of ichneumonids. The high informativeness of wing venation for classification furthermore could be harvested for phylogenetic analyses, which are otherwise often hampered by homoplasy in this parasitoid wasp family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eusociality, where workers typically forfeit their own reproduction to assist their mothers in raising siblings, is a fundamental paradox in evolutionary biology. By sacrificing personal reproduction, helpers pay a significant cost, which must be outweighed by indirect fitness benefits of helping to raise siblings. In 1983, Jon Seger developed a model showing how in the haplodiploid Hymenoptera (ants, wasps and bees), a partially bivoltine life cycle with alternating sex ratios may have promoted the evolution of eusociality. Seger predicted that eusociality would be more likely to evolve in hymenopterans where a foundress produces a male-biased first brood sex ratio and a female-biased second brood. This allows first brood females to capitalize on super-sister relatedness through helping to produce the female-biased second brood. In Seger's model, the key factor driving alternating sex ratios was that first brood males survive to mate with females of both the second and the first brood, reducing the reproductive value of second brood males. Despite being potentially critical in the evolution of eusociality, however, male survivorship has received little empirical attention. Here, we tested whether first brood males survive across broods in the facultatively eusocial sweat bee Halictus rubicundus. We obtained high estimates of survival and, while recapture rates were low, at least 10% of first brood males survived until the second brood. We provide empirical evidence supporting Seger's model. Further work, measuring brood sex ratios and comparing abilities of first and second brood males to compete for fertilizations, is required to fully parameterize the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Isotope analysis has proven useful for understanding diets of animals that are difficult to track for extended periods. Bees are small yet highly mobile and often forage from multiple habitats. However, current methods of assessing diet are limited in scope. Efficient methods of tracking bee diets that integrate across life stages, distinguish habitat use, and are sensitive to taxonomic differences will inform conservation strategies. We evaluated the utility of stable isotope analysis for estimating contributions of adjacent habitats to bees' diets. We also investigated taxonomic variation in bee and flower isotope composition. We measured natural abundance of carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes in two body regions from three wild bee genera, as well as in 25 species of flowers that likely comprised their diets. Bee ∂13C and ∂15N varied with habitat and taxonomic groups (conflated with month), but did not match spatial or seasonal trends in their food plants. Flower ∂13C was lowest in the forest and in April–June, as expected if driven by water availability. However, bee ∂13C was elevated in the spring, likely from overwintering nutritional stress or unpredictable food availability. Bumble bees (Bombus) were enriched in ∂15N compared to others, possibly reflecting differences in larval feeding. Bee diet mixing models had high variation and should be interpreted with caution. Models estimated similar habitat contributions to diets of spring Andrena and overwintered Bombus queens. Summer Bombus queens and workers were indistinguishable. Sweat bees (Halictus) were estimated to use comparatively more field flowers than others. Overall, taxon more strongly influenced isotope composition than either foraging habitat or month, likely because of associated differences in sociality and timing of annual activity. Future studies seeking to reveal bee diets by isotope analysis may gain better resolution in more isotopically distinct habitats, in conjunction with controlled feeding or isotope labeling experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sibling rivalry or brood reduction prevailing within bird nests is effectively avoided in solitary aculeate nests because the larvae of wasps and bees usually develop in each brood cell. However, a solitary wasp species, Isodontia harmandi, allows us to study brood reduction in a communal brood cell, where up to a dozen larvae develop in a group relying on prey provisioned by a female wasp. To demonstrate brood reduction in this species, we collected nests at various developmental brood stages from fields for five years (2010–2015). There was a significant decrease in the brood size between the nests sampled at the egg or hatchling stages and those at later stages when analyzing only data excluding nests that were parasitized, attacked by predators, or containing deteriorated prey. In whole brood-rearing experiments, we also confirmed that brood reduction occurred in 30 of 39 nests during larval stages and in 23 nests after cocoon stage. Larval survival was affected positively by total prey weight and negatively by brood size, though cocoon survival was not affected. A third-quarter (76%) of larval death was identified as sibling cannibalism through observation by time-lapse recording on multi-larvae rearing experiments. Therefore, we conclude that brood reduction routinely occurs as a result of sibling cannibalism in I. harmandi. Additionally, as we could not detect any positive effects of clutch size on the amount of provision, female wasps might overproduce offspring due to the unpredictability of available prey resources. Differences in brood size and reduction among sex categories were undetected, except for parental provisions. Thus, sibling cannibalism may efficiently regulate brood size in communal brood cells under prey shortage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Morphometric and genetic characterization of many Apis mellifera subspecies are well-documented. A. m. jemenetica occurs naturally in Africa and Asia. In this study, genetic variation of mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase II (COII) and III (COIII) were analysed in 133 specimens of the endemic honeybee colonies within Saudi Arabia. The COII gene sequence length was 684 bp comprising nine synonymous (1.3%) and two non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (0.87%). Five variants of COII were not previously documented, one variant (MT755968) showed an extra restriction site when subjected to type II restriction endonuclease from Arthrobacter protophormiae (Apol) or to Haemophilus influenzae Rf (Hinf1). Changes in COII sequence separated samples into three haplogroups. Whereas, COIII gene sequence length was 780 bp, including 18 synonymous and five non-synonymous SNPs. Furthermore, variation in COII sequence was more informative based on restriction profiles and on amino acid changes compared with COIII gene sequence. Variants of COIII showed identical restriction sites when subjected to type II restriction endonuclease from Deinococcus radiophilus (DraI), and revealed high similarity to African subspecies. Results of this study are very useful in understanding genetic diversity and characterization of A. mellifera subspecies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conservation biological control involving the polyphagous aphid parasitoid, Aphidius colemani Viereck, may include provisioning resources from a variety of plant sources. The fitness of adult A. colemani was enhanced with the provision of food resources such as floral nectar from a range of both native and introduced plant species and aphid honeydew under laboratory conditions. However, enhanced fitness appeared to be species specific rather than associated with the whether the plant was a native or an introduced species. Parasitoid survival and fecundity were enhanced significantly in response to the availability of floral nectar and honeydew compared to the response to available extrafloral nectar. These positive effects on the parasitoid's reproductive activity can improve the effectiveness of conservation biological control in nursery production systems because of the abundance and diversity of floral resources within typical production areas. Additionally, surrounding areas of invasive weeds and native vegetation could serve as both floral resources and honeydew food resources for A. colemani.

Leptocybe invasa Fisher et LaSalle is a global invasive pest that seriously damages Eucalyptus plants. Studying the genetic diversity, genetic structure and introgression hybridization of L. invasa in China is of great significance for clarifying the breeding strategy, future invasion and diffusion trends of L. invasa in China and developing scientific prevention and control measures. Genetic diversity and phylogenetic analyses of 320 L. invasa female adults from 14 geographic populations in China were conducted using 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci (SSRs) and mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I gene sequences (COIs). (1) The Bayesian phylogenetic tree and haplotype network diagram showed that only haplotype Hap3 existed in L. invasa lineage B in China, while haplotypes Hap1 and Hap2 existed in lineage A, among which haplotype Hap2 was found for the first time. The nucleotide and haplotype diversities of lineage A were higher than those of lineage B. (2) The SSR genetic diversity of the Wuzhou Guangxi, Ganzhou Jiangxi and Panzhihua Sichuan populations was higher than that of the other 11 populations, and the SSR genetic diversity of lineage A was higher than that of lineage B. (3) The AMOVA analysis of mitochondrial COI data showed that 75.55% of the variation was among populations, and 99.86% of the variation was between lineages, while the AMOVA analysis of nuclear SSR data showed that 35.26% of the variation was among populations, and 47.04% of the variation was between lineages. There were obvious differences in the sources of variation between the COI and SSR data. (4) The optimal K value of COI and SSR data in structure analysis was 2, and PCoA analysis also divided the dataset into two obvious categories. The UPMGA phylogenetic tree based on SSR data clustered 14 geographic species into two groups. The results of genetic structure analysis supported the existence of two lineages, A and B, in China. (5) Structural analysis showed that there was obvious introgressive hybridization in Wuzhou Guangxi, Ganzhou Jiangxi, Panzhihua Sichuan and other populations. These results suggest that lineage introgressive hybridization has occurred in the L. invasa population in China. The introgressive hybridization degree and genetic diversity of lineage A are obviously higher than those of lineage B. Lineage introgressive hybridization may be the driving force for further L. invasa invasion and diffusion in China in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The braconid parasitoid Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is one of the most important natural enemies in classical biological control programs against tephritid fruit flies worldwide. In light of the spread of the invasive fruit fly species, Bactrocera dorsalis in Africa and beyond, there is a need to implement classical biological control. The current study aimed to determine temperature thresholds for D. longicaudata reared on B. dorsalis, using life cycle simulation modeling to guide informed parasitoid releases in Africa. Simulated parameters included thermal requirements, population growth parameters at different temperature requirements, suitable areas for the establishment, and the number of generations per year under projected climatic conditions. The lower thermal threshold for the development was estimated at 10.0°C, with a thermal constant (k) of 333.3-degree days, while the maximum temperature threshold was estimated at 33.69°C. Fecundity was highest at 25°C, with 177.3 eggs per female. Temperature significantly affected the population growth parameters of D. longicaudata, and the maximum value of the intrinsic rate of increase (rm) was 0.145 at 27°C. Results indicate that D. longicaudata could successfully establish in tropical and sub-tropical regions under current and future climatic conditions. However, a slight change in the suitable areas is expected by the year 2050 due to a slight and gradual rise in temperature. Our findings provide important information for further release of this parasitoid in Africa as well as designing pest management strategies to limit the spread and reduce the impact of fruit flies sustainably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The invasion and wide spread of Spodoptera frugiperda represent real impediments to food security and the livelihood of the millions of maize and sorghum farming communities in the sub-Saharan and Sahel regions of Africa. Current management efforts for the pest are focused on the use of synthetic pesticides, which are often economically unviable and are extremely hazardous to the environment. The use of biological control offers a more economically and environmentally safer alternative. In this study, the performance of the recently described parasitoid, Cotesia icipe, against the pest was elucidated. We assessed the host stage acceptability by and suitability for C. icipe, as well as its ovigenic status. Furthermore, the habitat suitability for the parasitoid in the present and future climatic conditions was established using Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) algorithm and the Genetic Algorithm for Rule‐set Prediction (GARP). Cotesia icipe differentially accepted the immature stages of the pest. The female acceptance of 1st and 2nd instar larvae for oviposition was significantly higher with more than 60% parasitism. No oviposition on the egg, 5th and 6th larval instars, and pupal stages was observed. Percentage of cocoons formed, and the number of emerged wasps also varied among the larval stages. At initial parasitism, parasitoid progenies, time to cocoon formation and overall developmental time were significantly affected by the larval stage. Egg-load varied significantly with wasp age, with six-day-old wasps having the highest number of mature eggs. Ovigeny index of C. icipe was 0.53. Based on the models, there is collinearity in the ecological niche of the parasitoid and the pest under current and future climate scenarios. Eastern, Central and parts of coastal areas of western Africa are highly suitable for the establishment of the parasitoid. The geographic distribution of the parasitoid would remain similar under future climatic conditions. In light of the findings of this study, we discuss the prospects for augmentative and classical biological control of S. frugiperda with C. icipe in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fall armyworm (FAW; Spodoptera frugiperda), an exotic moth which recently invaded Africa, is a highly destructive pest of cereals especially maize a highly valued staple crop in Nigeria. The use of natural enemies such as predators or parasitoids for FAW control is more economically viable and environmentally safer than currently recommended synthetic insecticides. Natural enemies to combat the pest have not yet been reported in Nigeria. An exploration for the pests' natural enemies was undertaken by collecting FAW eggs and larvae from maize fields. These were reared in the laboratory for emergence, identification and efficacy as natural enemies. This yielded Euplectrus laphygmae (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae); Telenomus remus (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae) and Trombidium sp. (Acari.: Trombidiidae). Cotesia or Apanteles spp. were inferred to occur since Stictopisthus sp. (Hym.: Ichneumonidae), a secondary parasitoid, that attacks cocoons of Microgasterinae (e.g. Cotesia, Apanteles etc.) also emerged. Species of yet-to-be identified predators were also observed in various niches of maize plants. A positive relationship was found between FAW instar and the number of E. laphygmae eggs/instar ranging, on average, from 1.5 on second instar to 5.5 on fourth instars hosts. Parasitism rate of T. remus on FAW eggs was 100%. Parasitic mite infestation resulted in increasing paleness, reduced feeding, growth and movement as well as death of FAW 1st instars. Thus, the occurrence of FAW natural enemies in Nigeria calls for advocacy campaign to incorporate their use into integrated pest management strategies that attract and allow natural enemies to thrive for FAW management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pomegranate butterfly Deudorix (= Virachola) livia is the major pest of pomegranate, a crop of economic importance, in Oman. A species of parasitoid wasp in the hymenopteran family Scelionidae is responsible for high levels of mortality of its eggs. This wasp is described herein as Telenomus nizwaensis Polaszek sp. n., based on morphology and DNA sequence data. T. nizwaensis is currently known only from D. livia, which is also a pest of economic importance on other crops in North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Mediterranean. We summarise current knowledge of T. nizwaensis life-history and its potential to provide biological pest control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report comprehensive evidence for obligatory thelytokous parthenogenesis in an ant Monomorium triviale. This species is characterized by distinct queen–worker dimorphism with strict reproductive division of labor: queens produce both workers and new queens without mating, whereas workers are completely sterile. We collected 333 nests of this species from 14 localities and three laboratory-reared populations in Japan. All wild queens dissected had no sperm in their spermathecae. Laboratory observation confirmed that virgin queens produced workers without mating. Furthermore, microsatellite genotyping showed identical heterozygous genotypes between mothers and their respective daughters, suggesting an extremely low probability of sexual reproduction. Microbial analysis detected no bacterial genera that are known to induce thelytokous parthenogenesis in Hymenoptera. Finally, the lack of variation in partial sequences of mitochondrial DNA among individuals sampled from across Japan suggests recent rapid spread or selective sweep. M. triviale would be a promising model system of superorganism-like adaptation through comparative analysis with well-studied sexual congeners, including the pharaoh ant M. pharaonis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex are at constant risk of epizootics due to their dense living conditions and frequent social interactions between genetically related individuals. To help mitigate the risk of epizootics, these ants display individual and collective immune responses, including associations with symbiotic bacteria that can enhance their resistance to pathogenic infections. For example, Acromyrmex spp. harbor actinobacteria that control infection by Escovopsis in their fungal gardens. Although Atta spp. do not maintain symbiosis with protective actinobacteria, the evidence suggests that these insects are colonized by bacterial microbiota that may play a role in their defense against pathogens. The potential role of the bacterial microbiome of Atta workers in enhancing host immunity remains unexplored. We evaluated multiple parameters of the individual immunity of Atta cephalotes (Linnaeus, 1758) workers, including hemocyte count, encapsulation response, and the antimicrobial activity of the hemolymph in the presence or absence of bacterial microbiota. Experiments were performed on ants reared under standard conditions as well as on ants previously exposed to the entomopathogenic fungus Metharrizium anisopliae. Furthermore, the effects of the presence/absence of bacteria on the survival of workers exposed to M. anisopliae were evaluated. The bacterial microbiota associated with A. cephalotes workers does not modulate the number of hemocytes under control conditions or under conditions of exposure to the fungal pathogen. In addition, infection by M. anisopliae, but not microbiota, increases the encapsulation response. Similarly, the exposure of workers to this fungus led to increased hemolymph antimicrobial activity. Conversely, the removal of bacterial microbiota did not have a significant impact on the survival of workers with M. anisopliae. Our results suggest that the bacterial microbiota associated with the cuticle of A. cephalotes workers does not play a role as a modulator of innate immunity, either at baseline or after exposure to the entomopathogen M. anisopliae. Further, upon infection, workers rely on mechanisms of humoral immunity to respond to this threat. Overall, our findings indicate that the bacterial microbiota associated with A. cephalotes workers does not play a defensive role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Madagascar, one of the top megadiversity regions, hosts one of the highest numbers of endemic and threatened organisms on earth. One of the most spectacular examples of ant radiation on the island has occurred in the hyperdiverse genus Pheidole. To this date, there are 117 described Madagascan Pheidole divided into 16 species-groups, and 97% of them are endemic to the island. Only two of these species-groups contain widely distributed invasive species in addition to native, endemic taxa: megacephala, and fervens species-groups. Here we revise the fervens species-group and discuss updated distribution records of its introduced members on Madagascar. We recognize six species belonging to this group, including five new to science: Pheidole ampangabe sp. nov., P. arivo sp. nov., P. comosa sp. nov., P. indica Mayr, P. mamirapiratra sp. nov., and P. mena sp. nov. Detailed descriptions are supplemented with measurements, diagnoses, identification key, high-resolution images for major and minor worker, and comments on distribution and biology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A putative male-produced pheromone has recently been described for the global pest of pines, Sirex noctilio, but field-activity has not been demonstrated. This study aimed to investigate the pheromone biology of S. noctilio in more detail. Specifically, we i) analysed effluvia and extracts for additional compounds by gas chromatography coupled with electro-antennographic detection (GC-EAD), mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and two dimensional time of flight mass spectrometry (GC X GC TOF MS), ii) conducted dose-response experiments for putative pheromone components, iii) determined the site of synthesis/ storage of the putative pheromone and iv) determined the release rate of the putative pheromone from males and three types of lures. A blend of four compounds was identified, including the previously described (Z)-3-decenol and (Z)-4-decenol, and two new compounds (Z)-3-octenol and (Z)-3-dodecenol. All compounds elicited a response from both male and female antennae, but the strength of the response varied according to sex, compound and dose tested. (Z)-3-Decenol and (Z)-3-octenol at lower and higher doses, respectively, elicited larger responses in males and females than the other two compounds. (Z)-3-Octenol and (Z)-4-decenol generally elicited larger female than male antennal responses. The site of synthesis and/or storage in males was determined to be the hind legs, likely in the leg-tendon gland. The relative release rate of the major compound by male wasps was shown to be 90 ± 12.4 ng/min, which is between 4 and 15 times greater than that observed from typical lures used previously. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that these compounds may mediate lek formation in S. noctilio males and lek location in females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the same time that molecular researchers are improving techniques to extract DNA from museum specimens, this increased demand for access to museum specimens has created tension between the need to preserve specimens for maintaining collections and morphological research and the desire to conduct molecular analyses. To address these concerns, we examined the suitability of non-invasive DNA extraction techniques on three species of parasitic Hymenoptera (Braconidae), and test the effects of body size (parasitoid species), age (time since collection), and DNA concentration from each extract on the probability of amplifying meaningful fragments of two commonly used genetic loci. We found that age was a significant factor for determining the probability of success for sequencing both 28S and COI fragments. While the size of the braconid parasitoids significantly affected the total amount of extracted DNA, neither size nor DNA concentration were significant factors for the amplification of either gene region. We also tested several primer combinations of various lengths, but were unable to amplify fragments longer than ~150 base pairs. These short fragments of 28S and COI were however sufficient for species identification, and for the discovery of within species genetic variation.

The keyhole wasp (Pachodynerus nasidens Latreille 1812), a mud-nesting wasp native to South and Central America and the Caribbean, is a relatively recent (2010) arrival in Australia. In its native range it is known to use man-made cavities to construct nests. A series of serious safety incidents Brisbane Airport related to the obstruction of vital airspeed measuring pitot probes on aircraft possibly caused by mud-nesting wasps, prompted an assessment of risk. An experiment was designed to determine the species responsible, the types of aircraft most affected, the seasonal pattern of potential risk and the spatial distribution of risk on the airport. A series of replica pitot probes were constructed using 3D-printing technology, representing aircraft with high numbers of movements (landings and take-offs), and mounted at four locations at the airport. Probes were monitored for 39 months. Probes blocked by mud nesting wasps were retrieved and incubated in mesh bags. Emerging wasps were identified to species. Results show that all nests in probes were made by P. nasidens, and peak nesting occurs in the summer months. Nesting success (as proportion of nests with live adult emergents) was optimal between 24 and 31°C and that probes with apertures of more than 3 mm diameter are preferred. Not all areas on the airport are affected equally, with the majority of nests constructed in one area. The proportion of grassed areas within 1000 m of probes was a significant predictor of nesting, and probe volume may determine the sex of emerging wasps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of insecticide-resistance mechanisms in aphids has been associated with inhibitory, pleiotropic fitness costs. Such fitness costs have not yet been examined in the UK's most damaging cereal aphid, Sitobion avenae (grain aphid) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). This study aimed to evaluate the fitness trade-offs of the insecticide-resistant S. avenae clone versus an insecticide-susceptible S. avenae clone. Additionally, the parasitoid, Aphidius ervi (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), was introduced to examine its potential as a biological control agent. This study found that insecticide-resistant clones had significantly lower population growth and individual relative growth rate. Furthermore, insecticide-resistant clones suffered from a significantly greater rate of parasitisation (mummification) compared to their insecticide-susceptible counterparts. The successfulness of the parasitoid as a biological control agent could prevent the spread of the insecticide-resistant genotype. However, for this to be possible, insecticide spraying regimes need to be moderated, and habitat modification and parasitoid manipulation must be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cleruchoides noackae (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae), native to Australia, is the most promising biological control agent for Thaumastocoris peregrinus (Hemiptera: Thaumastocoridae), an exotic Eucalyptus spp. pest in Brazil. The aim of this study was to determine the courtship behaviour, mating and oviposition of unmated or mated C. noackae females parasitizing T. peregrinus eggs utilizing the same rearing system used in biological control programmes in Brazil. The mating behaviour of eleven C. noackae unmated couples was observed and the time taken for males and females to find each other in polystyrene vials and the duration and number of copulations were recorded. Ten unmated or mated females were placed individually in vials with 10 T. peregrinus eggs each, and oviposition behaviour, percentage of eggs inserted and parasitized, viability and sex ratio of emerged C. noackae were recorded. This species lacked defined courtship behaviour and mated in less than an hour after adults' emergence. The time spent finding the first host, evaluating and inserting the ovipositor was similar for mated and unmated C. noackae females, as well as the frequency of inserted and parasitized eggs and their viability. Mated females took less time to find other host eggs and the sex ratio is female-biased. Occurrence of arrhenotokous parthenogenesis was confirmed. The ability of C. noackae to mate and lay eggs in less than one hour and parasitism of T. peregrinus eggs by females can improve the parasitoid mass rearing and biological control of T. peregrinus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquaporins (AQP) are a family of plasma membrane proteins responsible for water transport through cell membranes. They are differentially expressed in different parts of the alimentary canal of insects where they regulate water transport. These proteins have been studied in detail in some insects, but few data are available for aquaporins of the honey bee, Apis mellifera. We used quantitative PCR to study the expression of six putative aquaporin genes in forager honey bees. We found differential expression of all putative AQP genes in crop, midgut, ileum, rectum and Malpighian tubules. We found the entomoglyceroporin Am_Eglp 1 expressed at extremely high levels in the midgut. We performed a functional characterization of Am_Eglp 1 using heterologous expression in Xenopus laevis oocyte followed by water uptake assays. Our results confirmed that the Am_Eglp 1 gene encodes a functional water transporter. This study shows that all putative honey bee aquaporin genes have complex expression patterns in the digestive and excretory organs of honey bee workers. Our results suggest that Am_Eglp 1 is the principal water transporter in the midgut of A. mellifera workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vast majority of species of velvet ants (Hymenoptera: Aculeata: Mutillidae) are ectoparasitoids of immature stages of other aculeate Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and ants). Due to their cryptic, furtive behaviour at the host nesting sites, however, even basic information on their biology, like host use diversity, is still unknown for entire subfamilies, and the known information, scattered in over two centuries of published studies, is potentially hiding tendencies to host specialization across velvet ant lineages. In this review, based on 305 host associations spanning 132 species in 49 genera and 10 main lineages (tribes/subfamilies), we explored patterns of host use in velvet ants. Overall, 15 families and 29 subfamilies of Aculeata are listed as hosts of mutillids, with a strong predominance of Apoidea (bees and apoid wasps: 19 subfamilies and 82.3% of host records). A series of bipartite networks, multivariate analyses and calculations of different indices suggested possible patterns of specialization. Host taxonomic spectrum (number of subfamilies) of velvet ants was very variable and explained by variation in the number of host records. Instead, we found a great variation of network-based host specialization degree and host taxonomic distinctness that did not depend on the number of host records. Differences in host use patterns seemed apparent across mutillid tribes/subfamilies, among genera within several tribes/subfamilies, and to lesser extent within genera. Taxonomic host use variation seemed not dependent on phylogeny. Instead, it was likely driven by the exploitation of hosts with different ecological traits (nest type, larval diet and sociality). Thus, taxonomically more generalist lineages may use hosts that essentially share the same ecological profile. Interestingly, closely related mutillid lineages often show contrasting combinations of host ecological traits, particularly sociality and larval diet, with a more common preference for ground-nesting hosts across most lineages. This review may serve as a basis to test hypotheses for host use evolution in this fascinating family of parasitoids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurately estimating cause-specific mortality for immature insect herbivores is usually difficult. The insects are exposed to abiotic and biotic mortality factors, causing cadavers to simply disappear before cause of mortality can be recorded. Also, insect herbivores are often highly mobile on hosts, making it difficult to follow patterns for individuals through time. In contrast, the wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus Norton, spends its entire egg, larval, and pupal period inside a host stem. Therefore, with periodic sampling stage-specific causes of mortality can be ascertained. Consequently, we examined C. cinctus mortality in eight barley, Hordeum vulgare L., cultivars in two locations in Montana from 2016 to 2018 by collecting stem samples from stem elongation to crop maturity at weekly intervals, and collecting overwintered barley stubs the following spring and summer from the same plots. If larvae were present, we examined larval status—dead or alive—and categorized dead individuals into one of 5 mortality categories: plant defense, cannibalism, parasitism, pathogens, and unknown factors. We used multiple decrement life tables to estimate cause-specific mortality and irreplaceable mortality (the proportion of mortality from a given cause that cannot be replaced by other causes of mortality). Plant defense (antibiosis) caused 85.7 ± 3.6%, cannibalism (governed by antixenosis) caused 70.1 ± 7.6%, parasitism caused 13.8 ± 5.9%, unknown factors caused 38.5 ± 7.6%, and pathogens caused 14.7 ± 8.5% mortality in the presence of all causes of mortality. Similarly, irreplaceable mortality due to plant defense was 22.3 ± 6.4%, cannibalism was 29.1± 4.2%, unknown factors was 6.2 ± 1.8%, pathogens was 0.9 ± 0.5%, and parasitism was 1. 5 ± 0. 6%. Antibiosis traits primarily killed newly emerged larvae, while other traits supported more favorable oviposition decisions by females, increasing mortality by obligate cannibalism. Our results suggest that breeding barley for resistance to C. cinctus targeting both categories of traits (antibiosis and antixenosis) is a highly valuable tactic for management of this important pest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sensitization to Hymenoptera venom in patients without a history of systemic allergic reactions to Hymenoptera stings is frequently found and can be due to the presence of specific IgE to cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants (CCD). This study investigates 105 pollen allergic subjects for the presence of specific IgE to honeybee or wasp venom, pollen, the MUXF3 carbohydrate epitope from bromelain and recombinant Hymenoptera venom components. In addition, in a subgroup of patients (n = 10) a basophil activation test (BAT) using bee and wasp venom was performed. Specific IgE to Hymenoptera venom was detected in 45.7% of the pollen allergic subjects and in 26.7% of the non-atopic controls, both without a history of systemic allergic reactions to Hymenoptera stings. The high sensitization rate in atopic patients could partially be explained by cross-sensitization between pollen and Hymenoptera venom due to specific IgE to CCDs. In our study population, only 20% showed a sensitization to CCDs. Primary sensitization due to sting exposure, high total IgE values or unspecific binding and detection of low affinity antibodies in the test procedure could be reasons. Thus, determination of specific IgE to Hymenoptera venom in patients without a history of systemic allergic reactions as screening test is not recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South American fire ant decapitating flies in the genus Pseudacteon (Diptera: Phoridae) are potential biocontrol agents of the invasive fire ants Solenopsis invicta and S. richteri in the United States and other regions of the world due to their high host specificity and the direct and indirect damage to their host ants. Despite their importance and the fact that several flies have already been released in the US, little is known about the genetic variability and phylogenetic relationships of Pseudacteon flies parasitizing South American fire ants in the Solenopsis saevissima species-group. A species delimitation analysis was conducted using a distance-based method (ABGD) and two tree-based methods (GMYC and mPTP) using COI sequences of 103 specimens belonging to 20 of the 22 Pseudacteon species known from southern South America. Additionally, phylogenetic relationships between the already described and new candidate species were inferred using mitochondrial (COI) and nuclear (wingless) sequences. The species delimitation analysis suggests that species richness in these flies has been previously underestimated, due to the existence of putative cryptic species within nominal Pseudacteon obtusus, P. pradei, P. tricuspis, P. cultellatus, and P. nudicornis. Geographic distribution and host fire ant species seem to support cryptic lineages, though additional morphological data are needed to corroborate these results. All phylogenetic analyses reveal that South American fire ant decapitating flies are grouped into two main clades, with Pseudacteon convexicauda sister and well differentiated relative to these clades. Neither host nor geographic association appeared to be related to the differentiation of these two main clades within South American fire ant decapitating flies. This work provides information that will allow testing whether the putative cryptic phorid fly species show differences in their effectiveness as biocontrol agents against the highly invasive imported fire ants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biodiversity monitoring programs are the baseline of species abundancy studies, which in case of introduced species are especially critical. Megachile sculpturalis Smith, 1853 native to Eastern-Asia, constitutes the first ever recorded wild bee species accidently introduced in Europe. Since its first discovery in 2008, M. sculpturalis has been spreading across the continent. By initiating a citizen science monitoring program, we aimed to investigate the occurrence pattern of M. sculpturalis. Within only two years after starting the project, 111 new reports from Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Austria were recorded. Comparably to other European countries, the population progressed remarkably fast from year to year expanding its area geographically but also ecologically by increasing its altitudinal range. The distribution pattern indicates human assisted jump-dispersal travelling on the major traffic routes of central Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding how bees use resources at a landscape scale is essential for developing meaningful management plans that sustain populations and the pollination services they provide. Bumblebees are important pollinators for many wild and cultivated plants, and have experienced steep population declines worldwide. Bee foraging behavior can be influenced by resource availability and bees' lifecycle stage. To better understand these relationships, we studied the habitat selection of Bombus pauloensis by tracking 17 queen bumblebees with radio telemetry in blueberry fields in Entre Ríos province, Argentina. To evaluate land use and floral resources used by bumblebees, we tracked bees before and after nest establishment and estimated home ranges using minimum convex polygons and kernel density methods. We also classified the pollen on their bodies to identify the floral resources they used from the floral species available at that time. We characterized land use for each bee as the relative proportion of GPS points inside of each land use. Bumblebees differed markedly in their movement behavior in relation to pre and post nest establishment. Bees moved over larger areas, and mostly within blueberry fields, before nest establishment. In contrast, after establishing the nest, the bees preferred the edges near forest plantations and they changed the nutritional resources to prefer wild floral species. Our study is the first to track queen bumblebee movements in an agricultural setting and relate movement changes across time and space with pollen resource availability. This study provides insight into the way bumblebee queens use different habitat elements at crucial periods in their lifecycle, showing the importance of mass flowering crops like blueberry in the first stages of queen's lifecycle, and how diversified landscapes help support bee populations as their needs changes during different phases of their lifecycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bumble bee communities are strongly disrupted worldwide through the population decline of many species; a phenomenon that has been generally attributed to landscape modification, pesticide use, pathogens, and climate change. The mechanisms by which these causes act on bumble bee colonies are, however, likely to be complex and to involve many levels of organization spanning from the community down to the least understood individual level. Here, we assessed how the morphology, weight and foraging behavior of individual workers are affected by their surrounding landscape. We hypothesized that colonies established in landscapes showing high cover of intensive crops and low cover of flowering crops, as well as low amounts of local floral resources, would produce smaller workers, which would perform fewer foraging trips and collect pollen loads less constant in species composition. We tested these predictions with 80 colonies of commercially reared Bombus impatiens Cresson placed in 20 landscapes spanning a gradient of agricultural intensification in southern Québec, Canada. We estimated weekly rate at which workers entered and exited colonies and captured eight workers per colony over a period of 14 weeks during the spring and summer of 2016. Captured workers had their wing, thorax, head, tibia, and dry weight measured, as well as their pollen load extracted and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. We did not detect any effect of landscape habitat composition on worker morphology or body weight, but found that foraging activity decreased with intensive crops. Moreover, higher diversity of local floral resources led to lower pollen constancy in intensively cultivated landscapes. Finally, we found a negative correlation between the size of workers and the diversity of their pollen load. Our results provide additional evidence that conservation actions regarding pollinators in arable landscapes should be made at the landscape rather than at the farm level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species of encyrtid wasp, Metaphycus macadamiae Polaszek & Noyes sp. n., (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae: Encyrtinae) is described as a solitary endoparasitoid of the invasive macadamia felted coccid, Acanthococcus ironsidei (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae) in Hawaii. This parasitoid is native to Australia, and the species description is based on material collected from a Macadamia integrifolia Maiden & Betche (Proteaceae) plantation in New South Wales, Australia, the native region of the host tree and insect. It is described here because it is a potential biological control agent against this pest where it has recently invaded Hawaii and South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amitraz is an acaricide that is widely used in apiculture. Several studies have reported that in honeybees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus; Hymenoptera: Apidae), amitraz affects learning, memory, behavior, immunity, and various other physiological processes. Despite this, few studies have explored the molecular mechanisms underlying the action of amitraz on honeybees. Here, we investigated the transcriptome of honeybees after exposure to 9.4 mg/L amitraz for 10 d, a subchronic dose. Overall, 279 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified (237 upregulated, 42 downregulated). Several, including Pla2, LOC725381, LOC413324, LOC724386, LOC100577456, LOC551785, and P4504c3, were validated by quantitative PCR. According to gene ontology, DEGs were mainly involved in metabolism, biosynthesis, and translation. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses revealed that amitraz treatment affected the relaxin signaling pathway, platelet activation, and protein digestion and absorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite more than 250 years of taxonomic research, we still have only a vague idea about the true size and composition of the faunas and floras of the planet. Many biodiversity inventories provide limited insight because they focus on a small taxonomic subsample or a tiny geographic area. Here, we report on the size and composition of the Swedish insect fauna, thought to represent roughly half of the diversity of multicellular life in one of the largest European countries. Our results are based on more than a decade of data from the Swedish Taxonomy Initiative and its massive inventory of the country's insect fauna, the Swedish Malaise Trap Project The fauna is considered one of the best known in the world, but the initiative has nevertheless revealed a surprising amount of hidden diversity: more than 3,000 new species (301 new to science) have been documented so far. Here, we use three independent methods to analyze the true size and composition of the fauna at the family or subfamily level: (1) assessments by experts who have been working on the most poorly known groups in the fauna; (2) estimates based on the proportion of new species discovered in the Malaise trap inventory; and (3) extrapolations based on species abundance and incidence data from the inventory. For the last method, we develop a new estimator, the combined non-parametric estimator, which we show is less sensitive to poor coverage of the species pool than other popular estimators. The three methods converge on similar estimates of the size and composition of the fauna, suggesting that it comprises around 33,000 species. Of those, 8,600 (26%) were unknown at the start of the inventory and 5,000 (15%) still await discovery. We analyze the taxonomic and ecological composition of the estimated fauna, and show that most of the new species belong to Hymenoptera and Diptera groups that are decomposers or parasitoids. Thus, current knowledge of the Swedish insect fauna is strongly biased taxonomically and ecologically, and we show that similar but even stronger biases have distorted our understanding of the fauna in the past. We analyze latitudinal gradients in the size and composition of known European insect faunas and show that several of the patterns contradict the Swedish data, presumably due to similar knowledge biases. Addressing these biases is critical in understanding insect biomes and the ecosystem services they provide. Our results emphasize the need to broaden the taxonomic scope of current insect monitoring efforts, a task that is all the more urgent as recent studies indicate a possible worldwide decline in insect faunas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elevational gradients are considered important for understanding causes behind gradients in species richness due to the large variation in climate and habitat within a small spatial extent. Geometric constraints are thought to interact with environmental variables and influence elevational patterns in species richness. However, the geographic setting of most mountain ranges, particularly continuity with low elevation areas may reduce the effect of geometric constraints at lower elevations. In the present study, we test the effects of climatic gradients and continuity with the low elevation plains of the eastern Himalayan mountain range on patterns of species richness. We studied species richness of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on an elevational gradient between 600m and 2400m in the Eastern Himalaya–part of Himalaya biodiversity hotspot. Ants were sampled in nine elevational bands of 200m with four transects in each band using pitfall and Winkler traps. We used regression models to identify the most important environmental variables that predict species richness and used constrained null models to test the effects of contiguity between the mountain range and plains. We find a monotonic decline in species richness of ants with elevation. Temperature was a more important predictor of species richness than habitat complexity. Geometric constraints model weighted by temperature with a soft lower boundary and hard upper boundary best explained the species richness pattern. This suggests that a combination of climate and geometric constraints drive the elevational species richness patterns of ants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species of bethylid parasitoid wasp, Goniozus omanensis Polaszek sp. n., is described based on morphology and DNA sequence data. The species is currently known only from the lesser date moth Batrachedra amydraula, a pest of economic importance, but can be reared on two factitious host species. G. omanensis is compared with G. swirskiana, known from the same host in Israel. We summarise current knowledge of G. omanensis life-history, and its potential as an agent of biological pest control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social insects such as ants can use geomagnetic field information in orientation and navigation tasks. However, few studies have assessed the effect of magnetic fields on aspects such as orientation and decision making during foraging of ants. Therefore, the present study aims to test the hypothesis that foragers of different species of ants with different foraging strategies when under effect of applied magnetic field change the patterns of search for resources and recruitment of ants. We used two species with solitary foraging strategy, Ectatomma brunneum and Neoponera inversa, and another with mass recruitment, Pheidole sp. The experiments were performed in field and laboratory conditions. We used some parameters for comparison such as speed, distance and time during foraging in the field and laboratory experiments, under normal and applied magnetic field with the coils on and off. We also performed SQUID magnetometry analysis for all species. The results demonstrate that changes in normal values of magnetic field affect workers behaviour of the three species. Thus, we can conclude that ants under the effect of applied magnetic fields can suffer significant changes in their foraging activities decreasing the flow of workers, increasing the travelled distance from the nest to the resource and back to the nest, in addition to time and distance to fetch the resource and decision-making, in both types of species, those which have mass recruitment, or forage individually, and that the three species are magnetosensitive, being affected by changes of low intensity in the local magnetic field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How workers within an ant colony perceive and enforce colony boundaries is a defining biological feature of an ant species. Ants fall along a spectrum of social organizations ranging from single-queen, single nest societies to species with multi-queen societies in which workers exhibit colony-specific, altruistic behaviors towards non-nestmate workers from distant locations. Defining where an ant species falls along this spectrum is critical for understanding its basic ecology. Herein we quantify queen numbers, describe intraspecific aggression, and characterize the distribution of colony sizes for tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva) populations in native range areas in South America as well as in their introduced range in the Southeastern United States. In both ranges, multi-queen nests are common. In the introduced range, aggressive behaviors are absent at all spatial scales tested, indicating that within the population in the Southeastern United States N. fulva is unicolonial. However, this contrasts strongly with intraspecific aggression in its South American native range. In the native range, intraspecific aggression between ants from different nests is common and ritualized. Aggression is typically one-sided and follows a stereotyped sequence of escalating behaviors that stops before actual fighting occurs. Spatial patterns of non-aggressive nest aggregation and the transitivity of non-aggressive interactions demonstrate that results of neutral arena assays usefully delineate colony boundaries. In the native range, both the spatial extent of colonies and the average number of queens encountered per nest differ between sites. This intercontinental comparison presents the first description of intraspecific aggressive behavior for this invasive ant and characterizes the variation in colony organization in the native-range, a pre-requisite to a full understanding of the origins of unicoloniality in its introduced range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Karyotypes of two cryptic species of parasitoid Hymenoptera with n = 5 and 6 belonging to the Lariophagus distinguendus (Förster, 1841) complex, which includes cosmopolitan parasitoids of coleopteran stored-product pests, were studied using glass-needle based microdissection, reverse and cross-species fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH). This experiment strongly indicates that the largest metacentric chromosome in the karyotype with n = 5 originated from a particular fusion between the only acrocentric and a smaller metacentric chromosome of the set with n = 6, therefore confirming our previous hypothesis based on the karyotypic analysis using chromosome morphometrics. This study represents the first successful application of both microdissection and whole chromosome painting for the reconstruction of karyotypic rearrangements in closely related species of parasitoids, as well as in the order Hymenoptera in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small parasitoid wasps are abundant and extremely diverse, yet their colors have not been analyzed. One of the more common color patterns observed in these wasps is a black-orange-black pattern, which is especially common among neotropical species of Scelionidae ranging in size from 2 to 10 mm. Due to the methodological challenges involved in extracting and analyzing pigments from small-sized insects, other methods for examining colors need to be explored. In this work, we propose the use of microspectrophotometry in combination with statistical analysis methods in order to 8 study the spectral properties in such cases. We examined 8 scelionid genera and 1 genus from a distantly related family (Evaniidae), all showing the black-orange-black pattern. Functional Data Analysis and statistical analysis of Euclidean distances for color components were applied to study color differences both between and within genera. The Functional Data Analysis proved to be a better method for treating the reflectance data because it gave a better representation of the physical information. Also, the reflectance spectra were separated into spectral color component contributions and each component was labeled according to its own dominant wavelength at the maximum of the spectrum: Red, Green and Blue. When comparing spectral components curves, the spectral blue components of the orange and black colors, independent of the genera being compared, result almost identical, suggesting that there is a common compound for the pigments. The results also suggest that cuticle from different genera, but with the same color might have a similar chemical composition. This is the first time that the black and orange colors in small parasitoid wasps has been analyzed and our results provide a basis for future research on the color patterns of an abundant but neglected group of insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Honey bees, Apis mellifera, are a globally significant pollinator species and are currently in decline, with losses attributed to an array of interacting environmental stressors. Extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF EMFs) are a lesser-known abiotic environmental factor that are emitted from a variety of anthropogenic sources, including power lines, and have recently been shown to have a significant impact on the cognitive abilities and behaviour of honey bees. Here we have investigated the effects of field-realistic levels of ELF EMFs on aversive learning and aggression levels, which are critical factors for bees to maintain colony strength. Bees were exposed for 17 h to 100 μT or 1000 μT ELF EMFs, or a sham control. A sting extension response (SER) assay was conducted to determine the effects of ELF EMFs on aversive learning, while an intruder assay was conducted to determine the effects of ELF EMFs on aggression levels. Exposure to both 100 μT and 1000 μT ELF EMF reduced aversive learning performance by over 20%. Exposure to 100 μT ELF EMFs also increased aggression scores by 60%, in response to intruder bees from foreign hives. These results indicate that short-term exposure to ELF EMFs, at levels that could be encountered in bee hives placed under power lines, reduced aversive learning and increased aggression levels. These behavioural changes could have wider ecological implications in terms of the ability of bees to interact with, and respond appropriately to, threats and negative environmental stimuli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Insect damage on trees can severely affect the quality of timber, reduce the fecundity of the host and render it susceptible to fungal infestation and disease. Such pathology weakens or eventually kills the host. Infestation by two insect woodborer species (a moth and a beetle) is causing mortality of Sonneratia alba, a wide-ranging pioneer mangrove species of the Indo-Pacific. Establishing the infestation mechanism of the two insect woodborer species is an initial and essential step towards understanding their ecological role in the mangroves and in determining sustainable management priorities and options. Our main objectives were to investigate the infestation mechanism employed by the two insect woodborers which infest S. alba trees, to establish the occurrence of secondary infestation by endophytic fungi in the infested S. alba branches, and to explore a control management option to the woodborer infestation. We conducted an external inspection of infested branches in two large embayments in Kenya, Gazi Bay and Mida Creek, and by splitting infested branches we determined the respective internal infestation mechanisms. Infested wood samples from Gazi Bay and Mida Creek were incubated at 28±1°C for 3–5 days to establish the presence of fungi. A survey was conducted in both Gazi Bay and Mida Creek to ascertain the presence of ants on S. alba. The infestation characteristics of the two insect woodborer species were different. It took 6–8 months for the beetle to kill a branch of 150 cm—200 cm long. For the moth to kill a branch, it depended upon several factors including the contribution by multiple species, other than the moth infestation alone. A total of 15 endophytic fungal species were identified. Two ant species Oecophylla longipoda and a Pheidole sp. inhabited 62% and 69% respectively of sampled S. alba trees in Gazi Bay whereas only Pheidole sp. inhabited 17% of the sampled S. alba trees in Mida Creek. In summary, we have documented the time it takes each woodborer species to kill a branch, the infestation mechanism of the two insect woodborers, and we hypothesized on the role of two ant species. The presence of several different fungal species was ascertained, and we discussed their possible role in the infested wood. Our results cannot unambiguously associate the woodborers and identified fungi. We recommend further studies to investigate the presence or absence, and if present, the nature of fungi in the gut of the woodborers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collective behaviour is of fundamental importance in the life sciences, where it appears at levels of biological complexity from single cells to superorganisms, in demography and the social sciences, where it describes the behaviour of populations, and in the physical and engineering sciences, where it describes physical phenomena and can be used to design distributed systems. Reasoning about collective behaviour is inherently difficult, as the non-linear interactions between individuals give rise to complex emergent dynamics. Mathematical techniques have been developed to analyse systematically collective behaviour in such systems, yet these frequently require extensive formal training and technical ability to apply. Even for those with the requisite training and ability, analysis using these techniques can be laborious, time-consuming and error-prone. Together these difficulties raise a barrier-to-entry for practitioners wishing to analyse models of collective behaviour. However, rigorous modelling of collective behaviour is required to make progress in understanding and applying it. Here we present an accessible tool which aims to automate the process of modelling and analysing collective behaviour, as far as possible. We focus our attention on the general class of systems described by reaction kinetics, involving interactions between components that change state as a result, as these are easily understood and extracted from data by natural, physical and social scientists, and correspond to algorithms for component-level controllers in engineering applications. By providing simple automated access to advanced mathematical techniques from statistical physics, nonlinear dynamical systems analysis, and computational simulation, we hope to advance standards in modelling collective behaviour. At the same time, by providing expert users with access to the results of automated analyses, sophisticated investigations that could take significant effort are substantially facilitated. Our tool can be accessed online without installing software, uses a simple programmatic interface, and provides interactive graphical plots for users to develop understanding of their models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]