The Multicoloured Asian Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is known to thrive principally in shrubby and arboreal habitats. This study focuses on the occurrence of this exotic species and its seasonal abundance in various field crops. The abundance of adults, larvae and pupae of H. axyridis was evaluated over a three-year period, from 2009 to 2011, in four important agronomical crops (wheat, corn, broad bean and potato) in Belgium. From May to September, 48 1-m² quadrats were visually inspected in each of the fields sampled on several farms every seven days. H. axyridis colonized and reproduced in all of the four crops studied, with the largest numbers recorded in corn and broad bean crops. Larvae and adults of H. axyridis were recorded mainly in corn and to a much less extent in wheat and potato crops. From 2009 to 2011, the mean weekly abundance of H. ayxridis remained constant except in corn crops, where the recorded densities of all the immature stages and adults were higher in 2011 than in 2009. The population dynamics of aphids and H. axyridis are well described by a symmetric logistic function (S-shape) of cumulative population size. H. axyridis was not always recorded where aphids were abundant, e.g. aphids were abundant on wheat where no H. axyridis were recorded. H. axyridis start reproducing after the peak in aphid population, suggesting that H. axyridis is able to complete its development by feeding on alternative prey such as larvae and pupae of the same and other species of ladybird and other aphidophagous species. H. axyridis is often considered to be bivoltine but it only completes one generation per year in field crops. The second generation generally develops late in the season in other habitats., Axel Vandereycken ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Recent efforts to catalogue global biodiversity using genetic techniques have uncovered a number of "cryptic" species within morphologically similar populations that had previously been identified as single species. Chlosyne lacinia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), with a range extending from the Southwest U.S. to South America, is one of the most phenotypically variable and broadly distributed butterfly species in the New World. We sampled populations of C. lacinia in two temperate locations (California and Arizona) and one tropical location (El Salvador) to determine if cryptic species were present at this scale (temperate vs. tropical). We examined mtDNA sequence variation in COI, COII, the intervening tRNA (Leucine-2), 16S, 12S and an additional intervening tRNA (Valine), accounting for approximately 20% of the mitochondrial genome (3479 bp). Among all C. lacinia individuals, sequence divergence did not exceed 0.0084 compared to a 0.06 estimated divergence between C. lacinia and congener C. leanira. We also found subclade structure which did not clearly correspond to geography or subspecific designation. Though the mitochondrial phylogeny suggests a complex evolutionary history and biogeography, we demonstrate that one C. lacinia species is distributed throughout North and Central America spanning a diverse set of temperate and tropical habitats. and Timothy C. Bonebrake, Ward B. Watt, Alejandro Perez, Carol L. Boggs.
Rozsáhlý materiál bráněnek (Stratiomyidae, Diptera) byl studován z různých částí orientální oblasti včetně chráněných území (národních parků a rezervací). V letech 1994–2012 bylo popsáno více než 60 nových druhů a mnoho dalších druhů revidováno na základě typových jedinců uložených v různých světových sbírkách. Probíhal také sběr larev bráněnek a jejich odchov v laboratorních podmínkách. Jejich ústní ústrojí a povrchové struktury byly studovány s ohledem na jejich potravní specializaci., Extensive material of soldier flies (Stratiomyidae) was examined from different parts of the Oriental region including protected areas (Nature Parks and Reserves). During the 1994–2013 period more than 60 oriental species were described and many further species were revised on the basis of type specimens deposited in various world collections. In addition to the study of adults, mainly phytosaprophagous larvae were collected and reared under laboratory conditions. Their mouthparts and surface structures were examined with regard to their food preference., and Rudolf Rozkošný.
Ovaries of Puto superbus and Ceroputo pilosellae are composed of numerous short telotrophic ovarioles that are arranged around the distal part of the lateral oviduct. An individual ovariole consists of a distal trophic chamber (= tropharium) and proximal vitellarium. The tropharia enclose individual trophocytes (= nurse cells) and early previtellogenic oocytes termed arrested oocytes. A single oocyte develops in each vitellarium. Analysis of serial sections has shown that ovarioles of P. superbus contain from 16 to 51 germ cells (13–43 trophocytes, 2–7 arrested oocytes, 1 developing oocyte) while those of C. pilosellae from only 8 to 10 germ cells (5–7 trophocytes, 0–2 arrested oocytes, 1 developing oocyte). The classification and phylogeny of scale insects are discussed taking into consideration the results of this study., Anna Michalik ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
he painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Nymphalinae) is well known for its seasonal long-distance migrations and for its dramatic population fluctuations between years. Although parasitism has occasionally been noted as an important mortality factor for this butterfly, no comprehensive study has quantified and compared its parasitoid complexes in different geographical areas or seasons. In 2009, a year when this butterfly was extraordinarily abundant in the western Palaearctic, we assessed the spatial and temporal variation in larval parasitism in central Morocco (late winter and autumn) and north-east Spain (spring and late summer). The primary parasitoids in the complexes comprised a few relatively specialized koinobionts that are a regular and important mortality factor in the host populations. However, there was a strong seasonal variation in the level of parasitism. In Spain percentage parasitism was more than four times higher in late summer than in spring (77.3% vs. 18%), while in Morocco it was five times higher by the end of winter than in the autumn (66.2% vs. 13.2%). In both regions the build up of parasitoid populations occurred after V. cardui had bred in the same general area over successive generations, and this may represent a selective force favouring seasonal migration to enemy-free space., Constanti Stefanescu ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Adults of the invasive harlequin ladybird, Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), were found to be parasitized by nematodes (Tylenchomorpha: Allantonematidae) in Denmark. The nematodes were identified as Parasitylenchus sp. Major morphological characters of the nematodes did not differ significantly from Parasitylenchus coccinellinae Iperti & van Waerebeke 1968, but minor deviations in egg dimension and tail length were measured. Parasitism was only recorded in early autumn, with prevalence ranging from 2 to 33%. Adult and juvenile nematodes occurred together in the body cavity of both female and male H. axyridis. and Susanne Harding, George O. Poinar, Desislava V. Dimitrova, Tove Steenberg.
Using a large sample of museum and newly collected specimens of the cryptic butterfly species Leptidea sinapis and L. reali, identified/confirmed based on genital characters, the patterns in their geographical distributions, historical changes in range and briefly also their habitat associations in Poland, were investigated. Leptidea sinapis occurs mainly in the lowland and upland parts of the country and is rarer than L. reali, which is widespread throughout Poland, including the mountains. In the first half of the 20th century, the range of L. sinapis included the whole of Poland, whereas currently it is confined to eastern and southern regions. Historical records of the distribution of L. reali are concentrated in southern and central Poland. Currently it is recorded from localities throughout Poland. Leptidea reali is recorded most frequently in meadows and shows no clear preference for a particular level of humidity, while L. sinapis is found mainly in woodland and xerothermic habitats. The two species are syntopic within the present range of L. sinapis, which is now a declining and local species, whereas L. reali is now common and widespread. and Konrad Sachanowicz, Agnieszka Wower, Jaroslaw Buszko.
In this study we analyzed the inter-specific relationships in assemblages of syrphids at a site in northern Italy in order to determine whether there are patterns in diurnal co-occurrence. We adopted a null model approach and calculated two co-occurrence metrics, the C-score and variance ratio (V-ratio), both for the total catch and of the morning (8:00–13:00) and afternoon (13:00–18:00) catches separately, and for males and females. We recorded discordant species richness, abundance and co-occurrence patterns in the samples collected. Higher species richness and abundance were recorded in the morning, when the assemblage had an aggregated structure, which agrees with previous findings on communities of invertebrate primary consumers. A segregated pattern of co-occurrence was recorded in the afternoon, when fewer species and individuals were collected. The pattern recorded is likely to be caused by a number of factors, such as a greater availability of food in the morning, prevalence of hot and dry conditions in the early afternoon, which are unfavourable for hoverflies, and possibly competition with other pollinators. Our results indicate that restricting community studies to a particular time of day will result in certain species and/or species interactions not being recorded., Manuela D´Amen ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
1_Urbanisation is an important cause of species extinctions. Although urban water systems are also highly modified, studies on aquatic or semi-aquatic organisms are rare. The aim of this study is to identify the factors that determine species richness of Odonata in 22 Central European cities and along an urban-rural gradient within six of them. With 64 indigenous species in total and an average of 33 species per city, the species richness of Odonata in Central European cities is comparatively high. A generalised linear model indicates that species richness is positively related to city area. Additional predictors are climatic variables (temperature amplitude, sunshine duration and July temperature) and the year last studied. Since most cities are usually located in areas with naturally high habitat heterogeneity, we assume that cities should be naturally rich in dragonflies. The role of city area as a surrogate for habitat and structural richness most likely explains why it is strongly associated with Odonata species richness. The relationship between species richness and the climatic variables probably reflects that Odonata species richness in Central Europe is limited by warm and sunny conditions more than by availability of water. The temporal effect (the year last studied) on species richness is likely to be a consequence of the recent increase in Mediterranean species associated with global warming. Urbanisation clearly has an adverse effect on the species diversity of Odonata. Species richness increases along a gradient from the centre of a city to the rural area and is significantly highest in rural areas. This pattern probably reflects a gradient of increasing habitat quality from the centre of cities to rural areas. Moreover, the number of water bodies is generally very low in the city centres., 2_Based on our results, we make recommendations for increasing the abundance and number of species of dragonflies in cities., Christoph Willigalla, Thomas Farmann., and Obsahuje seznam literatury