Neotropical Entomology最新文献

Pollination service is a global issue with significant impacts on ecosystem maintenance and food production. The decline of bees has highlighted the importance of public awareness and conservation policies to ensure food security and the sustainable use of such services. In this study, we investigated the awareness about bee diversity and pollination services among young students in a medium-sized city in the Cerrado region, the main agricultural frontier in Central Brazil. We applied questionnaires and multiple correspondence analyses to evaluate students' information on the subject, in three middle schools in Uberlândia-MG. Honeybees, a non-native species in Brazil, were the most cited bee by students (47.8%). While most students believed that bees should be protected (93.14%), only 66.66% recognized their importance to humans. Although 72.28% of the participants claimed to know what pollination is, nearly half of them (49%) did not fully understand the process and considered it unimportant for people's lives. Participants who recognized solitary native bees showed a better understanding of the pollination process. Our findings indicate that schools, the internet, and television are the main sources of information on bees for young students in Central Brazil. Understanding people's perception of bees can guide environmental education and citizen science projects and inform decision-making for biodiversity conservation actions. In this article, we identify essential elements for teaching a holistic view of bees and pollination promoting the comprehension of their importance.

Apis florea bees were recently identified in Egypt, marking the second occurrence of this species on the African continent. The objective of this study was to track the distribution of A. florea in Egypt and evaluate its potential for invasive behaviour. Field surveys were conducted over a 2-year period, resulting in the collection of data on the spatial distribution of the red dwarf honeybees. A comprehensive analysis was performed utilizing long-term monthly temperature and rainfall data to generate spatially interpolated climate surfaces with a 1-km resolution. Vegetation variables derived from Terra MODIS were also incorporated. Furthermore, elevation data obtained from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission were utilized to derive slope, aspect, and hillshade based on the digital elevation model. The collected data were subject to resampling for optimal data smoothing. Subsequently, a random forest model was applied, followed by an accuracy assessment to evaluate the classification output. The results indicated the selection of the mean temperature of coldest quarter (bio11), annual mean temperature (bio01), and minimum temperature of coldest month (bio06) as temperature-derived parameters are the most important parameters. Annual precipitation (bio12) and precipitation of wettest quarter (bio16) as precipitation parameters, and non-tree vegetation parameter as well as the elevation. The calculation of the Habitat Suitability Index revealed that the most suitable areas, covering a total of 200131.9 km², were predominantly situated in the eastern and northern regions of Egypt, including the Nile Delta characterized by its fertile agricultural lands and the presence of the river Nile. In contrast, the western and southern parts exhibited low habitat suitability due to the absence of significant green vegetation and low relative humidity.

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus spp., Mirtaceae) stands out for its remarkable regeneration capacity, making it a valuable tool for recovering degraded areas and for reforestation. Despite its Australian origins, eucalyptus has shown remarkable adaptation to the Brazilian tropical climate, contributing to the wood productivity of the country. However, the extensive monoculture of eucalyptus can increase pest incidence, thus being a significant challenge for the forestry sector, which suffers production losses of up to 30%. We analyzed the occurrence of 11 pest insect species in 450 eucalyptus stands over 9 years in the southeastern region of Brazil in our study. We related pest occurrences to specific year periods and climatic variations using circular uniformity analysis and zero-inflated models. We found that the species generally had isolated peaks of occurrence during the year and that the increase in the occurrence of at least five species was related to temperature or precipitation. The results highlight the sensitivity of pests to climatic conditions, showing the importance of management strategies to ensure the sustainability and productivity of eucalyptus plantations. We can develop more effective management strategies by understanding how these variables interact with insect populations, contributing to the sustainability and productivity of eucalyptus plantations with less aggressive environmental practices.

This study aimed to determine the chemical composition of ginger Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Zingiberaceae) and soursop Annona muricata Linn (Annonaceae) oils, formulate stable emulsions of these oils separately, as well as neem oil Azadirachta indica A. Juss (Meliaceae), and evaluate the insecticidal activity of these emulsions against Duponchelia fovealis Zeller, 1847 (Lepidoptera: Crambidae). Each stable emulsion contained an oil phase containing ginger, soursop, or neem oil, a fruit polyalcohol-based emulsifier, ethanol, or water. The insecticidal effect of the different oils and formulated emulsions was tested on the first- and second-instar caterpillars of D. fovealis. The majority of the compounds of the ginger essential oil were α-zingiberene (29%), geranial (14.9%), and α-farnesene (12.9%), and soursop oil had a higher percentage of oleic acid (43.73%), linoleic acid (29.51%), and palmitic acid (20.50%). The CL₅₀ values of the soursop, neem, and ginger oils were 0.474, 0.473, and 0.602% for first-instar caterpillars and 2.25, 1.02, and 0.624% for second-instar caterpillars of D. fovealis. The formulated emulsions of ginger, soursop, and neem oils remained stable and exhibited toxicity in the first and second instars of D. fovealis development.

A bottleneck in sustainable fruit production is the replacement of chemical products with natural compounds. Matrine and oxymatrine, derived from a Chinese medicinal herb, have exhibited potential for controlling agricultural pests. However, there is no information regarding their effectiveness in managing dipterans. Thus, we carried out experiments to evaluate the effect of the botanical compounds matrine and oxymatrine on Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) adults under laboratory conditions. First, we tested four doses of the commercial product matrine, with distilled water as a control treatment. Each treatment was offered as a droplet, to five D. suzukii couples in screened cages. Adult mortality was evaluated at intervals of 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, and 72 h post-exposure. All doses tested of the commercial matrine-based product caused up to 58% of mortality in D. suzukii adults. Second, the consumption of pure extract of oxymatrine was evaluated using a CAFE assay. Three D. suzukii females were exposed to oxymatrine concentrations of 0.05, 1.0, 2.5, 5.0, and 7.0% in a 20% sugar solution for 24 h. Afterwards, the flies were deprived of food for 40 h, and mortality was evaluated. The pure extract of oxymatrine induced mortality in D. suzukii females only at doses of 2.5, 5.0, and 7.0%. These botanical compounds demonstrate the potential to be used to control D. suzukii adults and can be explored as one tool of the Integrated Management Program.

The present study reports new behavioral records for Oxysternon palemo Castelnau, 1840 in Cerrado. According to its nesting habits and resource allocation, this species of dung beetle is traditionally classified as coprophagous and paracoprid, transporting portions of dung through tunnels excavated below the resource. We observed a male individual moving a pequi seed (Caryocar brasiliensis Cambess.) with "head-butting," acting as a secondary seed disperser. At another moment, we recorded necrophagous habits for the species when male individuals were observed moving pieces of domestic pig carcasses (Sus scrofa L., 1758), also with "head-butting." After, we recorded a female O. palemo, accompanied by a male individual, butting a dung mass and burying this resource several meters away from the original source. The behavior of pushing the resource over long distances is typical of telecoprid dung beetles that form dung balls and roll them using hind legs away from the resource source, unlike what is expected for O. palemo. Our hypothesis is that the observed behaviors have developed from competition for resources. Furthermore, the behaviors exhibited by O. palemo contribute to the provision of essential ecosystem services. The ecosystem services include the removal and degradation of decomposing organic matter, as well as secondary dispersal of seeds, thus supporting the maintenance and conservation of plant species.

Paropsisterna bimaculata is an essential pest of eucalyptus species. The insect is consistently associated with severe defoliation in large crop plantations in Tasmania. Its attack causes a reduction in the volume of wood produced and, in severe cases, the death of trees. Eucalyptus is the most important species in the global forestry sector and is economically significant in many countries. The extensive insect fauna associated with these species demonstrates the need for increasingly effective control and prevention methods, especially for those regulated as quarantine pests. This study aimed to develop an ecoclimatic index model for P. bimaculata using the CLIMEX software, highlighting the potential distribution of P. bimaculata in the world and the areas at risk of introducing the insect into planted forest crops. The potential distribution of P. bimaculata showed high suitability in regions of Asia, Africa, Europe, Oceania, and America, with greater probability in countries in Europe and South America. The results are mainly associated with regions with temperate climates. Furthermore, an area in Brazil's South and Southeast regions also showed an adequate distribution for the species. The model's results presented here can assist in developing strategies to prevent the introduction and establishment of P. bimaculata in eucalyptus crops worldwide.

Ceracris kiangsu (Tsai) (Orthoptera: Acrididae) is a severe pest of the bamboo Dendrocalamus barbatus Hsuch & D.Z. Li that is widely grown in plantations in Vietnam. A biocontrol option to manage this pest is a priority for the forest sector. This study evaluates whether there are potential biocontrol candidates within the C. kiangsu population. Bacteria were isolated from C. kiangsu nymphs that were parasitized in the field. In a nursery experiment, three Bacillus bombysepticus Wang isolates (FPRC17, FPRC23 and FPRC30) caused 63-68% mortality of C. kiangsu nymphs 9 days after spraying, and the results were similar to applying a commercial Bacillus thuringiensis product. In a field trial, feeding damage from a C. kiangsu infestation was reduced by over 70% at 15 days after spraying these isolates. This finding reveals the potential for the development of a natural biopesticide for bamboo locust management in Vietnam.

Blowflies are often the first to colonize a cadaver, making them valuable forensic indicators for estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI). However, understanding the decomposition process by blowflies in practice presents challenges due to the direct influence of adults and larvae on the process. Environmental factors can either hinder or stimulate colonization by different species, leading to variability across different settings. In this study, we aimed to investigate the variation in the community of adult and immature stages of Calliphoridae blowflies during pig carcass decomposition in an island area of the Amazon rainforest. We identified changes in abundance, richness, and species composition separately for adults and larvae and measured the congruence between larval and adult communities. Our findings revealed that the peak abundance of adults preceded the peak abundance of larvae during carcass decomposition. Eleven species were collected within the first 4 days of decomposition, of which only seven colonized the carcass. Species composition differed between life stages and decomposition phases, with larvae associated with the skeletonization phase and adults with the colliquative phase. The species composition of adults collected from the decomposing carcass corresponded to that of larvae collected 1 day later. This is the first study conducted in an Amazonian island environment in the extreme north of Brazil to document the cadaveric fauna and analyze the congruence between adult and larval communities of blowflies. These insights contribute to forensic entomology understanding and assist forensic professionals, particularly in tropical regions with high rates of unsolved homicides like Brazil.

The main source of proteins for adult Chrysoperla externa (Hagen) is pollen, the content of which varies among species and may have different effects on the adult biology. In the laboratory, we evaluated the suitability of pollens from Canavalia ensiformis (JB), Crotalaria juncea (SH) (both Fabaceae), Pennisetum glaucum (MI), Sorghum bicolor (SO), and Zea mays (CO) (all Poaceae), alone or as mixtures of pollen from one species of each family, for the performance of adult C. externa; these diets were compared to brewer's yeast + honey (standard diet), 50% honey solution and water alone. Excluding water, the diets were supplemented with an extra honey solution (EHS). The protein content was used as a measure of diet quality, although the carbon and mineral contents were also evaluated. The diets combined with EHS significantly improved adult longevity. All the pollen diets promoted egg production. The CO-alone, SO-alone, JB-alone, SH-alone, SO + JB, CO + SH, MI + SH and SO + SH mixtures resulted in reproduction rates similar to those observed with the standard diet, indicating their suitability for C. externa. In contrast, the effects of MI-alone, MI + JB and CO + JB on reproduction were significantly worse than those of the standard diet. In terms of nutritional value, SH was the pollen enriched in protein, CO, MI and SO were protein-poor pollens, and the JB and dipollen mixtures presented intermediate levels. In conclusion, in contrast to our expectations, a mixture of Fabaceae and Poaceae pollens generally is not nutritionally superior to each pollen alone for improving the performance of adult C. externa.