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Farallonophilus cavernicolus (Rentz, 1972) is a member of the family Rhaphidophoridae (camel crickets) endemic to the Farallon Islands. Rentz (1972) hypothesized that F. cavernicolus had characteristics between those of the genera Pristoceuthophilus Rehn, 1903 and Ceuthophilus Scudder, 1862 but closest to the genus Pristoceuthophilus. Currently Pristoceuthophilus is placed in the tribe Pristoceuthophilini and Ceuthophilus in the tribe Ceuthophilini. Farallonophilus cavernicolus is currently placed within the Pristoceuthophilini (Cigliano et al. 2018). We tested this hypothesis and classification by performing mtDNA phylogenetic analysis using collected samples and GenBank sequences. Our results indicate general agreement with current subfamily Ceuthophilinae (which contains the tribes Pristoceuthophilini and Ceuthophilini) relationships except that F. cavernicolus appears to be outside both the Pristoceuthophilini and the Ceuthophilini. Our results suggest that the F. cavernicolus lineage diverged from the Pristoceuthophilini and Ceuthophilini roughly 8.9MYA, roughly 1.6 million years before the Pristoceuthophilini and Ceuthophilini diverged from each other.

We report the development of eight polymorphic microsatellite loci for the Greater Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus), a terrestrial cuckoo distributed in the US Southwest and Mexico. These markers will be useful for population genetics and molecular ecology studies of this bird.

A new species of Trichogramma that parasitizes Sialis melania eggs is described as Trichogramma tajimaense Yashiro, Hirose and Honda, sp. nov. from Japan. Its phylogenetic position is based on a DNA-based analysis, and data regarding its male wing polymorphism are also presented. The view that T. tajimaense is closely related to T. semblidis, another parasitoid of Sialis eggs, is supported by the results of a phylogenetic analysis, as well as by the biological and morphological similarities between both species. Trichogramma tajimaense is also similar in male wing polymorphism to T. kurosuae, a gregarious egg parasitoid of the lepidopteran Ivela auripes, as both Trichogramma species exhibit male wing trimorphism (fully alate, brachypterous and apterous forms) in contrast to the male wing dimorphism (fully alate and apterous forms) of T. semblidis. However, no phylogenetic analysis reveals a close relationship between T. tajimaense and T. kurosuae, and a difference exists between these two species in the mean percentage of flightless (brachypterous and apterous) males that emerge from a host egg mass; 96% of T. tajimaense males are incapable of flight, whereas about 50% of T. kurosuae males are flightless. Because all or almost all males of T. semblidis parasitizing Sialis eggs are apterous, T. tajimaense is more similar to T. semblidis than to T. kurosuae in the proportion of flightless males. In addition, male wing polymorphisms of Trichogramma in relation to mating systems could also show a similarity between T. tajimaense and T. semblidis when considering both species as quasi-gregarious parasitoids of Sialis eggs.

Seasonal and habitat calliphorid abundance and distribution were examined weekly for two years (2001–2003) in Santa Clara County, California, using sentinel traps baited with bovine liver. Of the 34,389 flies examined in three defined habitats (rural, urban, and riparian), 38% of the total catch represented Compsomyiops callipes (Bigot) and 23% represented Phormia regina (Meigen). Other flies collected in this survey included Calliphora vomitoria (Linnaeus), Calliphora latifrons (Hough), Lucilia sericata (Meigen), Lucilia cuprina (Wiedemann), and Lucilia mexicana (Macquart), which is a new record for the area. Multivariate MANOVA and ANOVA ( P ≤ 0.05) analysis indicate significant seasonal habitat preference for all fly species examined. This information may be used to identify potentially forensically important fly species within Santa Clara County, California.

We provide distribution and abundance information for Farallonophilus cavernicolusRentz, 1972, the Farallon camel cricket, and other commonly encountered ground dwelling arthropods (the tenebrionid beetles Coniontis sp. and Eleodes parvicollis Eschscholtz, 1829, Isopoda, and Microcoryphia) recorded during visits to the Southeast Farallon Island (SEFI) from 2013 through 2015. We found cricket populations in six caves and rock crevices, which were mapped and surveyed. One cave accounted for the greatest cricket numbers, with counts averaging 2787 ± 277 individuals, while the other five caves never exceeded 250 individuals; crickets were most abundant from late September to early November. Behavioral observations and pitfall trapping indicate that crickets leave caves at night and prefer walking along the outer surfaces of walls rather than over open ground and, in some cases, may inhabit large crevices on cliff facings. Crickets were not commonly found under boards, rocks, or seabird burrows on the island, although diversity and numbers of other arthropods were significantly greater under artificial board salamander refuges vs. natural ground cover and during the wetter winter and spring seasons.

Crown whitefly, Aleuroplatus coronata (Quaintance 1900), and gelatinous whitefly, A. gelatinosus (Cockerell 1898) were re-described from syntype specimens and from material recently collected in southern California. The recently collected material includes all postembryonic life stages which are all described herein. The original descriptions focused on the fourth instar or “pupa” with little or no mention of other life stages. The 16S rDNA of both species was extracted from adults, amplified by PCR, and sequenced. Sequence alignment between the two species indicates a high degree of divergence as they show only an 80% degree of similarity.

Arthropod species diversity was compared between two human corpses confined to a small geographic area during the winter and summer of 2004 in Santa Clara County, California. One of the primary flies collected from the corpse in the summer (Compsomyiops callipes) as well as two silphid species (Nicrophorus nigritus and Necrophilus hydrophiloides) in the winter appear to be new collection records on human remains. Different arthropod species were collected from both corpses and, in general, arthropods were more numerous on the corpse found in the summer. These differences can most likely be attributed to seasonal variation. This comparison demonstrates how seasonality impacts arthropod succession, often an important indicator of postmortem interval.

The cabbage aphid (Brevicoryne brassicae L.) is the primary broccoli (Brassica oleracea L.) pest in Monterey County. These aphids' ability to contaminate a broccoli head has sometimes led to zero-tolerance spray thresholds. To improve on these management practices, aphid arrival time, within-plant colony location, and abundance of natural enemies were tested against infestation of organic broccoli heads at harvest. Cabbage aphids predominately colonized the outer leaves of a broccoli plant. These colonies, however, did not significantly influence infestation at harvest. Center-located aphids were correlated with head infestation for both field seasons, as were aphids on leaf 2 in 2002. Aphid arrival time into a field was strongly correlated with infestation at harvest, with early arriving aphids being less likely to infest a head. This was in part caused by natural enemies, particularly syrphid larvae (Syrphidae), which were in greatest abundance in response to early aphid colonizers. Natural enemies showed a capability to positively affect infestation at harvest, although their success seemed dependent on sufficient early season cabbage aphid arrivals. Therefore, future research efforts should focus on management practices that encourage the early establishment of natural enemies.

Numerous errors and confusion in the literature concerning the genus Trichogramma in Japan have necessitated a formal review of this genus. This review corrects and updates Trichogramma host and distribution records from Hokkaido to the Ryukyu Islands, redescribes and designates a lectotype for T. jezoense Ishii, records two Trichogramma species new to Japan (T. ostriniae Pang and Chen and T. lingulatum Pang and Chen) and describes three new species (T. yabui Honda and Taylor, T. okinawae Honda, and T. aomoriense Honda). Additionally a key to the species is provided for the 14 known Japanese species as are ITS-2 DNA sequences and SEM micrographs of male genital capsules for the majority of the species to aid biocontrol workers in Trichogramma identification.

A new species of Trichogramma (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) from Hokkaido that is uniquely univoltine and apparently host specific on the lepidopterous pest Ivela auripes (Butler) (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae) is described and its biology is reviewed.

We compared egg parasitization of two sporadic pests of avocado, Persea americana Miller, by Trichogramma platneri Nagarkatti reared on Sitotroga cerealella (Oliver) (=smaller parasitoids) with those reared on Trichoplusia ni (Hubner) (= larger parasitoids) in the laboratory. Large T. platneri females invested less time than smaller parasitoids in obtaining offspring from eggs of either Amorbia cuneana Walsingham or Sabulodes aegrotata (Guenee). Furthermore, large T. platneri invested substantially more time (ca. 3-fold) in obtaining offspring from S. aegrotata than A. cuneana eggs. These investment times positively correlated with percentage egg-load retained by a female after it had ceased exploiting a host species. This occurred even though the offspring produced by a parasitoid from either host species manifested the same size and fecundity (= quality). Host species utilization in the laboratory mirrored that observed in the avocado groves of southern California following augmentative release of commercially produced T. platneri (Oatman & Platner, 1985). Explanations for these differences in host utilization are discussed along with their implications for augmentative biological control.

A simple, inexpensive chamber was developed and tested as an evaluative tool to monitor Trichogramma cordubensis dispersal in the laboratory. The chamber consisted of a continuous, winding channel which was cut into an aluminum block. Wasps were released at one end of the channel and allowed to walk in the channel for 21 h and to parasitize Mamestra brassicae eggs placed 3.4 m from the point of wasp introduction. Comparisons between two T. cordubensis populations demonstrated that one population (TCM) dispersed more in the chamber and located host eggs more successfully than the other population (TCD). Subsequent greenhouse releases confirmed that the TCM population dispersed more readily and had significantly higher parasitism rates on sentinel Ephestia kuehniella eggs on tomato plants. The potential utilization of this chamber as a tool to evaluate quality of Trichogramma populations, mainly dispersal activity, is discussed.

Two molecular methods were developed to distinguish between five Trichogramma (Hymenoptera, Trichogrammatidae) species which occur naturally in tomato fields of Portugal: Trichogramma cordubensis, T. evanescens, T. turkestanica, T. pintoi, and T. bourarachae. The methods used were: (1) electrophoresis of PCR-amplified ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2) followed by restriction endonuclease digestions and (2) esterase electrophoresis. Dichotomous keys based on each of the methods are provided for easy and quick species differentiation.

To determine the degree of within-population diversity of a parthenogenesis-inducing Wolbachia symbiont in the parasitic wasp Trichogramma kaykai Pinto, Platner & Stouthamer, we established >200 isofemale lines of this (partly) parthenogenetic species from the Californian Mojave Desert. These were screened with Wolbachia-specific polymerase chain reaction primers. An infection rate of 12.4% was found. We then generated 45 DNA sequences for theftsZ gene and compared these with 19 sequences from other Trichogramma species. We found a single nucleotide position diagnostic for the T. kaykai symbiont. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that this diagnostic position is a derived character and that all the Wolbachia symbionts in T. kaykai are very closely related; this suggests that all of them originate from a single, ancestral infection.

The egg parasitoid Anagrus nigriventris Girault is an important natural enemy of the beet leafhopper, Circulifer tenellus (Baker) which has a broad host range that includes cultivated sugar beets and the weed, Russian thistle. When parasitoids were reared on leafhopper eggs deposited in sugar beets, females were attracted to sugar beet volatiles and preferred them over a blank control and over Russian thistle volatiles in Y- tube olfactometer tests. No preference was detected for either plant by female wasps that were reared on Russian thistle. Wasps reared on Russian thistle and allowed an oviposition experience on sugar beet showed a strong attraction to sugar beet volatiles; however, wasps reared on sugar beets and allowed oviposition experience on Russian thistle demonstrated no preference between the two plants. The implications of parasitoid response towards plant volatiles and their importance in biological control are discussed.

We compared the morphological characteristics of the scale covers and bodies of 2 economically important scale species, California red scale, Aonidiella aurantii (Maskell), and oleander scale, Aspidiotus nerii (Bouche), to determine their protective value against predation by the coccinellid Rhyzobius lophanthae (Blaisdell). We also compared the morphology of the mandibles of R. lophanthae with that of Chilocorus cacti (L.), a specific predator of diaspidid scales. A higher percentage of R. lophanthae larvae survived when they fed on 2nd- and 3rd-instar A. aurantii and all stages of A. nerii than when they fed on gravid and parturient A. aurantii . Adult R. lophanthae took longer to consume 3rd-instar A. aurantii than 3rd-instar A. nerii and were frequently unable to penetrate the scale body of gravid and parturient A. aurantii . Predator preference for scale stage and species reflected the ease with which it was able to penetrate the scale cover and body of its prey. The hardened scale cover of gravid and parturient A. aurantii when coupled with the sclerotized scale body provided the scale with substantial immunity to predation by R. lophanthae for approximately two-thirds of the scale life span. We conclude that R. lophanthae is unlikely to suppress A. aurantii populations below those of economic concern when it is the sole biological control agent present. In contrast, the entire life span of A. nerii is vulnerable to predation, and this species appears to be suppressed to low densities by R. lophanthae .

Species of Aphelinoidea Girault known to parasitize eggs of the beet leafhopper, Circulifer tenellus (Baker), in California were studied using both morphological and molecular characters. These include two introduced species (from Iran and Turkmenistan) as well as two indigenous species, A. zarehi n. sp. and A. roja n. sp. Earlier studies had identified the indigenous Aphelinoidea in California and other arid western states as A. plutella Girault, but we did not find putative A. plutella in our surveys of parasitoids of beet leafhopper eggs in California. We conclude that the earlier studies misidentified other indigenous species as A. plutella, and that at least some of these misidentifications were actually A. zarehi, one of the two new species described herein. A key to Aphelinoidea species known to parasitize beet leafhopper eggs in California is given. The key also includes A. plutella whose hosts are not known and for which we have no evidence as occurring in the western United States. DNA sequences support the separation of the four Aphelinoidea species reared from beet leafhopper eggs in California. Cross-mating tests also failed to show interbreeding between the taxa. Data are presented on developmental times of the two introduced species of Aphelinoidea.