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This is a response to a preprint version of “A re-analysis of the data in Sharkey et al.’s (2021) minimalist revision reveals that BINs do not deserve names, but BOLD Systems needs a stronger commitment to open science”, https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.28.441626v2. Meier et al. strongly criticized Sharkey et al.’s publication in which 403 new species were deliberately minimally described, based primarily on COI barcode sequence data. Here we respond to these criticisms. The following points are made: 1) Sharkey et al. did not equate BINs with species, as demonstrated in several examples in which multiple species were found to be in single BINs. 2) We reiterate that BINs were used as a preliminary sorting tool, just as preliminary morphological identification commonly sorts specimens based on color and size into unit trays; despite BINs and species concepts matching well over 90% of species, this matching does not equate to equality. 3) Consensus barcodes were used only to provide a diagnosis to conform to the rules of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature just as consensus morphological diagnoses are. The barcode of a holotype is definitive and simply part of its cellular morphology. 4) Minimalist revisions will facilitate and accelerate future taxonomic research, not hinder it. 5) We refute the claim that the BOLD sequences of Plesiocoelus vanachterbergi are pseudogenes and demonstrate that they simply represent a frameshift mutation. 6) We reassert our observation that morphological evidence alone is insufficient to recognize species within species-rich higher taxa and that its usefulness lies in character states that are congruent with molecular data. 7) We show that in the cases in which COI barcodes code for the same amino acids in different putative species, data from morphology, host specificity, and other ecological traits reaffirm their utility as indicators of genetically distinct lineages.

The genus Eulophinusia Girault (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae), previously known from Australia and India, is newly recorded from the Americas (Canada, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic). The morphological diagnosis of the genus is enhanced through the discovery of an unnoticed and unique feature - an intricate jigsaw-like microsculptural pattern on the mesoscutellum. The new species described here, Eulophinusia andreamezae Hansson, is a hyperparasitoid. The majority of the Costa Rican specimens of this species were reared from pupae of Hypomicrogaster largus Valerio (Braconidae: Microgastrinae) that had parasitized a caterpillar of Anadasmus Janzen11 (Lepidoptera: Depressariidae) feeding on Ocotea insularis (Lauraceae).

Global gradients in species biodiversity are expected to reflect tighter packing of species closer to the equator. Yet, empirical validation of these patterns has so far focused on less diverse taxa, with comparable assessments of mega-diverse groups historically constrained by the taxonomic impediment. Here we assess the temporal and spatial turnover dynamics of arthropod communities sampled across 129 globally distributed monitoring sites. Overall, we encountered more than 150,000 unique BINs (i.e., species proxies). We show that global differences in community compositional change are linked to latitudinal, spatial, and temporal gradients, which are largely consistent across biogeographic regions. This general latitudinal imprint on community composition provides a mechanistic underpinning for global biodiversity gradients.

Butterflies are a diverse and charismatic insect group that are thought to have diversified via coevolution with plants and in response to dispersals following key geological events. These hypotheses have been poorly tested at the macroevolutionary scale because a comprehensive phylogenetic framework and datasets on global distributions and larval hosts of butterflies are lacking. We sequenced 391 genes from nearly 2,000 butterfly species to construct a new, phylogenomic tree of butterflies representing 92% of all genera and aggregated global distribution records and larval host datasets. We found that butterflies likely originated in what is now the Americas, ∼100 Ma, shortly before the Cretaceous Thermal Maximum, then crossed Beringia and diversified in the Paleotropics. The ancestor of modern butterflies likely fed on Fabaceae, and most extant families were present before the K/Pg extinction. The majority of butterfly dispersals occurred from the tropics (especially the Neotropics) to temperate zones, largely supporting a “cradle” pattern of diversification. Surprisingly, host breadth changes and shifts to novel host plants had only modest impacts.

Environmental stress from abiotic conditions imposes physiological limits on individuals within communities, and these stressful conditions can act as a filter on the species present in any given environment. Such abiotic stressors can reduce a community's diversity and make its composition more phylogenetically clustered. Using a decade of staphylinid beetle (Staphylinidae, Coleoptera, rove beetles) collections made across a 1500 m elevation gradient in northwestern Costa Rica (2008–2017) we asked what species lived there, how large and overlapping were the communities across this gradient, and what relationship was there between elevation and diversity. Using DNA barcodes for identification and phylogenetic estimates of community structure, we found high turnover across elevation, and that staphylinid diversity increased linearly with elevation. Because of this, we found staphylinid diversity was negatively related to surface area and temperature, and positively with precipitation. We suggest that historical biogeography and contemporary environmental stress have combined to produce these observed patterns. The forests in which these beetles are found are heating and drying rapidly and our finding that diversity increases with elevation suggests that there will be catastrophic biodiversity loss in the coming decades.

Twenty-nine species are treated, most of which have host caterpillar and food plant records, and all but one are new to science. The first host record for the agathidine genus Amputoearinus is given. Gnathopleura josequesadai Sharkey, sp. nov. is reported as a hyperparasitoid of fly larvae, the first such record for the genus. The following new species are diagnosed primarily using COI barcode data; Sharkey is the authority for all: Agathidinae: Aerophilus davidwagneri, Aerophilus fundacionbandorum, Aerophilus nicklaphami, Lytopylus davidstopaki, Lytopylus davidschindeli; Alysiinae: Gnathopleura josequesadai; Braconinae: Bracon andreamezae, Bracon franklinpaniaguai, Bracon rafagutierrezi, Bracon guillermoblancoi, Bracon oscarmasisi, Bracon pauldimaurai, Bracon shebadimaurae, Sacirema karendimaurae; Cheloninae: Chelonus minorzunigai; Homolobinae: Homolobus stevestroudi; Macrocentrinae: Macrocentrus michaelstroudi; Orgilinae: Stantonia gilbertfuentesi; Rhysipolinae: Rhysipolis stevearonsoni; Rogadinae: Aleiodes kaydodgeae, Aleiodes kerrydresslerae, Aleiodes josesolanoi, Aleiodes juniorporrasi, Aleiodes rocioecheverri, Aleiodes ronaldzunigai, Choreborogas jesseausubeli, Triraphis doncombi, and Yelicones mayrabonillae.

The species-level classification of the "celia clade" of the nymphalid butterfly genus Pseudodebis Forster, 1964, is revised as part of ongoing revisionary work on this genus. The "celia clade" contains three species, of which two, Pseudodebis darrenthroopi NakaharaWillmott, n. sp. and P. tigrillo NakaharaWillmott, n. sp., are described and named herein based on morphology and molecular data. Consequently, we increase the described species diversity of Pseudodebis to 13, with a remarkable six species occurring in the trans-Andean region. We discuss five specific epithets associated with the clade and designate a neotype for Papilio celia Cramer, 1780, and lectotype for Taygetis keneza Butler, 1869, based on the same specimen, thus retaining the status of the former name as a senior objective synonym. We also provide a brief historical review for Papilio phorcys Fabricius, 1793, an enigmatic name currently synonymized under Papilio celia. Nevertheless, we were unable to locate the syntype(s) for this name and the identity of Papilio phorcys remains uncertain, so we retain the current synonymy as a parsimonious approach.

The most accepted taxonomic treatment of the New World sulphurs of the genus Phoebis Hubner, [1819] recognizes 16 species including those in the current synonyms Aphrissa and Rhabdodryas. This total conflicts with the results of several recent pierid DNA barcode studies across the Neotropics. We used a five-locus dataset to carry out species delimitation analyses using the coalescence-based method implemented in bpp software. After testing the resulting species hypotheses using marginal likelihood estimates, we inferred their phylogenetic relationships and performed an ancestral range reconstruction with biogeobears. Our analyses recovered two different hypotheses, 26 and 24 species, that scored the highest marginal likelihood estimate. Differences between these two hypotheses, when reconciled with barcode clusters and morphology, indicated that 24 is the most likely number of species. Phoebis neocypris stat. rev., Phoebis rurina stat. rev., Phoebis virgo stat. rev., Phoebis marcellina stat. rev., Phoebis thalestris stat. rev., and Phoebis rorata stat. rev. are raised to the species rank. We dated the crown age of Phoebis to the mid-Miocene, with the islands of the Greater Antilles as the most probable ancestral range. Three main clades of Phoebis diverged early in the evolutionary history of the genus, but most extant species-level diversity arose after the Pliocene–Pleistocene boundary. Our analyses recovered alternate range expansions and contractions, and dispersal from the islands to the continent and back, in the three main clades. Both sympatric and allopatric speciation seem to have shaped the current species richness. (Less)

I have been watching the gradual and very visible decline of Mexican and Central American insect density and species richness since 1953 and Winnie since 1978. The loss is very real for essentially all higher taxa, and the reasons are very evident: intense forest and agricultural simplification of very large areas, massive use of pesticides, habitat fragmentation, and at least since the 1980's, ever-increasing climate change in temperature, rainfall, and synchronization of seasonal cues. There is no ecological concept suggesting that this biodiversity and habitat impoverishment is restricted to this portion of the Neotropics, and our 50 years of occasional visits to other parts of the tropics suggest the same. We are losing most of the insect community that is still in the cloud forests due to the drying of the tops of tropical mountains, just as we are losing the huge expanses of insect communities that once occupied the fertile soils, weather, and water of the lowland tropics. Today we have unimaginable access to the world's biodiversity through the internet, roads, dwellings, education, bioliterate societies, DNA barcoding, genome sequencing, and human curiosity. The wild world gains from our understanding that it needs large and diverse terrain, relief from hunting trees and animals, site-specific restoration, profit-sharing with its societies, and tolerance of humans and our extended genomes. But if our terrestrial world remains constructed through constant war with the arthropod world, along with the plants, fungi and nematodes, human society will lose very big time. The house is burning. We do not need a thermometer. We need a fire hose.

Mesoamerican amphibian declines in apparently pristine and protected habitats have been severe, especially at elevations above 500 m sea level and have been linked to emerging diseases and a changing climate. The Craugastor punctariolus species series of direct developing frogs is endemic to the region and used to be comprised of 33 species, seven of which have known populations at present. One of these, C. ranoides, endemic to southern Nicaragua and Costa Rica, was historically found in cloud forest sites of Area de Conservacion Guanacaste (ACG) in north‐west Costa Rica and extended into dry forest sites 20 km distant. Here, C. ranoides declined and disappeared from high elevation sites between the mid‐1980s and early 1990s, but populations persisted in the lowland dry forest. We compared the genetic richness and ranavirus infection status of C. ranoides from extant dry forest populations to historic museum specimens of now extinct ACG cloud forest populations using DNA sequence diversity at two mitochondrial loci and molecular screening for ranavirus. Extant dry forest populations of C. ranoides formed a monophyletic group which included historic specimens sampled at cloud forest sites. However, the extirpated ACG cloud forest population contained additional diversity: samples formed a divergent clade with unknown spatial distribution. Ranavirus was detected in both current and museum samples of C. ranoides and sequences from a 267‐nucleotide region of the major capsid protein gene shared 100% sequence identity with one another and with Frog virus 3. Our findings document cryptic diversity within an endangered species that has demonstrated no recovery in cloud forests and raises questions about Ranavirus and its potential link to the amphibian declines in this system. The presence of the same C. ranoides clade within present day and historical samples suggests a potential for effective translocation and repopulation of extirpated cloud forest populations.

The first species ofDolichogenidea(Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Microgastrinae) with the second mediotergite broadly quadrate to rectangular are revised, and eight new species from Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG), Costa Rica are described, all authored by Fernandez-Triana & Boudreault:alejandromasisi,angelagonzalezae,carlosmanuelrodriguezi,genuarnunezi,josealfredohernandezi,melaniamunozae,rogerblancoi, andyeimycedenoae. A new species group (carlosmanuelrodriguezi) within the genus is proposed to accommodate those species, as well as additional undescribed species from the Neotropical region found in collections. All new species are found in rainforests (120–900 m) and all are parasitoids of Depressariidae (except for one species parasitizing Choreutidae). The unique shape of the second mediotergite and long ovipositor are features shared with thealejandromoraispecies group in the genusApanteles, an example of convergent evolution; both wasp groups also parasitize similar hosts in ACG.

Significance With decreasing cost, biodiversity genomics can be done by small laboratories, not large centers. Here, we overview the genomic landscape of an entire family of animals. By sequencing 250 representatives of skipper butterflies, we infer their phylogeny and search for genotypic determinants of phenotypic traits. We find that wing patterns are frequently convergent. This likely mimetic convergence is diversified, resulting in five distinct parallel patterns. Each of the five patterns occurs within at least two genera as well as in more distant relatives diverged more than 20 Mya. This work offers an example of how each of the nearly 6,000 families of animals will be studied in the future., For centuries, biologists have used phenotypes to infer evolution. For decades, a handful of gene markers have given us a glimpse of the genotype to combine with phenotypic traits. Today, we can sequence entire genomes from hundreds of species and gain yet closer scrutiny. To illustrate the power of genomics, we have chosen skipper butterflies (Hesperiidae). The genomes of 250 representative species of skippers reveal rampant inconsistencies between their current classification and a genome-based phylogeny. We use a dated genomic tree to define tribes (six new) and subtribes (six new), to overhaul genera (nine new) and subgenera (three new), and to display convergence in wing patterns that fooled researchers for decades. We find that many skippers with similar appearance are distantly related, and several skippers with distinct morphology are close relatives. These conclusions are strongly supported by different genomic regions and are consistent with some morphological traits. Our work is a forerunner to genomic biology shaping biodiversity research.

We revise the genus Metaplagia Coquillett, 1895 and describe five new species from Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica. All new species were reared from an ongoing inventory of wild-caught caterpillars spanning a variety of species within the family Sphingidae (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae). Our study provides a concise description of each new species using morphology, life history, molecular data and photographic documentation. In addition to the new species, the authors provide a re-description of the genus and a revised key to the species of Metaplagia. The following five new species of Metaplagia are described: Metaplagia leahdennisae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Metaplagia lindarobinsonae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Metaplagia paulinesaribasae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Metaplagia robinsherwoodae Fleming & Wood sp. n. and Metaplagia svetlanakozikae Fleming & Wood sp. n. The following is proposed by Fleming & Wood as new combination of Plagiomima Brauer & Bergenstamm, 1891: Plagiomima latifrons (Reinhard, 1956) comb. n.

Surveys of the caterpillars of Area Conservacion de Guanacaste (ACG), northwestern Costa Rica, documented an array of litter moths (Erebidae: Herminiinae) feeding on ferns in at least 17 families. This represents the first documentation of extensive oligophagous fern-feeding among Herminiinae and possibly within New World Erebidae. Collectively, the taxonomic composition of foodplants of pteridivorous Herminiinae in ACG differs markedly from those of corresponding fern foodplants of sympatric Noctuidae: they are less concentrated in Polypodiales and tree ferns (Cyatheaceae) are among the primary foodplants of several herminiines. These have been recorded only rarely as foodplants of ACG noctuids. Pteridivorous herminiines also appear closely related to species variously recorded from dead leaves, algae, mosses (Bryophyta), spikemosses (Selaginaceae), palms (Arecaceae), and the exclusively New World family Cyclanthaceae. Feeding on monocots and mosses by caterpillars with pteridivorous congeners may even represent a more general pattern that is shared, for example, with certain sawflies (Tenthredinidae).

We assembled a complete reference genome of Eumaeus atala, an aposematic cycad-eating hairstreak butterfly that suffered near extinction in the United States in the last century. Based on an analysis of genomic sequences of Eumaeus and 19 representative genera, the closest relatives of Eumaeus are Theorema and Mithras. We report natural history information for Eumaeus, Theorema, and Mithras. Using genomic sequences for each species of Eumaeus, Theorema, and Mithras (and three outgroups), we trace the evolution of cycad feeding, coloration, gregarious behavior, and other traits. The switch to feeding on cycads and to conspicuous coloration was accompanied by little genomic change. Soon after its origin, Eumaeus split into two fast evolving lineages, instead of forming a clump of close relatives in the phylogenetic tree. Significant overlap of the fast evolving proteins in both clades indicates parallel evolution. The functions of the fast evolving proteins suggest that the caterpillars developed tolerance to cycad toxins with a range of mechanisms including autophagy of damaged cells, removal of cell debris by macrophages, and more active cell proliferation.

We assembled a complete reference genome of Eumaeus atala, an aposematic cycad-eating hairstreak butterfly that suffered near extinction in the United States in the last century. Based on an analysis of genomic sequences of Eumaeus and 19 representative genera, the closest relatives of Eumaeus are Theorema and Mithras We report natural history information for Eumaeus, Theorema, and Mithras Using genomic sequences for each species of Eumaeus, Theorema, and Mithras (and three outgroups), we trace the evolution of cycad feeding, coloration, gregarious behavior, and other traits. The switch to feeding on cycads and to conspicuous coloration was accompanied by little genomic change. Soon after its origin, Eumaeus split into two fast evolving lineages, instead of forming a clump of close relatives in the phylogenetic tree. Significant overlap of the fast evolving proteins in both clades indicates parallel evolution. The functions of the fast evolving proteins suggest that the caterpillars developed tolerance to cycad toxins with a range of mechanisms including autophagy of damaged cells, removal of cell debris by macrophages, and more active cell proliferation.

We have been field observers of tropical insects on four continents and, since 1978, intense observers of caterpillars, their parasites, and their associates in the 1,260 km 2 of dry, cloud, and rain forests of Área de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica. ACG’s natural ecosystem restoration began with its national park designation in 1971. As human biomonitors, or “insectometers,” we see that ACG’s insect species richness and density have gradually declined since the late 1970s, and more intensely since about 2005. The overarching perturbation is climate change. It has caused increasing ambient temperatures for all ecosystems; more erratic seasonal cues; reduced, erratic, and asynchronous rainfall; heated air masses sliding up the volcanoes and burning off the cloud forest; and dwindling biodiversity in all ACG terrestrial ecosystems. What then is the next step as climate change descends on ACG’s many small-scale successes in sustainable biodevelopment? Be kind to the survivors by stimulating and facilitating their owner societies to value them as legitimate members of a green sustainable nation. Encourage national bioliteracy, BioAlfa.

A new genus of braconine parasitoid wasp, Acgorium Sharkey & Quicke gen. nov., based on a new species from Costa Rica, Acgorium felipechavarriai Sharkey sp. nov., is described and illustrated, based on specimens reared from wild-caught hesperiid caterpillars of Dyscophellus phraxanor (Hewitson). Acgorium felipechavarriai is the first known braconine gregarious ectoparasitoid of a butterfly caterpillar.

We described four new gelechioid species from Costa Rica: Philtronoma cbdora Metz, new species; Tinaegeria carlosalvaradoi Metz, new species; Tinaegeria romanmacayai Metz, new species (Depressariidae: Tinaegeriinae revised status); and Percnarcha claudiadoblesae Metz, new species (Gelechiidae: Gelechiinae). We provide these honorifics to recognize commitment and devotion to conservation of biodiversity. The new species are all highly diagnostic among other species of Gelechioidea, and species of Tinaegeria and Percnarcha demonstrate striking mimesis for presumed wasp and beetle models. The family-group name Tinaegeriidae Hampson, 1893 is clarified, including the previously overlooked priority of the family-group name synonyms, and is placed as a valid subfamily in Depressariidae comprised of the genera Filinota Busck, 1911, Nematochares Meyrick, 1931, Philtronoma Meyrick, 1914, Profilinota Clarke, 1973, and Tinaegeria Walker, 1856.

We report one year (2013–2014) of biomonitoring an insect community in a tropical old-growth rain forest, during construction of an industrial-level geothermal electricity project. This is the first-year reaction by the species-rich insect biodiversity; six subsequent years are being analyzed now. The site is on the margin of a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site, Área de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG), in northwestern Costa Rica. This biomonitoring is part of Costa Rica’s ongoing efforts to sustainably retain its wild biodiversity through biodevelopmental integration with its societies. Essential tools are geothermal engineering needs, entomological knowledge, insect species-rich forest, government–NGO integration, common sense, DNA barcoding for species-level identification, and Malaise traps. This research is tailored for integration with its society at the product level. We combine an academic view with on-site engineering decisions. This biomonitoring requires alpha-level DNA barcoding combined with centuries of morphology-based entomological taxonomy and ecology. Not all desired insect community analyses are performed; they are for data from subsequent years combined with this year. We provide enough analysis to be used by both guilds now. This biomonitoring has shown, for the first year, that the geothermal project impacts only the biodiversity within a zone less than 50 m from the project margin.

Three new genera are described:Michener(Proteropinae),Bioalfa(Rogadinae), andHermosomastax(Rogadinae). Keys are given for the New World genera of the following braconid subfamilies: Agathidinae, Braconinae, Cheloninae, Homolobinae, Hormiinae, Ichneutinae, Macrocentrinae, Orgilinae, Proteropinae, Rhysipolinae, and Rogadinae. In these subfamilies 416 species are described or redescribed. Most of the species have been reared and all but 13 are new to science. A consensus sequence of the COI barcodes possessed by each species is employed to diagnose the species, and this approach is justified in the introduction. Most descriptions consist of a lateral or dorsal image of the holotype, a diagnostic COI consensus barcode, the Barcode Index Number (BIN) code with a link to the Barcode of Life Database (BOLD), and the holotype specimen information required by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. The following species are treated and those lacking authorship are newly described here with authorship attributable to Sharkey except for the new species of Macrocentrinae which are by Sharkey & van Achterberg: AGATHIDINAE:Aerophilus paulmarshi,Mesocoelus davidsmithi,Neothlipsis bobkulai,Plesiocoelus vanachterbergi,Pneumagathis erythrogastra(Cameron, 1905),Therophilus bobwhartoni,T. donaldquickei,T. gracewoodae,T. maetoi,T. montywoodi,T. penteadodiasae,Zacremnops brianbrowni,Z. coatlicueSharkey, 1990,Zacremnops cressoni(Cameron, 1887),Z. ekchuahSharkey, 1990,Z. josefernandezi,Zelomorpha sarahmeierottoae. BRACONINAE:Bracon alejandromarini,B. alejandromasisi,B. alexamasisae,B. andresmarini,B. andrewwalshi,B. anniapicadoae,B. anniemoriceae,B. barryhammeli,B. bernardoespinozai,B. carlossanabriai,B. chanchini,B. christophervallei,B. erasmocoronadoi,B. eugeniephillipsae,B. federicomatarritai,B. frankjoycei,B. gerardovegai,B. germanvegai,B. isidrochaconi,B. jimlewisi,B. josejaramilloi,B. juanjoseoviedoi,B. juliodiazi,B. luzmariaromeroae,B. manuelzumbadoi,B. marialuisariasae,B. mariamartachavarriae,B. mariorivasi,B. melissaespinozae,B. nelsonzamorai,B. nicklaphami,B. ninamasisae,B. oliverwalshi,B. paulamarinae,B. rafamoralesi,B. robertofernandezi,B. rogerblancoi,B. ronaldzunigai,B. sigifredomarini,B. tihisiaboshartae,B. wilberthbrizuelai,Digonogastra montylloydi,D. montywoodi,D. motohasegawai,D. natwheelwrighti,D. nickgrishini. CHELONINAE:Adelius adrianguadamuzi,A. gauldiShimbori & Shaw, 2019,A. janzeniShimbori & Shaw, 2019,Ascogaster gloriasihezarae,A. grettelvegae,A. guillermopereirai,A. gustavoecheverrii,A. katyvandusenae,A. luisdiegogomezi,Chelonus alejandrozaldivari,C. gustavogutierrezi,C. gustavoinduni,C. harryramirezi,C. hartmanguidoi,C. hazelcambroneroae,C. iangauldi,C. isidrochaconi,C. janecheverriae,C. jeffmilleri,C. jennyphillipsae,C. jeremydewaardi,C. jessiehillae,C. jesusugaldei,C. jimlewisi,C. jimmilleri,C. jimwhitfieldi,C. johanvalerioi,C. johnburnsi,C. johnnoyesi,C. jorgebaltodanoi,C. jorgehernandezi,C. josealfredohernandezi,C. josefernandeztrianai,C. josehernandezcortesi,C. josemanuelperezi,C. josephinerodriguezae,C. juanmatai,C. junkoshimurae,C. kateperezae,C. luciariosae,C. luzmariaromeroae,C. manuelpereirai,C. manuelzumbadoi,C. marianopereirai,C. maribellealvarezae,C. markmetzi,C. markshawi,C. martajimenezae,C. mayrabonillae,C. meganmiltonae,C. melaniamunozae,C. michaelstroudi,C. michellevanderbankae,C. mingfangi,C. minorcarmonai,C. monikaspringerae,C. moniquegilbertae,C. motohasegawai,C. nataliaivanovae,C. nelsonzamorai,C. normwoodleyi,C. osvaldoespinozai,C. pamelacastilloae,C. paulgoldsteini,C. paulhansoni,C. paulheberti,C. petronariosae,C. ramyamanjunathae,C. randallgarciai,C. rebeccakittelae,C. robertoespinozai,C. robertofernandezi,C. rocioecheverriae,C. rodrigogamezi,C. ronaldzunigai,C. rosibelelizondoae,C. rostermoragai,C. ruthfrancoae,C. scottmilleri,C. scottshawi,C. sergioriosi,C. sigifredomarini,C. stevearonsoni,C. stevestroudi,C. sujeevanratnasinghami,C. sureshnaiki,C. torbjornekremi,C. yeimycedenoae,Leptodrepana alexisae,L. erasmocoronadoi,L. felipechavarriai,L. freddyquesadai,L. gilbertfuentesi,L. manuelriosi,Phanerotoma almasolisae,P. alvaroherrerai,P. anacordobae,P. anamariamongeae,P. andydeansi,P. angelagonzalezae,P. angelsolisi,P. barryhammeli,P. bernardoespinozai,P. calixtomoragai,P. carolinacanoae,P. christerhanssoni,P. christhompsoni,P. davesmithi,P. davidduthiei,P. dirksteinkei,P. donquickei,P. duniagarciae,P. duvalierbricenoi,P. eddysanchezi,P. eldarayae,P. eliethcantillanoae,P. jenopappi,Pseudophanerotoma alanflemingi,Ps. albanjimenezi,Ps. alejandromarini,Ps. alexsmithi,Ps. allisonbrownae,Ps. bobrobbinsi. HOMOLOBINAE:Exasticolus jennyphillipsae,E. randallgarciai,E. robertofernandezi,E. sigifredomarini,E. tomlewinsoni. HORMIINAE:Hormius anamariamongeae,H. angelsolisi,H. anniapicadoae,H. arthurchapmani,H. barryhammeli,H. carmenretanae,H. carloswalkeri,H. cesarsuarezi,H. danbrooksi,H. eddysanchezi,H. erikframstadi,H. georgedavisi,H. grettelvegae,H. gustavoinduni,H. hartmanguidoi,H. hectoraritai,H. hesiquiobenitezi,H. irenecanasae,H. isidrochaconi, H. jaygallegosi,H. jimbeachi,H. jimlewisi,H. joelcracrafti,H. johanvalerioi,H. johnburleyi,H. joncoddingtoni,H. jorgecarvajali,H. juanmatai,H. manuelzumbadoi,H. mercedesfosterae,H. modonnellyae,H. nelsonzamorai,H. pamelacastilloae,H. raycypessi,H. ritacolwellae,H. robcolwelli,H. rogerblancosegurai,H. ronaldzunigai,H. russchapmani,H. virginiaferrisae,H. warrenbrighami,H. willsflowersi. ICHNEUTINAE:Oligoneurus kriskrishtalkai,O. jorgejimenezi,Paroligoneurus elainehoaglandae,P. julianhumphriesi,P. mikeiviei. MACROCENTRINAE:Austrozele jorgecampabadali,A. jorgesoberoni,Dolichozele gravitarsis(Muesebeck, 1938),D. josefernandeztrianai,D. josephinerodriguezae,Hymenochaonia kalevikulli,H. kateperezae,H. katherinebaillieae,H. katherineellisonae,H. katyvandusenae,H. kazumifukunagae,H. keithlangdoni,H. keithwillmotti,H. kenjinishidai,H. kimberleysheldonae,H. krisnorvigae,H. lilianamadrigalae,H. lizlangleyae,Macrocentrus fredsingeri,M. geoffbarnardi,M. gregburtoni,M. gretchendailyae,M. grettelvegae,M. gustavogutierrezi,M. hannahjamesae,M. harisridhari,M. hillaryrosnerae,M. hiroshikidonoi,M. iangauldi,M. jennyphillipsae,M. jesseausubeli,M. jessemaysharkae,M. jimwhitfieldi,M. johnbrowni,M. johnburnsi,M. jonathanfranzeni,M. jonathanrosenbergi,M. jorgebaltodanoi,M. lucianocapelli. ORGILINAE:Orgilus amyrossmanae,O. carrolyoonae,O. christhompsoni,O. christinemcmahonae,O. dianalipscombae,O. ebbenielsoni,O. elizabethpennisiae,O. evertlindquisti,O. genestoermeri,O. jamesriegeri,O. jeanmillerae,O. jeffmilleri,O. jerrypowelli,O. jimtiedjei,O. johnlundbergi,O. johnpipolyi,O. jorgellorentei,O. larryspearsi,O. marlinricei,O. mellissaespinozae,O. mikesmithi,O. normplatnicki,O. peterrauchi,O. richardprimacki,O. sandraberriosae,O. sarahmirandae,O. scottmilleri,O. scottmorii,Stantonia billalleni,S. brookejarvisae,S. donwilsoni,S. erikabjorstromae,S. garywolfi,S. henrikekmani,S. luismirandai,S. miriamzunzae,S. quentinwheeleri,S. robinkazmierae,S. ruthtifferae. PROTEROPINAE:Hebichneutes tricolorSharkey & Wharton, 1994,Proterops iangauldi,P. vickifunkae,Michener charlesi. RHYSIPOLINAE:Pseudorhysipolis luisfonsecai,P. mailyngonzalezaeRhysipolis julioquirosi. ROGADINAE:Aleiodes adrianaradulovae,A. adrianforsythi,A. agnespeelleae,A. alaneaglei,A. alanflemingi,A. alanhalevii,A. alejandromasisi,A. alessandracallejae,A. alexsmithi,A. alfonsopescadori,A. alisundermieri,A. almasolisae,A. alvarougaldei,A. alvaroumanai,A. angelsolisi,A. annhowdenae,A. bobandersoni,A. carolinagodoyae,A. charlieobrieni,A. davefurthi,A. donwhiteheadi,A. doylemckeyi,A. frankhovorei,A. henryhowdeni,A. ingaShimbori & Shaw, 2020,A. johnchemsaki,A. johnkingsolveri,A. gonodontovorusShimbori & Shaw, 2020,A. manuelzumbadoi,A. mayrabonillae,A. michelledsouzae,A. mikeiviei,A. normwoodleyi,A. pammitchellae,A. pauljohnsoni,A. rosewarnerae,A. steveashei,A. terryerwini,A. willsflowersi,Bioalfa pedroleoni,B. alvarougaldei,B. rodrigogamezi,Choreborogas andydeansi,C. eladiocastroi,C. felipechavarriai,C. frankjoycei,Clinocentrus andywarreni,Cl. angelsolisi,Cystomastax alexhausmanni,Cy. angelagonzalezae,Cy. ayaigarashiae,Hermosomastax clavifemorusQuicke sp. nov.,Heterogamus donstonei,Pseudoyelicones bernsweeneyi,Stiropius bencrairi,S. berndkerni,S. edgargutierrezi,S. edwilsoni,S. ehakernae,Triraphis billfreelandi,T. billmclarneyi,T. billripplei,T. bobandersoni,T. bobrobbinsi,T. bradzlotnicki,T. brianbrowni,T. brianlaueri,T. briannestjacquesae,T. camilocamargoi,T. carlosherrerai,T. carolinepalmerae,T. charlesmorrisi,T. chigiybinellae,T. christerhanssoni,T. christhompsoni,T. conniebarlowae,T. craigsimonsi,T. defectusValerio, 2015,T. danielhubi,T. davidduthiei,T. davidwahli,T. federicomatarritai,T. ferrisjabri,T. mariobozai,T. martindohrni,T. matssegnestami,T. mehrdadhajibabaei,T. ollieflinti,T. tildalauerae,Yelicones dirksteinkei,Y. markmetzi,Y. monserrathvargasae,Y. tricolorQuicke, 1996.Y. woldaiQuicke, 1996.The following new combinations are proposed:Neothlipsis smithi(Ashmead), new combination forMicrodus smithiAshmead, 1894;Neothlipsis pygmaeus(Enderlein), new combination forMicrodus pygmaeusEnderlein, 1920;Neothlipsis unicinctus(Ashmead), new combination forMicrodus unicinctusAshmead, 1894;Therophilus anomalus(Bortoni and Penteado-Dias) new combination forPlesiocoelus anomalusBortoni and Penteado-Dias, 2015;Aerophilus areolatus(Bortoni and Penteado-Dias) new combination forPlesiocoelus areolatusBortoni and Penteado-Dias, 2015;Pneumagathis erythrogastra(Cameron) new combination forAgathis erythrogastraCameron, 1905.Dolichozele citreitarsis(Enderlein), new combination forPaniscozele citreitarsisEnderlein, 1920.Dolichozele fuscivertex(Enderlein) new combination forPaniscozele fuscivertexEnderlein, 1920. Finally,Bassus brooksiSharkey, 1998 is synonymized withAgathis erythrogastraCameron, 1905;Paniscozele griseipesEnderlein, 1920 is synonymized withDolichozele koebeleiViereck, 1911;Paniscozele carinifronsEnderlein, 1920 is synonymized withDolichozele fuscivertex(Enderlein, 1920); andPaniscozele nigricaudaEnderlein,1920 is synonymized withDolichozele quaestor(Fabricius, 1804). (originally described asOphion quaestorFabricius, 1804).

Lophomyra Schaus, 1911 (Noctuidae) is the smaller of two noctuid genera originally described by Schaus that include species recently associated with ferns (Pteridophyta), in this case Polypodiaceae, as larval food plants. Following an examination of type material and reared specimens accompanied by DNA barcode data, Lophomyra is revised to include L.tacita Schaus, 1911, L.santista (Jones, 1914), and L.commixta (Schaus, 1914), comb. n., the last of which is transferred from Chytonidia Schaus, 1914 (= Leucosigma Druce, 1908). Lophomyra is characterized based on adult and larval morphology, especially that of the male genitalia. Structures associated with the valvae are discussed with reference to dissected and in situ images. Larvae of L.commixta and L.tacita are described from images, and the recorded food plants of both species are discussed in the context of known New World noctuid pteridivores.

Pyraloid moths in the subfamily Acentropinae have developmental stages that are aquatic, they live and breathe underwater during all or part of their life cycle. We discovered and describe the previously unknown larvae of Usingeriessa onyxalis (Hampson) (Crambidae) reared on Hygrophila polysperma (Roxb.) T. Anderson (Acanthaceae) and Eleocharis sp. (Cyperaceae) in Texas.We also describe Oxyelophila callista (Forbes) feeding on at least five species of aquatic plants in Texas. Morphological and molecular characters were used to associate immatures with adults. These are the first accounts of the immature stages of U. onyxalis and the first detailed description of the immatures of O. callista, so we discuss the current classification and generic placement of these and associated species. Images and line drawings of the aquatic larvae, adults, and male and female genitalia of U. onyxalis are provided, as well as a table comparing the larval habit and morphology among genera. The current process of boiling larvae for preservation as voucher specimens and morphological study is discussed in light of current molecular techniques.

Thirty two new species ofLytopylus(Agathidinae) are described with image plates for each species:Lytopylus alejandromasisisp. n.,Lytopylus alfredomainierisp. n.,Lytopylus anamariamongeaesp. n.,Lytopylus angelagonzalezaesp. n.,Lytopylus cesarmoraisp. n.,Lytopylus eddysanchezisp. n.,Lytopylus eliethcantillanoaesp. n.,Lytopylus ericchapmanisp. n.,Lytopylus gahyunaesp. n.,Lytopylus gisukaesp. n.,Lytopylus guillermopereiraisp. n.,Lytopylus gustavoinduniisp. n.,Lytopylus hartmanguidoisp. n.,Lytopylus hernanbravoisp. n.,Lytopylus hokwonisp. n.,Lytopylus ivanniasandovalaesp. n.,Lytopylus johanvalerioisp. n.,Lytopylus josecortesisp. n.,Lytopylus luisgaritaisp. n.,Lytopylus mariamartachavarriaesp. n.,Lytopylus miguelviquezisp. n.,Lytopylus motohasegawaisp. n.,Lytopylus okchunaesp. n.,Lytopylus pablocobbisp. n.,Lytopylus robertofernandezisp. n.,Lytopylus rogerblancoisp. n.,Lytopylus salvadorlopezisp. n.,Lytopylus sangyeonisp. n.,Lytopylus sarahmeierottoaesp. n.,Lytopylus sergiobermudezisp. n.,Lytopylus sigifredomarinisp. n., andLytopylus youngcheaesp. n.A dichotomous key and a link to an electronic, interactive key are included. All specimens were reared from Lepidoptera larvae collected in Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG) and all are associated with ecological information including host caterpillar, collection date, eclosion date, caterpillar food plant, and locality. Neighbor-joining and maximum likelihood analyses of the barcode region of the mitochondrial cytochromecoxidase subunit I gene (COI DNA barcode) were conducted to aid in species delimitation.

Lower-cost tropical forest restoration methods, particularly those framed as win–win business-protected area partnerships, could dramatically increase the scale of tropical forest restoration activities, thereby providing a variety of societal and ecosystem benefits, including slowing both global biodiversity loss and climate change. Here we describe the long-term regenerative effects of a direct application of agricultural waste on tropical dry forest. In 1998, as part of an innovative agricultural waste disposal service contract, an estimated 12,000 Mg of processed orange peels and pulp were applied to a 3 ha portion of a former cattle pasture with compacted, rocky, nutrient-poor soils characteristic of prolonged fire-based land management and overgrazing in Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, northwestern Costa Rica. After 16 years, the experimental plot showed a threefold increase in woody plant species richness, a tripling of tree species evenness (Shannon Index), and a 176% increase in aboveground woody biomass over an adjacent control plot. Hemispheric photography showed significant increases in canopy closure in the area where orange waste was applied relative to control. Orange waste deposition significantly elevated levels of soil macronutrients and important micronutrients in samples taken 2 and 16 years after initial orange waste application. Our results point to promising opportunities for valuable synergisms between agricultural waste disposal and tropical forest restoration and carbon sequestration.

We describe and illustrate four new species of Struthoscelis: S. christianafigueresae new species, from Costa Rica; S. davisorum new species, from Costa Rica; S. konia new species, from Peru; and S. solamarita new species, from Venezuela. We report the first known biology for a species of Struthoscelis and revisit the generic diagnosis based on newly discovered morphology including a novel structure in the male forewing. We provide comparative illustrations of all new species and of the male genitalia of S. semiotarsa Meyrick, 1916.

Whiteness, although frequently apparent on the wings, legs, antennae, or bodies of many species of moths and butterflies, along with other colors and shades, has often escaped our attention. Here, we investigate the nanostructure and microstructure of white spots on the wings of Carystoides escalantei, a dusk-active and shade-inhabiting Costa Rican rain forest butterfly (Hesperiidae). On both males and females, two types of whiteness occur: angle dependent (dull or bright) and angle independent, which differ in the microstructure, orientation, and associated properties of their scales. Some spots on the male wings are absent from the female wings. Whether the angle-dependent whiteness is bright or dull depends on the observation directions. The angle-dependent scales also show enhanced retro-reflection. We speculate that the biological functions and evolution of Carystoides spot patterns, scale structures, and their varying whiteness are adaptations to butterfly’s low light habitat and to airflow experienced on the wing base vs. wing tip.

Background We describe 25 new species in the genus Telothyria van der Wulp, 1890 from Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica. All species herein described were reared from an ongoing inventory of wild-caught caterpillars spanning two families (Lepidoptera: Crambidae, and Tortricidae). Our study provides a concise description of each new species using morphology, life history, molecular data, and photographic documentation; a redescription of the genus, and its type species as well as a revised key to species of Telothyria occurring in the Mesoamerican region. We also suggest seven new synonymies resulting in 11 new combinations. New information The following 25 new species of Telothyria are described: T. aidani sp. n., T. alexanderi sp. n., T. auranticrus sp. n., T. auriolus sp. n., T. bicuspidata sp. n., T. carolinacanoae sp. n., T. clavata sp. n., T. cristata sp. n., T. diniamartinezae sp. n., T. duniagarciae sp. n., T. duvalierbricenoi sp. n., T. eldaarayae sp. n., T. erythropyga sp. n., T. fimbriata sp. n., T. fulgida sp. n., T. gloriashihezarae sp. n., T. grisea sp. n., T. harryramirezi sp. n., T. incisa sp. n., T. manuelpereirai sp. n., T. obscura sp. n., T. omissa sp. n., T. osvaldoespinozai sp. n., T. peltata sp. n., and T. ricardocaleroi sp. n. The following are proposed by Fleming & Wood as new generic synonyms of Telothyria: Comatacta Coquillett Syn. n., Floradalia Thompson Syn. n., Ptilomyia Curran Syn. n., Ptilomyiopsis Townsend Syn. n., Ptilomyoides Curran Syn. n., Euptilomyia Syn. n., Eutelothyria Townsend Syn. n. The following new combinations are proposed as a result of the new synonymies: Telothyria bequaerti (Curran, 1925) Comb. n., Telothyria cruenta (Giglio-Tos, 1893) Comb. n., Telothyria frontalis (Townsend, 1939) Comb. n., Telothyria insularis (Curran, 1927) Comb. n., Telothyria itaquaquecetubae (Townsend, 1931) Comb. n., Telothyria major (Thompson, 1963) Comb. n., Telothyria micropalpus (Curran, 1925) Comb. n., Telothyria minor (Thompson, 1963) Comb. n., Telothyria nautlana (Townsend, 1908) Comb. n., Telothyria plumata (Curran, 1925) Comb. n., Telothyria trinitatis (Thompson, 1963) Comb. n., Telothyria variegata (Fabricius, 1805) Comb. n. Musca tricincta Fabricius is synonymized under Telothyria variegata Fabricius, Syn. n. Telothyria schineri Fleming & Wood nom. n. is proposed as a replacement name for Miltogramma brevipennis Schiner. Additionally we provide redescriptions of two previously named species: the type species Telothyria cupreiventris (van der Wulp) due to its being the type species, and Telothyria relicta (van der Wulp) due to its having been reared as an outcome of the inventory.

We describe 22 new species in the genus Hyphantrophaga Townsend, 1892 (Diptera: Tachinidae) from Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG) in north-western Costa Rica. All species were reared from an ongoing inventory of wild-caught caterpillars spanning a variety of families (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae, Crambidae, Depressariidae, Doidae, Erebidae, Euteliidae, Gelechiidae, Geometridae, Hedylidae, Hesperiidae, Immidae, Lasiocampidae, Limacodidae, Megalopygidae, Mimaloniidae, Noctuidae, Nolidae, Notodontidae, Nymphalidae, Papilionidae, Pieridae, Phiditiidae, Pterophoridae, Pyralidae, Riodinidae, Saturniidae, Sphingidae, Thyrididae, Tortricidae and Zygaenidae). We provide a morphological description of each species together with information on life history, molecular data and photographic documentation. In addition to the new species, we provide a redescription of the genus, as well as the redescription of three previously described species, which were also collected within ACG during this study: Hyphantrophagaangustata (van der Wulp), Hyphantrophagamyersi (Aldrich) and Hyphantrophagavirilis (Aldrich & Webber). The following 22 new species of Hyphantrophaga are described: Hyphantrophagaadrianguadamuzi Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaalbopilosa Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaanacordobae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagacalixtomoragai Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagacalva Fleming & Wood sp. n.., Hyphantrophagaciriloumanai Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagadanausophaga Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagadiniamartinezae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaduniagarciae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaedwinapui Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaeldaarayae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaeliethcantillanoe Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagagilberthampiei Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaguillermopereirai Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagahazelcambroneroae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaluciariosae Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagamanuelriosi Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagamorphophaga Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophaganigricauda Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagaosvaldoespinozai Fleming & Wood sp. n., Hyphantrophagapabloumanai Fleming & Wood sp. n. and Hyphantrophagasimilis Fleming & Wood sp. n. The following are proposed by Wood as new synonyms of Hyphantrophaga Townsend, 1892: Brachymasicera Townsend, 1911 syn. n., Ommasicera Townsend, 1911 syn. n., Ophirosturmia Townsend, 1911 syn. n., Patillalia Curran, 1934 syn. n. and Ypophaemyiops Townsend, 1935 syn. n. The following nine new combinations are proposed as a result of the new synonymies: Hyphantrophagaadamsoni (Thompson, 1963), comb. n., Hyphantrophagafasciata (Curran, 1934), comb. n., Hyphantrophagaglauca (Giglio-Tos, 1893), comb. n., Hyphantrophagagowdeyi (Curran, 1926), comb. n., Hyphantrophagamyersi (Aldrich, 1933), comb. n., Hyphantrophaganigripes (Townsend, 1928), comb. n., Hyphantrophagaoptica (Schiner, 1868), comb. n., Hyphantrophagapolita (Townsend, 1911), comb. n., Hyphantrophagasubpolita (Townsend, 1912), comb. n.

We describe three new species of Rectiostoma Becker, 1982 from northwestern Costa Rica: R. annemayae Heikkila and Metz, n. sp., R. eowilsoni Heikkila and Metz, n. sp., and R. philipmayi Heikkila and Metz, n. sp. We used a data set of DNA barcodes (cytochrome oxidase I) accumulated for Lepidoptera collected at Area de Conservacion Guanacaste (ACG) to initially delimit the species, then we confirmed identities with morphology of the male and female genitalia. We provide a neighbor-joining tree with supporting statistics, illustrations of adult specimens and their genitalia, and the first host plant records for Neotropical Rectiostoma species. We also include photographs of the larvae of R. annemayae and R. eowilsoni.

The immature stages of the skipper butterfly Udranomia kikkawai from Brazil are described, including information on host plant use in cerrado savanna, shelter building behavior, and barcode sequences. The caterpillars feed on young leaves of two host food plants, Ouratea spectabilis and Ouratea hexasperma (Ochnaceae). The duration from egg hatching to adult eclosion averaged 30 days. Immature stages of U. kikkawai morphologically resemble those of other Hesperiidae by lacking head horns and complete lack of body scoli, and having a fusiform pupa with uniform color (except for mimetic false eye spots) and no projections. The young-leaf color of Udranomia caterpillars contrasts with that observed in the sister genus Drephalys , whose larvae are conspicuously colored. The food plant of Udranomia is also very uniform: all records are Ochnaceae across the distribution range of Udranomia . Based on molecular data, Brazilian populations correspond to the true U. kikkawai , which is part of a species complex that includes at least two additional undescribed species from Costa Rica. Our paper shows that free access to exchangeable database platforms can raise natural history studies to an integrative level that helps clarify patterns of diversity within taxonomically problematic groups.

The world species of the genus Exoryza (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) are revised. Ten species are recognized, including five new, authored by Fernandez-Triana: mariabustosae, richardashleyi, ritaashleyae, rosamatarritae and yeimycedenoae. The species Dolichogenidea oryzae Walker, 1994 is considered as related to Exoryza – although is not formally transferred to that genus. A dichotomous key to all species, descriptions and illustrations are provided. The only region where the genus is not yet recorded is Australasia, but this may be a collecting artifact. Host caterpillars (Lepidoptera) include species within Choreutidae, Depressariidae, Gelechiidae, and Pyraloidea – all but Pyraloidea are new host records. The status of Exoryza is questioned (it may only represent a species-group within the genus Dolichogenidea) but it is retained as a valid genus until a comprehensive phylogenetic study of Microgastrinae is available.

Since its accidental introduction to Massachusetts in the late 1800s, the European gypsy moth (EGM; Lymantria dispar dispar ) has become a major defoliator in North American forests. However, in part because females are flightless, the spread of the EGM across the United States and Canada has been relatively slow over the past 150 years. In contrast, females of the Asian gypsy moth (AGM; Lymantria dispar asiatica ) subspecies have fully developed wings and can fly, thereby posing a serious economic threat if populations are established in North America. To explore the genetic determinants of these phenotypic differences, we sequenced and annotated a draft genome of L. dispar and used it to identify genetic variation between EGM and AGM populations. The 865-Mb gypsy moth genome is the largest Lepidoptera genome sequenced to date and encodes ∼13,300 proteins. Gene ontology analyses of EGM and AGM samples revealed divergence between these populations in genes enriched for several gene ontology categories related to muscle adaptation, chemosensory communication, detoxification of food plant foliage, and immunity. These genetic differences likely contribute to variations in flight ability, chemical sensing, and pathogen interactions among EGM and AGM populations. Finally, we use our new genomic and transcriptomic tools to provide insights into genome-wide gene-expression changes of the gypsy moth after viral infection. Characterizing the immunological response of gypsy moths to virus infection may aid in the improvement of virus-based bioinsecticides currently used to control larval populations.

AsturodesAmsel, 1956, a Neotropical genus of distinctive pyraloid moths (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) with dark brown lines and silver scales on a yellow ground color on the wings and abdomen, is revised. As defined herein, the genus includes four species: A. fimbriauralis Guenee, the type species, A. bioalfae Solis, new species, A. encisoensis Solis, new species, and A. junkoshimurae Solis, new species. During this study, a petaloid scale formed by a group of coalesced setae in the abdominal androconial organs of the male genitalia was discovered and illustrated for the first time. Androconial organs in the Pyraloidea are briefly discussed. The type species and two new species, A. junkoshimurae, new species and A. bioalfae, new species, were reared from larvae feeding on the leaves of Rhamnaceae in the Area de Conservacion Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica representing 913 rearing events. This contribution is part of a long-term inventory of ACG caterpillars, their food plants, and their parasitoids, that includes COI DNA barcoding of specimens for discovery and identification.

Accurate identification of species of parasitoid Hymenoptera often requires the analysis of multiple genetic and non-genetic traits. 2. Here, we investigate the potential for nuclear polydnavirus (PDV) gene loci to provide species-level discrimination in the parasitoid wasp genus Hyposoter (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae). A region of one PDV gene, Cys-d9.2, was sequenced from nine species of wasps and an additional two PDV genes, Cys-d9.1 and Rep-c18.2, were sequenced from multiple specimens of one species of wasp. 3. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of the Cys-d9.2 sequences resulted in accurate identification of species and no intraspecific variation was observed in this gene, Cys-d9.1 or Rep-c18.2. Further statistical analyses showed that Cys-d9.2 has a high prevalence of non-synonymous nucleotide substitutions. 4. Our results support the use of Cys-d9.2 as an additional genetic locus for species delimitation in Hyposoter, highlighting the value of PDV gene informa- tion to taxonomists studying the ichneumonid subfamily, Campopleginae.

Many Neotropical species whose range is restricted to tropical montane cloud forests (TMCF) are in danger of local or total extinction due to warming and drying as air warmed by climate change ascends these mountains. While the species richness of many arthropod higher taxa declines at high elevations, those species that do reside in TMCF are often highly specialised and endemic, rendering their natural history especially interesting. However, we know little about these TMCF arthropods. One genus of ants, Adelomyrmex Emery, 1897 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is characteristic of many TMCFs in Central America, and exemplifies this pattern. While workers of this genus are very common in leaf litter samples, winged males and winged queens have been unknown and nests have never been observed for most species. Here we report how a combination of affordable digital field microscopes and DNA barcoding has allowed nest discovery and documentation and linked male and worker Adelomyrmex. Based on this work, we have now learned that male Adelomyrmex can be quite abundant locally.

Background Although high-throughput sequencers (HTS) have largely displaced their Sanger counterparts, the short read lengths and high error rates of most platforms constrain their utility for amplicon sequencing. The present study tests the capacity of single molecule, real-time (SMRT) sequencing implemented on the SEQUEL platform to overcome these limitations, employing 658 bp amplicons of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I gene as a model system. Results By examining templates from more than 5000 species and 20,000 specimens, the performance of SMRT sequencing was tested with amplicons showing wide variation in GC composition and varied sequence attributes. SMRT and Sanger sequences were very similar, but SMRT sequencing provided more complete coverage, especially for amplicons with homopolymer tracts. Because it can characterize amplicon pools from 10,000 DNA extracts in a single run, the SEQUEL can reduce greatly reduce sequencing costs in comparison to first (Sanger) and second generation platforms (Illumina, Ion). Conclusions SMRT analysis generates high-fidelity sequences from amplicons with varying GC content and is resilient to homopolymer tracts. Analytical costs are low, substantially less than those for first or second generation sequencers. When implemented on the SEQUEL platform, SMRT analysis enables massive amplicon characterization because each instrument can recover sequences from more than 5 million DNA extracts a year. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12864-018-4611-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

We describe five new species in the genus Vibrissina Rondani from Area de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG). All species were reared from wild-caught sawfly larvae (Hymenoptera: Symphyta: Argidae and Tenthredinidae). We provide a morphological description of each species together with information on life history, molecular data, and photographic documentation. Five new species of Vibrissina Rondani: Vibrissina randycurtisisp. n., V. randyjonesisp. n., V. robertwellsisp. n., V. danmartinisp. n., V. hallwachsorumsp. n.

Whiteness, although frequently apparent on the wings, legs, antennae, or bodies of many species of moths and butterflies, has often escaped our attention. Here, we investigate the nanostructure and microstructure of white spots on the wings of Carystoides escalantei, a dusk-active and shade-inhabiting Costa Rican rain forest butterfly (Hesperiidae). We identify two types of whiteness: angle dependent and angle independent. We speculate that the biological functions and evolution of Carystoides spot patterns, scale structures, and their varying whiteness are adaptations to the butterfly’s low light habitat and to airflow experienced on the wing base vs. wing tip during flight. Sex and species differences in the location of angle-dependent white spots on the wings may function in both intraspecific and interspecific communication.

Many animals are inhabited by microbial symbionts that influence their hosts’ development, physiology, ecological interactions, and evolutionary diversification. However, firm evidence for the existence and functional importance of resident microbiomes in larval Lepidoptera (caterpillars) is lacking, despite the fact that these insects are enormously diverse, major agricultural pests, and dominant herbivores in many ecosystems. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and quantitative PCR, we characterized the gut microbiomes of wild leaf-feeding caterpillars in the United States and Costa Rica, representing 124 species from 16 families. Compared with other insects and vertebrates assayed using the same methods, the microbes we detected in caterpillar guts were unusually low-density and highly variable among individuals. Furthermore, the abundance and composition of leaf-associated microbes were reflected in the feces of caterpillars consuming the same plants. Thus, microbes ingested with food are present (though possibly dead or dormant) in the caterpillar gut, but host-specific, resident symbionts are largely absent. To test whether transient microbes might still contribute to feeding and development, we conducted an experiment on field-collected caterpillars of the model speciesManduca sexta. Antibiotic suppression of gut bacterial activity did not significantly affect caterpillar weight gain, development, or survival. The high pH, simple gut structure, and fast transit times that typify caterpillar digestive physiology may prevent microbial colonization. Moreover, host-encoded digestive and detoxification mechanisms likely render microbes unnecessary for caterpillar herbivory. Caterpillars illustrate the potential ecological and evolutionary benefits of independence from symbionts, a lifestyle which may be widespread among animals.