Spalangia cameroni Perkins (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) is sold commercially as a biocontrol agent of filth flies, including the house fly, Musca domestica L. (Diptera: Muscidae). For this reason, S. cameroni is mass-reared for inundative releases to control harmful flies. However, the mass-rearing protocols include very little information on the influence of natal host on subsequent host selection by parasitoids with more than one potential host as in the genus Spalangia. Here, we report on the use of S. cameroni against M. domestica. The S. cameroni were reared using Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann (Diptera: Tephritidae) (natal host) pupae for several generations. Freeze-killed fly pupae were used in assays to determine the fecundity, number of adult progeny and sex-ratio of this parasitoid. Realized fecundity and number of adult progeny were greater when provided with house fly pupae than Mediterranean fruit fly pupae. Thus S. cameroni parasitized more house fly pupae than C. capitata pupae, even though the parasitoid was reared on Mediterranean fruit fly for many generations. These results indicate that S. cameroni reared on C. capitata can be successfully used in inundative releases against both fruit flies (agriculture) and house flies (livestock farming)., Francisco Beitia, Erik Valencia, Bernat Peris, Luis De Pedro, Josep D. Asís, José Tormos., and Obsahuje bibliografii
In Lepidoptera, larval dietary experience of volatile cues can induce adult preference for these cues. However, such induction may require several generations, depending in part on the degree of specialization of the insects. In a previous study, using species of noctuid stem borers with different diet breadths, namely the polyphagous Sesamia nonagrioides, the oligophagous Busseola fusca and monophagous Busseola nairobica, it was shown that in S. nonagrioides, one generation was enough to induce a preference for vanillin in the resulting gravid females, whereas even two generations failed to induce a response in adults of Busseola spp. In this study, we checked whether a higher number of generations of exposure to a vanillin-enriched medium could induce a significant olfactory preference for this medium in the species B. fusca and B. nairobica, which have narrower host-plant utilization ranges than S. nonagrioides. Larvae were reared to the adult stage on an artificial diet enriched with vanillin for periods of from 2 to 7 or 8 generations, followed by two-choice tests on gravid females using a Y-tube olfactometer. The results showed different responses according to the species: for the oligophagous B. fusca, there was no significant effect of the conditioning, while a significant preference for the odours emitted by this new vanillin-enriched diet was recorded for the polyphagous S. nonagrioides and monophagous B. nairobica, but after different numbers of generations. In conclusion, different diet breadths seem to be associated with different levels of plasticity in the odour preference of adults. The implication of this result for insects' adaptability in a changing landscape is discussed., Christophe Petit, Peter Ahuya, Bruno Le Ru, Laure Kaiser-Arnauld, Myriam Harry, Paul-André Calatayud., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Urban gardens can harbour a high diversity of insects, which are critically important components of urban ecosystems. In this work, we investigate the richness and diversity of a major taxon of economic and ecological importance, the aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae), and their main insect predators, the hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) and ladybirds (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), in urban gardens. We examined how variation in environmental factors associated with urbanisation (garden host plant abundance, garden plant richness, garden size, proportion of impervious surfaces in the surrounding area) directly and indirectly (via prey and predator abundance) influence the local diversity and abundance of aphids, ladybirds, and hoverflies. Sixty-seven domestic gardens located in southern England were surveyed during the peak period of aphid abundance, and the numbers and identity of aphids and their predators were recorded. We observed 45 aphid species (179917 individuals in total), 15 hoverfly species (494 individuals) and 8 ladybird species (173 individuals). We found that aphid species richness and abundance were positively associated with utilised host plant abundance and garden plant species richness. Hoverfly abundance was positively correlated with garden plant richness. The abundance of ladybirds was positively correlated with aphid abundance and garden plant species richness, and negatively associated to the proportion of impervious surfaces in the surrounding environment. The difference in responses between the two major taxa of aphid predators may reflect differences in their behaviour and natural history. Our results indicate that overall increases in urban land cover are not favourable for ladybirds as a group, and that fine scale habitat variables that are determined by garden owners have the potential to greatly affect the diversity of aphids and their primary predators., Elise A. Rocha, Estevão N.F. Souza, Lewis A.D. Bleakley, Christopher Burley, Jade L. Mott, Gloria Rue-Glutting, Mark D.E. Fellowes., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Betasyringophiloidus Skoracki, 2011 is a genus of quill mites (Prostigmata: Syringophilidae) that is believed to contain mono-, steno- and polyxenous parasites associated with a wide range of passerine birds (Passeriformes) across the world. In this work we applied the DNA-barcode marker (mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene fragment, COI) to verify whether Betasyringophiloidus schoeniclus (Skoracki, 2002) and Betasyringophiloidus seiuri (Clark, 1964) are actual steno- and polyxenous species associated with the currently recognised host ranges, or their populations are highly host-specific, cryptic species. Our results revealed that a population living on the Tristram's bunting Emberiza tristrami Swinhoe (Emberizidae) in Russia, so far classified as B. schoeniclus, is a new cryptic species Betasyringophiloidus emberizae sp. nov. Both topologies of the neighbor-joining and maximum likelihood phylogenetic trees as well as genetic distance (11.9% Kimura 2-parameter distance) (K2P) support species status of the mite population from E. tristrami. The same data support previously established conspecific status of B. seiuri found on the ovenbird Seiurus aurocapilla (Linnaeus) (Parulidae) (type host) and the northern waterthrush Parkesia noveboracensis (Gmelin) (Parulidae) and expand its range with a population found on a new host species Icterus pustulatus (Wagler) (Icteridae) with intraspecific K2P distance up to 1.9% and interpopulation distances ranging from 1.3 to 3.1%., Eliza Glowska, Lukasz Broda, Miroslawa Dabert., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Morphometric data from spores of ten myxosporean species were statistically analysed to explore myxosporean intraspecific variation in measurements when obtained from a sample from: (1) the same plasmodium, (2) different plasmodia from the same host and (3) different host individuals and localities. In some cases, significant differences in spore dimensions were found between samples from the same plasmodium, highlighting the difficulty of obtaining representative measurements of myxosporean spore. In addition, significant differences in spore dimensions were found when plasmodia from the same site of infection were compared, suggesting that measurements of spores should come from several different plasmodia of the sampling to increase the reliability of the morphology data. Moreover, significant differences in spore dimensions were observed for most spore dimensions when data were compared between localities. In all cases, there was clear overlap in ranges of dimensions even when means differed significantly. The present statistical analysis shows that intraspecific morphometric variation of myxosporean species commonly occurs, highlighting the importance of reporting ranges of measurements for a species, not just the mean dimensions, and taking into account all evidence when assigning or describing myxosporean species., Yanhua Zhai, Christopher M. Whipps, Zemao Gu, Qingxiang Guo, Zizhen Wu, Hongmei Wang, Yang Liu., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Avian haemosporidians are common vector-borne blood parasites that have been reported in birds all over the world. Investigations of avian haemosporidian parasites are conducted mainly on passerine birds. However, studies that focus on non-passerine avian hosts are important for our understanding of the true diversity, host specificity and genetic variability among these widespread parasites. In the present study, blood samples from a total of 22 raptor birds belonging to two orders, two families and six species from the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey were investigated for three genera of avian haemosporidians (Plasmodium Marchiafava et Celli, 1885, Haemoproteus Kruse, 1890 and Leucocytozoon Sambon, 1908) using a combination of microscopic examination of blood films and nested PCR targeting the parasite mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (cyt-b). In total, six individual raptor birds identified positive for species of Plasmodium or Leucocytozoon and one individual was found co-infected with all three haemosporidian genera. We identified five parasite cyt-b haplotypes, three of which were reported for the first time. Among these, one Plasmodium haplotype is linked to a corresponding morphospecies (P-TURDUS1, Plasmodium circumflexum Kikuth, 1931). All haplotypes were clearly distinguishable in phylogenetic analyses. As one of the first studies to investigate blood parasites from non-passerine birds in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey, this study provides important new information on the phylogenetic relationships and genetic diversity of avian haemosporidian parasites from raptor birds. We discuss these findings in the context of avian haemosporidian host-parasite relationships and we draw attention to the need for microscopy to detect parasite sexual development stages in surveys of avian haemosporidians., Arif Ciloglu, Alparslan Yildirim, Onder Duzlu, Zuhal Onder, Zafer Dogan, Abdullah Inci., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The European stag beetle, Lucanus cervus, is recognised as a flagship species for biodiversity conservation. Although the species is widely distributed across Europe declines have led to it being granted protected or endangered status in a number of countries and regarded as "near threatened" by the IUCN. The integration of genetic approaches into conservation efforts is urgently needed but has been impeded to date by the lack of appropriate genetic markers. To provide such a resource the development of the first microsatellite loci for stag beetle is described. Loci were identified using two methods (i) enriched library cloning (ELC) and (ii) Restriction enzyme Associated DNA sequencing (RAD-Seq). Inefficient microsatellite detection using the ELC method suggests that RAD-Seq, or other Next Generation Sequencing based methods, may ultimately be more cost effective for obtaining informative suites of markers for this and other coleopteran species. 18 loci were characterised by genotyping 42 UK specimens collected as prey leftover/roadkill. All loci produced unambiguous genotypes and were polymorphic. Though preliminary, estimates of genetic variability suggest UK populations may be genetically depauperate. The microsatellite loci represent a suite of genetic markers that can be applied to non-invasive population monitoring and numerous other areas of Lucanus conservation and evolutionary research., Niall J. McKeown, Deborah J. Harvey, Amy J. E. Healey, Ilze Skujina, Karen Cox, Alan C. Gange, Paul W. Shaw., and Obsahuje bibliografii
In this study, we report the development of a set of 15 polymorphic microsatellite markers for the box tree moth, Cydalima perspectalis (Walker), a highly invasive insect in Europe causing significant damage to natural and ornamental Buxus trees. The markers were characterized for four distant populations in both its native (China, two populations) and invasive ranges (Czech Republic and Turkey, one population each). The number of alleles ranged from 2 to 12. No marker significantly deviated from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for all the populations sampled. These microsatellite markers are promising tools for further studies on the invasive pathways and dispersal pattern of the box tree moth in Europe., Audrey Bras, Laure Sauné, Alain Roques, Jérôme Rousselet, Marie-Anne Auger-Rozenberg., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Here we describe 16 novel microsatellite loci in the genome of the dragonhead sap beetle Thymogethes norvegicus, which were identified using a next-generation sequencing approach. In 40 dragonhead sap beetles from a population in southern Norway, we found 2-4 alleles per locus. Expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.18-0.65. Three of the loci showed significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. After correcting for multiple tests, one pairwise locus combination displayed significant linkage disequilibrium. These novel microsatellite loci will be useful for future population structure, genetic diversity and conservation genetic studies of the dragonhead sap beetle., Oddmund Kleven, Anders Endrestøl., and Obsahuje bibliografii