1_Many butterfly target species are associated with early successional stages of grasslands. The Blue-spot Hairstreak, Satyrium spini (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775), is a target species of grasslands. However, it feeds on Common Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), which is associated with late successional stages of grasslands. If S. spini would also be restricted to late seral stages, there might be a management dilemma due to the contrasting requirements of S. spini and other target species. The aim of this study was to determine the oviposition preference of S. spini in calcareous grasslands, and to give management recommendations to promote this species. Therefore, we studied the oviposition microhabitats of S. spini at three representative patches of the Diemel Valley (Central Germany) by comparing environmental conditions on occupied and control host plants. In total we surveyed 1,889 host plants. Altogether we found 148 batches of S.spini on them containing 396 eggs. Most of the eggs were on plants that grew under the warmest conditions. Females preferred to lay eggs on small (< 1.3 m) shrubs of Rh. cathartica fully exposed to the sun growing on steep south- and west-facing slopes., 2_This butterfly showed no difference in its preference for bushes growing in hedges or solitarily. About 80% of the batches of eggs were laid on the upper surface of a twig fork close to the surface of the ground (< 1 m). Our study showed that S. spini is a species characteristic of mid-successional stages of calcareous grasslands. The survival of suitable habitats for S. spini depends on regular management. To achieve this we recommend traditional rough grazing with sheep and goats, which creates open grasslands with small Rhamnus plants. In addition, the shrubs in tall hedges bordering calcareous grasslands should be subjected to cutting on a rotating basis., Franz Löffler, Gregor Stuhldreher, Thomas Fartmann., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
A. schneideri and A. grossulariae clones from southern Poland produced fertile hybrid eggs under experimental conditions. Established hybrid clones expressed normal parthenogenetic reproduction but bisexual generations were not obtained, though a few sexuales developed in some cases. Morphological features of A. schneideri and host-specificity of A. grossulariae tended to dominate in the majority of hybrid clones. Independent inheritance of the studied morphological characters and host specificity can therefore be presumed.
Present results do not exclude the possibility of natural hybridisation of studied aphid species. Natural crosses might cause taxonomic and currant pest management problems., Rimantas Rakauskas, and Lit
Novel microsatellite markers for the solitary bee, Anthophora plumipes, were identified and characterised using 454 GS-FLX Titanium pyrosequencing technology. Thirty seven loci were tested using fluorescently labelled primers on a sample of 20 females from Prague. The number of alleles ranged from 1 to 10 (with a mean of 4 alleles per locus), resulting in an observed heterozygosity ranging from 0.05 to 0.9 and an expected heterozygosity from 0.097 to 0.887. None of the loci showed a significant deviation from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and only two loci showed the significant presence of null alleles. No linkage between loci was detected. We further provide information on a single multiplex PCR consisting of 11 of the most polymorphic loci. This multiplex approach provides an effective analytical tool for analysing genetic structure and carrying out parental analyses on Anthophora populations. Most of the 37 loci tested also showed robust amplification in five other Anthophora species (A. aestivalis, A. crinipes, A. plagiata, A. pubescens and A. quadrimaculata). The result of this study demonstrates that next generation sequencing technology is a valuable method for isolating quality microsatellites in non-model species of solitary bees. and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Insect peptidyl-dipeptidase A [angiotensin I - converting enzyme (ACE)] is a soluble single-domain peptidyl-dipeptidase that has many properties in common with the C-domain of mammalian somatic ACE and with the single-domain mammalian ACE. In agreement with a variety of insects, immunocytochemical studies reveal the presence of an ACE-like protein in Locusta migratoria. ACE-like immunoreactivity is present in neurosecretory cells of the pars intercerebralis. These cells have axons projecting into the nervus corporis cardiaci I and into the storage part of the corpus cardiacum, a neuroendocrine organ directly releasing into the aorta. The localisation of ACE in neurosecretory cells is consistent with its proposed role as a processing enzyme that is involved in the generation of active peptide hormones., Dirk Veelaert, Liliane Scoofs, Nathalie Macours, Anick Vandingenen, Arnold De Loof, Elwyn Isaac, Michel Salzet, Roger Huybrechts, and Lit
Two anti-peptide antisera (anti-A and anti-B) raised against Gryllus bimaculatus allatostatin A1 (Grb-AST A1) and B1 (Grb-AST B1), respectively, were applied in the peroxidase-antiperoxidase (PAP) immunohistochemical technique on complete series of sections from the brain, suboesophageal ganglion, corpora cardiaca (CC), and corpora allata (CA) of G. bimaculatus. Both antisera yielded intense staining of numerous cells and nerve fibres. Serial sections, alternately stained with anti-A and anti-B confirmed that the anti-B generally stained more cells and nerves. Extensive immunoreactivity in the retrocerebral complex suggests that the CC and CA may represent a storage and/or release site for both allatostatin types or allatostatin-like molecules produced in the brain., Günther Witek, Peter Verhaert, Matthias W. Lorenz, Klaus H. Hoffmann, and Lit
The effects of different abiotic agents that may modulate the activity of an insect’s immune system are reviewed. These agents include insecticides, chitin synthesis inhibitors, juvenile hormone analogues, inert particles, antibiotics, heavy metals, radiation and miscellaneous substances. The significance of studying immunomodulation in insects treated with abiotic agents in relation to both insect control and insect-borne parasitic diseases and the link between immunomodulation in insects post-treatment with both abiotic and biotic agents are discussed., El-Sayed H. Shaurub., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Most studies of responses of insects to elevated carbon dioxide have been made using short-term exposures to treated food plants and have involved measurements of responses in growth, reproduction, food consumption and efficiencies of conversion at specific stages in the life cycle. These will be reviewed in the light of longer-term studies recently published where whole generations have been reared in chambers with simultaneous treatment of plants and where insects have been free to select their food and microenvironment. Factors such as seasonal change in plants, choice of food plant, mode of feeding, timing of exposure, temperature, the role of natural enemies are considered and the whole placed in the context of other aspects of climate change.
It is concluded that in studies to date, the only feeding guild in which some species have shown increases in population density in elevated carbon dioxide are the phloem feeders. Chewing insects (both free-living,and mining) generally have shown no change or reduction in abundance, though relative abundance may be greatly affected. Compensatory feeding is common in these groups., John B. Whittaker, and Lit
Among animal constructions, the orb webs of spiders are perfect geometrical architectural models. Webs are constructed by means of a succession of behaviours, which are often considered as instinctive and stereotyped. Anomalies in web structure are considered to be a consequence of variability in behaviour. In order to assess the variability in web structure, the spider Zygiella x-notata was allowed to build webs in the laboratory under standardized conditions. Webs (n = 127) were examined for anomalies, which were defined as modifications in the geometrical structure. Ten anomalies in the structure of webs produced by females, aged from 16 to 21 days after their adult moult, are described. The frequency of anomalies per web varies from 5 to 98. A very low percentage of the spiral elements of a web (less than 5%) were affected. Anomalies in the radii were less numerous (mean = 3 ± 3) than those in the sticky spiral (mean = 21 ± 11). Anomalies in the sticky spiral were different and more frequent in the peripheral than central parts of the webs. They were also relatively more numerous in the upper than in the lower part of the webs. Total number of anomalies was positively correlated with particular web characteristics (capture area, length of capture thread, width of the lower part of the web and mean distance between two spiral turns in the lower part) but not to the physical characteristics of the spiders (mass and size). Our results indicate that the orb webs of spiders, which are considered to be perfect geometrical structures, include anomalies mainly in the structure of the sticky spiral. These anomalies were the result of variability in behaviour during web building. In conclusion, their identification and description enable one to use them in spider webs as an index of behavioural variability., Alain Pasquet ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury