Progeny of the flesh fly Sarcophaga bullata exposed to short day length show a maternal effect that prevents the expression of pupal diapause. Although ecological aspects of this effect are well studied, not enough is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying this maternal effect. In this study, two-dimensional electrophoresis was performed to detect differences of the abundance of certain proteins in the ovaries of this fly kept under long day and short day conditions for 2 days after eclosion. Eleven proteins that were abundant and showed significant changes were selected for mass spectrometric identification. Ovary proteins that increased in abundance under short-day conditions were similar to twinstar CG4254-PA, muscle protein 20-like protein, GA13413-PA, gene analogous to small peritrophins (Gasp CG10287-PA) and Ribosomal protein LP1 CG4087-PA. Ovary proteins that decreased in abundance under short-day conditions were similar to the ATP synthase beta subunit, fk506-binding protein and storage protein-binding protein. The 2-D proteome maps included 2 additional unknown proteins that were more abundant and 1 that was less abundant in the ovaries of 2-day old short-day females. Twinstar CG4254-PA, muscle protein 20-like protein and GA13413-PA harbour an actin-binding domain. That the 3 actin-binding proteins increase in abundance suggests that it is likely that an alteration in the actin cytoskeleton is involved in this maternal effect in the flesh fly., Aiqing Li ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Quametopia gen. n. is established on the basis of recent phylogenetic analysis of taxa formerly assembled under the genus Mumetopia Melander, 1913 to include M. terminalis (Loew, 1863) and two new closely related Nearctic species of Anthomyzidae. The new genus is diagnosed and its phylogenetic relationships discussed. Quametopia terminalis (Loew, 1863) comb. n. is transferred from Mumetopia and redescribed based on revision of the type material (lectotypes of Anthophilina terminalis Loew, 1863 and its synonym Mumetopia nitens Melander, 1913 are designated) and other extensive material. Quametopia clintonia sp. n. and Q. amplistylus sp. n. (both from Canada, USA) are described and relationships of all three Quametopia species discussed. Immature stages of Q. terminalis and Q. clintonia sp. n. obtained by means of adult-to-adult rearing are described (1st- and 2nd-instar larvae for the first time in the family Anthomyzidae) and illustrated. Keys to adults, eggs, larvae and puparia of Quametopia species are presented. Biology (habitat and host-plant associations, life history) of Q. terminalis and Q. clintonia sp. n. are studied in detail and their ecological separation demonstrated. Distribution of all Quametopia species is reviewed. and Jindřich Roháček, Kevin N. Barber.
Diglyphus isaea Walker (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) is an important ectoparasitic wasp of many leaf miners. Ability of D. isaea to find hosts placed in artificial mines and for its larvae to pupate when the larva is not in a mine was studied. Artificial mines consisted of slits cut in index card sandwiched between two cover slips. Almost 80% of the neonate larvae of D. isaea located host larvae in artificial mines compared to only 50% of those not in a mine. Mature larvae removed from mines did not construct normal pupal chambers. Nonetheless, they pupated and emerged successfully. Larvae of Liriomyza sativae Blanchard (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in mines are more likely to be attacked than those not in mines. Moreover, when close to a host larva this parasitoid can use vibrational cues to locate the larva in a mine. In addition, this parasitoid also did not always use volatile and gustatory cues for short range location of hosts. However, adult females of D. isaea more quickly located L. sativae larvae in the presence of the odour of juice extracted from an uninfested host plant. We conclude by proposing that the host mine is the medium by which the vibrations generated by the host larva are transmitted, which are probably the most important cue used by female D. isaea searching for hosts. That is this parasitoid first perceives mines not host larvae. These results will be helpful for developing techniques for the mass rearing of D. isaea in the future., De Yu Zou, Hong Yin Chen, Li Sheng Zhang., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Eristalis pertinax varies seasonally, with the spring morph more hairy than the summer morph. We measured the size and the venation of the wings of the seasonal morphs. Wings of the spring morph were significantly larger than those of the summer morph and those of females were larger than those of males. There were also significant differences between the morphs in wing venation and their allometric relationship. The differences between sexes were larger than differences between seasonal morphs. The allometry can account for the sexual dimorphism but not seasonal dimorphism. The differences between seasonal morphs in wing shape were relatively large with very few intermediate individuals. The differences were comparable to those between two related species of Syrphidae. Genetic analyses based on markers in nuclear and mitochondrial genomes unequivocally revealed that spring and summer morphs of E. pertinax form a single population and should not be regarded as separate taxa. Thus seasonal variability in this species is a rare example of polyphenism in Diptera., Lukasz E. Mielczarek, Andrzej Oleksa, Katarzyna Meyza, Adam Tofilski., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The expression of sexually dimorphic phenotypes from a shared genome between males and females is a longstanding puzzle in evolutionary biology. Increasingly, research has made use of transcriptomic technology to examine the molecular basis of sexual dimorphism through gene expression studies, but even this level of detail misses the metabolic processes that ultimately link gene expression with the whole organism phenotype. We use metabolic profiling in Drosophila melanogaster to complete this missing step, with a view to examining variation in male and female metabolic profiles, or metabolomes, throughout development. We show that the metabolome varies considerably throughout larval, pupal and adult stages. We also find significant sexual dimorphism in the metabolome, although only in pupae and adults, and the extent of dimorphism increases throughout development. We compare this to transcriptomic data from the same population and find that the general pattern of increasing sex differences throughout development is mirrored in RNA expression. We discuss our results in terms of the usefulness of metabolic profiling in linking genotype and phenotype to more fully understand the basis of sexually dimorphic phenotypes., Fiona C. Ingleby, Edward H. Morrow., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Phoridae (scuttle flies) are widely distributed, occur in many types of habitats and are ecologically versatile, which makes them an excellent bioindicator group for evaluating faunal diversity. The structure of scuttle fly communities was compared in two Mediterranean habitats in the Montseny Natural Park (Catalonia, Spain) that differ in vegetation and microclimate: beech forest and highland scrubland. 3684 male individuals belonging to 135 species of scuttle flies were identified. Scuttle flies were more abundant in beech forest than scrubland. Observed and estimated species richness were lower in scrubland than in beech forest, while diversity was similar in both habitats. Community evenness was greater in scrubland than beech forest. Therefore, the percentage of dominant and subdominant species was higher in scrubland than beech forest, while the percentage of rare species was higher in beech forest than scrubland. Scuttle fly species composition was significantly different in the two habitats, but it was similar among plots within the same habitat. Megaselia pectoralis (Wood, 1910) and Megaselia subpleuralis (Wood, 1909) were the dominant species in beech forest, while Megaselia pusilla (Meigen, 1830), Megaselia pumila (Meigen, 1830), Megaselia superciliata (Wood, 1910) and Megaselia diversa (Wood, 1909) were the dominant species in scrubland. Trophic specialization was higher in beech forest than scrubland. Saprophages were the dominant trophic group in beech forest, while fungivores and polyphages were dominant in scrubland. The high biodiversity of scuttle flies recorded in the Montseny Natural Park indicates that there is also a high diversity of other taxa there and that these Mediterranean mountains are of high conservation status., Carlos García-Romera, José A. Barrientos., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Herbivory on liverworts is rarely reported. We studied the effects of feeding by larvae of the sciarid fly Scatopsciara cunicularius on the growth of the thalloid liverwort Marchantia polymorpha at two different constant temperatures, 12°C and 22°C. Larvae reared at the lower temperature fed slower and over a longer period of time, which resulted in more damage and a greater reduction in the growth of the liverwort than that caused by those reared at the higher temperature. The reduction in growth of the liverwort was positively density-dependent in terms of number of larvae at both temperatures. These results indicate that the larvae of S. cunicularius are likely to be an effective means of controlling M. polymorpha, which is a common weed in plant nurseries and greenhouse cultures., Weerachon Sawangproh, Johan Ekroos, Nils Cronberg., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Larvae of Hermetia illucens feed on different types of decomposing organic matter and their development depends on the quality and quantity of food ingested. In this study the effect of three artificial diets was analyzed, namely hen feed, meat meal and a mixture of these two diets. The effects of diet on ovarian development, size, mortality, duration of the larval and pupal stages and sex ratio were studied. Results indicate that the meat meal diet was the worst of the three diets in terms of percentage mortality and duration of the larval and pupal stages. We conclude that food ingested by the black soldier fly larvae determines both the physiological and morphological development of the adults., Paola Gobbi, Anabel Martínez-Sánchez, Santos Rojo., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Specific associations between species frequently occur in ecological interactions. The aim of this study was to determine the preferences of anthomyiid flies of the genus Botanophila for particular species of fungi as sites for laying eggs and as food for both larvae and adults. The associations of their eggs, larvae and flies with the stromata of different species of Epichloë fungi infecting 7 species of grass in Poland were analyzed. Scanning electron microscopy of the surface of their eggs and an analysis of the genetic sequences of their mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase (COII) were used to identify the taxa of the flies studied. Three types of eggs were distinguished based on their shape, colour and the presence of dorsal folds and sculpturing on the shells. Tentatively, these eggs were assigned to the following species: B. laterella, B. phrenione, B. dissecta and B. lobata. COII sequences obtained from larvae that hatched from two of the types of eggs formed three distinct clades associated with the reference sequences for Botanophila phrenione, B. lobata (new to the fauna of Poland) and a putative species, “Taxon 1”. Only one of these flies (B. lobata) was restricted to a single species of Epichloë (E. bromicola on Elymus repens); B. phrenione was recorded mainly from E. typhina infecting three different species of grass. The results of this study confirm that there is not a close species specific association between this fungus and this insect., Marlena Lembicz ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury