a1_The first molecular assessment of phylogenetic relationships of cladorchiid digeneans (superfamily Paramphistomoidea Fischoeder, 1901) from freshwater fishes based on 28S rDNA, ITS2 and cox1 sequences reveals the subfamilies Dadayiinae Fukui, 1929 and Kalitrematinae Travassos, 1933 as non-monophyletic, whereas Dadaytrema Travassos, 1931 represented by three species is monophyletic. Fourteen species of cladorchiids were found in characiform, perciform and siluriform fishes in the Neotropical Region (Brazil and Peru), with numerous new host and geographical records. The first scanning electron micrographs of seven species are presented. Two new species of dadayiine and one new species of kalitrematine paramphistomes are described. Microrchis macrovarium sp. n. from Pimelodella cristata (Müller et Troschel) (type host), Tetranematichthys quadrifilis (Kner) and Pterodoras granulosus (Valenciennes) in Brazil and Peru differs from all three congeners in that the testes are directly tandem, not oblique, and that the ovary, between the caecal ends, is widely separated from the testes. Pronamphistoma philippei sp. n. from Heros sp. in Brazil is distinguished from the type and only species, Pronamphistoma cichlasomae Thatcher, 1992, by the absence of the anterior collar-like expansion present in the type species, the presence of extramural rather than intramural pharyngeal sacs, and the unusual development of the dorsal and ventral exterior circular muscle fibre series in the acetabulum., a2_Pseudocladorchis romani sp. n. from P. granulosus (type host), Brachyplatystoma vaillantii (Valenciennes), Calophysus macropterus (Lichtenstein), Megalodoras uranoscopus (Eigenmann et Eigenmann) and Oxydoras niger (Valenciennes) in Brazil and Peru, is most similar to Pseudocladorchis nephrodorchis Daday, 1907 but differs in the shape of the testes (irregular, versus reniform in the latter species) and the size of the ovary (as large as, or larger than, the testes in the new species). The generic diagnosis of Pronamphistoma Thatcher, 1992 is amended. Dadaytremoides parauchenipteri Lunaschi, 1989 is transferred to Doradamphistoma Thatcher, 1979 as D. parauchenipteri (Lunaschi, 1989) comb. n. based on morphological and molecular evidence., Camila Pantoja, Tomáš Scholz, José Luis Luque, Arlene Jones., and Obsahuje bibliografii
This is the first record of the harlequin ladybird Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) occurring in the Caucasus (Sochi region of Krasnodar territory, Russia). All the adults collected in the field there and reared from collected eggs, larvae and pupae, and their progeny were H. axyridis f. succinea, which is the most common morph in natural populations in South-Eastern Asia and the Russian Far East as well as in invasive populations in the Americas and Europe. In contrast in Western Siberia f. axyridis predominates and this indicates that an occasional introduction from the closest native range in Siberia cannot be considered as the source of the Caucasian population. It is known that populations of H. axyridis can also differ in their photoperiodic responses. The results of earlier experiments on H. axyridis, which originated from the Russian Far East, indicate that the threshold day lengths for the acceleration of preimaginal development and deceleration of reproductive maturation were 13–14 h, while for the invasive populations of this species in Europe these two thresholds are approximately 12 h. In the population studied, the thresholds for both of these photoperiodic responses were also approximately 12 h. Thus, it is concluded that the population of H. axyridis studied is a further eastward continuation of the invasion of this species in Europe., Natalia A. Balyakova, Sergey Ya. Reznik., and Seznam literatury
Coccinellids are effective predators and a key component of the predator guild in rice ecosystems. In order to enhance their efficacy, a study was undertaken to assess the seasonal movement of coccinellids into rice fields and the role of the surrounding flora on their colonization. The seasonal abundance of coccinellids and their prey was recorded on the rice crop and the surrounding flora at fortnightly intervals from 2012 to 2015. Coccinellid prey range was assessed using PAGE electrophoresis. The herbivorous insects associated with weeds were Aphis gossypii Glover, Aphis craccivora (Koch), Cicadulina bipunctata (Melichar), Schizaphis graminum (Rondani), Sitobion sp., Thaia oryzivora Ghauri and Zygina maculifrons Matsumura. Of the species of coccinellids recorded in rice fields, Harmonia octomaculata (Fabricius), Micraspis discolor (F.), Propylea dissecta (Mulsant), Coccinella transversalis Fabricius, Cheilomenes sexmaculata (Fabricius), Scymnus nubilus Mulsant and Brumoides suturalis (Fabricius) were also recorded on weeds. The esterase profiles indicated that the leafhoppers and aphids on the weeds were the prey of the coccinellids before they colonized the rice fields. The coccinellids recorded on the weeds showed bands corresponding to the insects present on the weeds. Beetles collected from rice fields had different bands, some of which corresponded to the green leafhopper (GLH) Nephotettix virescens Distant, the brown planthopper (BPH) Nilaparvata lugens Stal and white backed planthopper (WBPH) Sogatella furcifera Hovarth infesting rice. In addition, some bands corresponded to hoppers and aphids that were present on the surrounding flora. The results indicate the importance of surrounding flora in the conservation and colonization of rice fields by coccinellids., Chitra Shanker, Lydia Chintagunta, Sampathkumar Muthusamy, Sunil Vailla, Amudhan Srinivasan, Gururaj Katti., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The aim of this study was to investigate whether haemocytes of Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) like human blood phagocytes. The production of ROS was measured first using luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence of un-stimulated and stimulated (four activators with different modes of action) haemolymph or isolated haemocytes. However, spontaneous and activated production of ROS remained at the background level. In subsequent experiments an ultrasensitive fluorescence method using Amplex Red reagent to detect hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) was used. After optimization, Amplex Red was successfully used for determining H2O2 production by both un-stimulated and stimulated haemocytes. To determine the affect of pH and ions on the measurement, several diluent solutions were tested. This revealed that Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions are less important for the reaction in insect than mammalian cells. Among the activators tested, phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and calcium ionophore (Ca-I) had the best stimulatory effect on insect samples, while opsonised zymosan particles (OZP) was the best activator for human phagocytes. In conclusion, the haemocytes of G. mellonella produce H2O2 as an important innate immunity factor, but under different conditions and in different amounts, which probably results in them being less effective in killing microbes than human phagocytes. and Ondřej Vašíček, Ivana Papežíková, Pavel Hyršl.
The aim of the present study was to find groups of moths suitable for estimating changes in the abundance and richness of local and regional biodiversity in a temperate forest. We captured macro-moths from May to October over a 5-year period (2005–2009) at various sites in Mt. Jirisan National Park (JNP) in southern Korea. Six taxa were selected based on a strong correlation between the number of species in these taxa and total number of species of large moths: Ennominae (Enn), Arctiinae (Arc), Hermininae (Her), Notodontidae (Not), Drepanidae (Dre) and Ophiderinae (Oph). Of these, combinations of four groups were found to have the best predictive capability. We determined whether these indicator groups could be used to reveal mean differences in species abundance according to spatial (forest type, altitude) and temporal variables (monsoon season) since moth composition and abundances were closely related with these variables. The mean differences in the groups of moths in the two types of forest (Arc, Dre, Enn, Not), two altitudes (Dre, Enn, Her, Oph) and two seasons (Dre, Enn, Oph) were significant. Overall, it was revealed that a set of four groups, including two taxa (Dre and Enn), could be used to show differences in local and regional biodiversity of moths in southern Korean temperate forest., Jeong-Seop An, Sei-Woon Choi., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Four new species of Acanthobothrium van Beneden, 1850 are described from guitarfish, Rhynchobatus cf. djiddensis (Forsskål), collected from the Gulf of Oman and Persian Gulf. Acanthobothrium janineae sp. n., a category 1 species, differs from all congeners in category 1 by having a long vagina extending into the vas deferens and different, proglottid and testis number except Acanthobothrium hypermekkolpos Fyler et Caira, 2010. Acanthobothrium fylerae sp. n., a category 1 species, can be differentiated by a combination of characters including the total length, proglottid and testis number, cirrus sac shape, and the length of the vagina and ovarian lobes. Both new species are similar to A. hypermekkolpos reported from Rhynchobatus laevis (Bloch et Schneider) from Australia in their scolex proper length, hook size and muscular pad, respectively. Acanthobothrium asrinae sp. n., a category 1 species, differs from other category 1 species by the shape of its hooks and the position of the tubercle at the mid-length of the axial prongs; in this respect it resembles A. bartonae Campbell et Beveridge, 2002 reported from Australia. Acanthobothrium jamesi sp. n. is among six category 1 species with post-ovarian testes. It differs from these species by total length, proglottid and testis number and the extension of the ovarian lobes. Although it is thought that R. djiddensis occurs in the region, the identities of the hosts of the newly described Acanthobothrium species await verification. There are two forms of host in the region and were designated as R. cf. djiddensis 1 and R. cf. djiddensis 2. More taxonomic work and the use of molecular techniques are needed to resolve the true identity of the host species., Loghman Maleki, Masoumeh Malek, Harry W. Palm., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Functional responses at each developmental stage of predators and intraspecific competition associated with direct interactions among them provide insights into developing biological control strategies for pests. The functional responses of Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) at each developmental stage of Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner) and intraspecific competition among predators were evaluated under laboratory conditions. The results showed that all stages of H. axyridis displayed a type II functional response to M. sacchari. Based on Holling's disc equation, the instantaneous searching rates were highest (a) and handling time was shortest (Th) of fourth instar larvae (a = 0.8818; Th = 3.9 min) and female adults (a = 0.9881; Th = 3.0 min) at larval and adult stages, respectively. The coefficients of mutual interference (m) assessed by the intraspecific competition equation were higher for fourth instar larvae (m = 0.4764) and female adults (m = 0.4183). The present study indicates that fourth instar and female adult were more effective stages of H. axyridis in the context of biological control but suitable predator densities need to be considered before natural enemy release., Pengxiang Wu, Jing Zhang, Muhammad Haseeb, Shuo Yan, Lambert Kanga, Runzhi Zhang., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Discontinuous gas exchange (DGE) is the main (23 individuals) breathing mode in resting adult Platynus assimilis. Few of the beetles tested (13 individuals) displayed a pattern of cyclic gas exchange or CGE. The burst of CO2 release in DGE and CGE was always accompanied by abdominal pumping (active ventilation or V). Seven individuals displayed a pattern of continuous respiration, characterized by regular abdominal pumping. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) in continuously breathing beetles was higher than in those using DGE and CGE. After treatment with sub-lethal doses of alpha-cypermethrin DGE ceased. Treated beetles were characterized by continuous pumping and almost regular periods of activity. RMR increased significantly after treatment with a pyrethroid., Irja Kivimägi ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury