Journal of Asia-pacific Entomology最新文献

The breeding system of Bruguiera cylindrica, its associated foragers, and their foraging activity were carried out from 2018−2021 in the mangroves of Chettuva, of Thrissur district in the State of Kerala. The flowering of B. cylindrica commences during October and found to cease by the end of January. Bagging experiment revealed that they prefer xenogamous mode (88%) of reproduction though they had a small percentage of fruit set via autogamy (16%).Thirty five species of insects were recorded on the flowers of B. cylindrica. Among them, eleven species were foraging on the flowers of B. cylindrica. The most abundant foraging species were Chrysomya megacephala, Apis florea and Campsomeriella collaris.

C. megacephala had significantly higher visitation rate (7.52 flowers/min) whereas Dolichopus sp. recorded significantly higher handling time (11.71 s). The highest pollen load was obtained from Chrysomya megacephala (161.50 ± 4.90). The peak foraging activity was recorded during 10.00 hrs. − 11.00 hrs. in the morning and 16.00 hrs. − 17.00 hrs. in the evening. The findings of the study complement the role and significance of insect foragers in the breeding of mangrove species.

Fruit flies and other miniscule flying insects often cause a nuisance in the kitchen areas of our dwellings. To mitigate the invasion of indoor insect pests, behavioral modifications using spatial repellents containing natural products are emerging as alternatives to chemical insecticides especially around the kitchens and food storage areas. However, the absence of standardized testing methods for spatial repellency has undermined the reliability of these products. We introduced three distinct laboratory-scale repellency assays and their relevancy to simulated-use conditions. Out of eleven commercial products tested, five showed effectiveness in laboratory assays, and three of these were further proven effective in simulated-use tests as well. Another issue limiting the utility of commercially available spatial repellents was the lack of clear and comprehensive use instructions on product labels, potentially leading to ineffective applications. We observed that increasing the applied quantity improved the efficacy of one product that was initially determined to be ineffective in a simulated-use test. Based on our findings, we propose three strategies for regulations of spatial repellents: 1) consideration of mixture effects beyond single active ingredients especially using the natural products as their active ingredients, 2) the use of multiple testing systems, while acknowledging the limitations of laboratory assays in predicting real-world efficacy, and 3) ensuring product labels provide detailed and clear instructions for effective use.

Honey bee population inhabiting among different geographic regions often exhibit distinctive traits and phenotypes as a means of enhancing their adaptation to local environmental conditions. Morphological difference of worker was used to reflect the honey bee population locality adaptation and as one of the important markers of species evolution. Here, four comb cell and seven morphology characters of honey bee Apis cerana from two adjacent populations of Yunnan Province were measured to explore the effect of local adaptation on worker comb cell and morphology. Results showed that the characters of worker comb cell and morphology was significant difference between samples from these two local populations of A. cerana. It was separated into two groups which corresponding into the general A. cerana geographic population of Yungui Plateau and South Yunnan base on worker comb cell and morphology character. The worker comb cell size and morphology of A. cerana from Qujing were found to be significantly larger than those from Cangyuan. The indices that showed the most significantly different between populations were cell depth and right forewing length. Moreover, a strong positive correlation was observed between the cell diagonal diameter and the right forewing length, with a correlation coefficient 0.575. In conclusion, honey bee A. cerana population appear high variation in comb cell and morphology to adapt the locality environment. The forewing length of worker was the most significant variation indices between geographic populations, and could be as an indicator of worker cell and morphology among different A. cerana geographic populations.

Leafhopper species, viz., Hishimonus phycitis, Orosius albicinctus, and Amrasca bigutulla bigutulla, and sesame phyllody disease, damage sesame in tropical regions of India. Among the leafhopper species, H. phycitis incidence was maximum during 2022–23, peaked (70.36 nos./3 leaves) during the 40th Standard Meteorological Weeks (SMW), followed by O. albicinctus, which peaked in the 33rd SMW (53.14 nos./3 leaves) during 2021–2022. The impact of weather factors on the leafhoppers showed that minimum temperature (MnT) positively correlated with H. phycitis (r = 0.33***), O. albicinctus (r = 0.37***), populations A. bigutulla bigutulla (r = 0.22*), and phyllody percentage disease incidence (PDI) (r = 0.16). Rainfall (RF) and wind speed (WS) were negatively associated with leafhoppers, O. albicinctus, and A. bigutulla bigutulla, respectively. Morning (RHm) and evening (RHe) relative humidity were positively associated with all leafhopper species. The MnT was inversely associated with O. albicinctus (r = 0.37***) populations. The PDI was positively associated and significantly associated with the weather factors except WS. The autoregressive integrated moving average model with exogenous variables (ARIMAX) (0, 1, 0) of H. phycitis showed that MnT, RHe, and RF greatly affected the pest’s growth. The ARIMAX (3, 0, 1) of O. albicinctus showed that MnT and RHe significantly impacted the incidence. The ARIMAX (3, 0, 2) model of A. bigutulla bigutulla showed that MxT, MnT, RHm, and RHe substantially affected their occurrence. The ARIMAX (2, 0, 1) model of PDI revealed that MxT, MnT, RHm, RHe, and RF substantially influenced the disease’s incidence. Insect pests exhibit varied patterns of occurrence and severity in multi-cropping systems due to substantial differences in agro-climatic variables between locations. Comprehending the impact of weather patterns on sesame leafhoppers and PDI is crucial for developing successful management methods. Based on weekly events and climatic factors, the ARIMAX model was developed to anticipate the presence of leafhopper species and PDI on sesame.

The study aims to provide a basis for the large-scale artificial breeding of Coccinella septempunctata, the composition of an artificial diet for the ladybird was optimised by adding different fats to the diet. The effects of different dietary fats on the biology of ladybirds were evaluated by supplementing artificial diets with fats. The results show that the coconut, palm, perilla, linseed, lard and sesame oils should not be added to the artificial diet of ladybird larvae because of deleterious effects on ladybirds. The addition of 6 g olive oil (3 % of diet weight) improved larvae survival rate, and the addition of 4 g beef tallow (2 % of diet weight) increased ladybird pupation and emergence rates. In adult stage, the addition of 4 g coconut oil (2 % of diet weight) improved survival rates. Whereas 2–4 g olive oil (1–2 % of diet weight), 2–6 g lard (1–3 % of diet weight) and 6 g beef tallow oil (3 % of diet weight) improved oviposition and hatchability. In conclusion, the demand for fats is different in the larval and adult stages of the C. septempunctata. The findings of this study provide a valuable reference for the addition of exogenous fats to the ladybird artificial diet.

The genus Spilomyia (Insecta, Diptera, Syrphidae) consists of 39 species worldwide. One species previously listed from South Asia as Spilomyia manicata (Rondani, 1865), is herein described as a new species, Spilomyia recta van Steenis, Maqbool & Wachkoo sp. n. The new taxon represents the only valid species of Spilomyia from India and Pakistan and the third species known from Afghanistan and thus occurring in both the Palaearctic and Oriental region. Morphologically it is similar to the European species Spilomyia manicata, however based on the features of the male genitalia and molecular COI data the species is more closely related with S. diophthalma. Both morphological and molecular characteristics clearly separate these three species. Descriptions, diagnoses, high quality images, and phylogenetic relationships are presented. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:78A9D482-468F-41EB-B602-D854AE159327.

The present study investigates the morphology of floral parts adapted towards the mode of pollination by bees in a lesser-known shrub, Crotalaria paniculata Willd of the family Fabaceae. The morphology and orientation of flowers, colour, shape, size and number of each floral part were recorded. The floral odour was assessed qualitatively at various stages of flowers manually and the quantity of nectar produced per flower was also measured. The flowering individuals were regularly monitored to observe the floral visitors and their foraging activity on a series of aged flowers. The performance of each floral visitors like visitation frequency, handling time, relative abundance, activity rate, visitation rate index and visitor activity index was calculated. The flowers of C. paniculata are typical papilionaceous and keel-blossom types that function as floral advertisement and nectar and pollen grains are served as floral rewards. The standard petal serves an advertisement whereas the wing-keel complex acts as a landing platform for floral visitors. The large-bodied bees tend to break the wing-keel complex which facilitates cross-pollination. Xylocopa latipes (Apidae) was observed as the most effective pollinator due to their higher frequency of visits, activity rate, visitation rate index and visitor activity index. Due to the pressure applied by large-bodied bees like Xylocopa latipes by landing on the wing-keel complex, the reproductive parts become exposed and the stigma brushes the pollen load in the body of the visitors and effect cross-pollination. The study concludes that large-bodied bees are effective floral visitors of C. paniculata which effect cross-pollination.

Incisitermes minor (Hagen), the western drywood termite, is an important structural pest in the US and has been introduced into other states such as Louisiana, Florida, and other countries as invasive species. Because of the cryptic nature of drywood termites, they can infest a piece of wood and can unintentionally be moved to different places on wooden materials such as in furniture. Recently, a drywood termite alate was collected by a citizen in Changwon, Republic of Korea, which has raised concerns if drywood termites were established in the nearby area. In order to initiate the management program, obtaining distribution range of the invasive drywood termite was necessary. Therefore, in this study, we surveyed the surrounding area within a 1 km radius from the initial alate collection site to detect any signs of drywood termite infestations and any active termite colony. Our morphological identification and molecular analysis using COI, COII, and 16s RNA confirmed that the collected termites were I. minor, and 16s RNA matched with I. minor from Japan and the USA. We found infestations in multiple structures in the surveyed area and a gazebo in the park that was heavily infested by I. minor, indicating that I. minor can overwinter in southern Korea. Due to the economic importance of I. minor, a management plan to prevent further spread and to minimize damage caused by I. minor is needed in Korea.

Species of Rhipidia (Eurhipidia) Alexander, 1965 are found in Japan for the first time. Two new species, R. (E.) honshuensis sp. nov. from Honshu (Palaearctic Region) and R. (E.) okinawensis sp. nov. from Nansei Islands (Oriental Region) are described. The images of the habitus, wings, and terminalia, distribution maps, and a key to the species are provided.

The Tomato leaf miner Tuta absoluta is an important agricultural pest and exerts a considerable influence on tomato production across the world. In the present research tomato plants were sprayed with a gibberellin solution at a concentration of 50 µM. The gibberellin treatment resulted in a prolonged duration of T. absoluta preadult stage (33.67 days) compared to control group (27.38 days). The fecundity rate in treated females (82.33 eggs/female) was lowered compared to the controls (96.92 eggs/female). The intrinsic rate of increase (r) (0.080 day⁻¹) was also reduced in treatments compared with the control (0.110 day⁻¹). The finite rate of increase (λ) in treatment (1.084 day⁻¹) decreased compared to the controls (1.116 day⁻¹). The antioxidant system enzymes of T. absoluta, including catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were increased in treated insects. The gibberellin also increased the activity of detoxifying enzymes including Glutathione s-transferase with two substrates (DCNB and CDNB) and cytochrome P450 compared to the control group. While general esterase did not show significant differences in treatment and control. The secondary metabolites in treated plants including total sugar, total phenol content, anthocyanin, flavonoid and tannin showed an increasing trend. The results clearly show the negative impact of gibberellin on life table and physiology of the tomato leaf miner and can be considered favorable in integrated pest management programs of this pest.