A species of Gelechiid moth bred from larvae living in galls on the leaves of an unidentified species of Eugenia in New Ireland is described as new and is named Idiophantis eugeniae sp. n. The species is differentiated from I. chiridota Meyr., to which it is closely related and which occurs in the Indo-Malayan region. Illustrations are given of the adult male and the genitalia of both sexes.

Pseudococcus bicaudatus, Keuchenius, Medel. v.h. Besoekisch Proefstation, Djemba, No. 16, 1915, p. 63 [see also Review of Applied Entomology, Nov. 1915, p. 647].

The author's detailed description of the supposed new species shows quite clearly that he is dealing with Pseudococcus virgatus, described by Cockerell in 1893. The species occurs commonly throughout the tropics of both hemispheres and has been described by different authors under several names, e.g. ceriferus (Newstead), talini (Green), and marchali (Vayssière).

Fiorinia morrisi, Brittin, Trans. N.Z. Inst., Wellington, xlvii, 1914 (issued July 1915), p. 149 [see also Rev. Appl. Entom., Dec. 1915, p. 74].

Through the courtesy of the author, I have had an opportunity of examining typical examples of this insect, and find that they agree with examples of F. asteliae (ex coll. W. M. Maskell). Fiorinia asteliae is now considered to be a synonym of F. gigas of Maskell, and both have been rightly relegated to the genus Leucaspis.

With the exception of a few isolated records nothing is known of the Coccidae of Southern Rhodesia. Dr. Brain has made a study of the family in the Union of South Africa, the results of which are to be found in his excellent Monograph,* and Prof. Newstead has described many interesting and hitherto unknown forms from Central Africa in the earlier volumes of this Bulletin.

In 1925, the writer (2) described some experiments that demonstrated the rôle of Helopeltis as a pest of cotton at Ibadan, Nigeria. Evidence was obtained that attack was greater on the improved indigenous Ishan (Gossypium barbadense, formerly described as G. vitifolium) than on either American Allen (G. hirsutum) or the ordinary native cotton (G. peruvianum).

A high diversity library of recombinant human antibodies was selected on complex antigen mixtures from midguts of female Anopheles gambiae Giles. The library of phage-displayed single chain variable region fragment constructs, derived from β-lymphocyte mRNA of naïve human donors, was repeatedly selected and reamplified on the insoluble fraction of midgut homogenates. Five rounds of panning yielded only one midgut-specific clone, which predominated the resulting antibody panel. In A. gambiae, the epitope was found throughout the tissues of females but was absent from the midgut of males. The cognate antigen proved to be detergent soluble but very sensitive to denaturation and could not be isolated or identified by Western blot of native electrophoresis gels or by immunoprecipitation. Nevertheless, immunohistology revealed that this sex-specific epitope is associated with the lumenal side of the midgut. Severe bottlenecking may limit the utility of phage display selection from naïve libraries for generating diverse panels of antibodies against complex mixtures of antigens from insect tissues. These results suggest that the selection of sufficiently diverse antibody panels, from which mosquitocidal or malaria transmission-blocking antibodies can be isolated, may require improved selection methods or specifically enriched pre-immunized libraries.

The following are a few observations made on the larvae of Auchmeromyia luteola taken in Uganda. The larvae were kept in glass-topped cardboard boxes containing earth. Several attempts were made to feed them on the less hairy parts of puppies but in no case did they make any attempt to draw blood. I then placed some on my own hand. In only one instance was this successful, the details of the feeding being described below.

Meat, crushed ticks, bananas were placed in the boxes at various times, but so far as could be gathered, they were left untouched. By dampening the earth with water every few days larvae were kept alive up to a month. They would probably have lived longer were it not that the exigencies of constant travelling caused their neglect. The small immature larvae however did not seem to grow, those which pupated having been mature, or almost so, at the time of capture. The longest period between capture and pupation was 12 days, and this larva was full of blood when taken and two days later its alimentary tract was still red with blood.

A lateral view of the terminal segments is essential for the identification of a Culicine larva, but owing to the necessity of the larva to pierce the surface film of the water with the spiracular valves at the distal end of the respiratory siphon, it will retain a position with the dorsal surface uppermost in spite of all efforts to induce it to do otherwise. Even if placed in water so shallow that there is insufficient space between the bottom of the container and the surface of the water for the siphon to be held erect, the insect will incline its siphon but keep the rest of the abdomen dorsum uppermost, thus possibly presenting a lateral view of the siphon, and showing the pecten, but the comb and anal segments will still not be in a suitable position for a detailed study of the characters to be made

Twelve species of termites occurring in the British Solomon Islands Protectorate are listed, and an illustrated key to their soldier castes is provided. An analysis of the 114 records has been made in order to indicate, in a general way, the relative abundance of the various species. Notes are given on distribution within the islands, on habitats and nests, and on the occurrence of termites on coconut palms and in buildings. Damage to buildings is discussed and suggestions made for control measures applicable to local conditions.

A new genus, Austrotortrix, is erected for Teras postvittana Walker, the Apple Leaf Roller or Light Brown Apple Moth, a common pest of apple and Citrus in the coastal regions of Australia, and in Tasmania and New Zealand.

Two new synonyms of A. postvittana in addition to those already recorded are given.

As there are several species in Australia closely resembling postvittana, making identification difficult, descriptions of the genitalia of postvittana are given as these provide the best means of positive identification.

Apart from the type species, postvittana, ten other species are assigned to the new genus.

From the 1990s, the Southeast Asia native giant resin bee Megachile sculpturalis (Smith, 1853) was introduced first to North America, and then to many countries in Europe. Despite increasing studies on its invasive potential and geographical expansion, information on nesting behaviour of this species is still extremely scarce. To increase knowledge on the nesting biology of M. sculpturalis, we studied multiple aspects of nesting and pollen provisioning in three consecutive years in artificial nests in Bologna, Italy. We observed 166 bees visiting nests, and followed individual nesting behaviour and success of 41 adult females. We measured cavity diameter in 552 nests and characterised the structure in 100 of them. More than 95% of nest diameters ranged between 0.6 and 1.2 cm, overlapping with several sympatric species of cavity-nesting hymenopterans in the study area. Most nests had a first chamber from the entrance of variable length without brood, followed by an average of about two brood cells with a mean length of 2.85 ± 0.13 cm each. The pollen stored in brood cells was almost monofloral, belonging to the ornamental plant Styphnolobium japonicum (L.) Schott. We estimated that a single female should visit ≈180 flowers to collect enough pollen for a single brood cell. These results fill knowledge gaps on the nesting biology and nest structure of the exotic M. sculpturalis, and they are discussed in relation to possible competition with native bees for nesting sites and foraging resources.

Drosophila suzukii is a pest of global concern due to its great impact on several crops. The entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema carpocapsae was highly virulent to the larvae of the fly although some immune mechanisms were triggered along the infection course. Thus, to understand the gene activation profile we performed a comparative transcriptome of D. suzukii larvae infected with S. carpocapsae and Xenorhabdus nematophila to map the differentially expressed genes involved in the defence response. The analysis exposed the induction of genes involved in the humoral response such as the antimicrobial peptides and pattern-recognition receptors while there was a suppression of the cellular defence. Besides, genes involved in melanisation, and clot formation were downregulated hindering the encapsulation response and wound healing. After the infection, larvae were in a stress condition with an enrichment of metabolic and transport functionalities. Concerning the stress response, we observed variations of the heat-shock proteins, detoxification, and peroxidase enzymes. These findings set a genetical comprehensive knowledge of the host-pathogen relation of D. suzukii challenged with S. carpocapsae which could support further comparative studies with entomopathogenic nematodes.

Euwallacea interjectus, a recently discovered pest in poplar plantations, poses a significant economic threat due to its role in causing widespread tree mortality. This pest's cryptic behaviour has hindered research and control efforts, making laboratory rearing a valuable tool for studying its development and biology. We investigated the development period and biological characteristics of E. interjectus using artificial diets and fungal medium. Our findings revealed that the development time for eggs, larvae, and pupae averages approximately 6, 18, and 6 days, respectively. Notably, first and second instar larvae displayed peak moulting periods at 3.45 ± 0.64 SD and 7.92 ± 1.77 SD days, respectively. Furthermore, we measured head capsule widths of postmolt larvae, yielding values of 318.02 ± 7.38 SD μm for first-instar larvae, 403.01 ± 11.08 SD μm for second-instar larvae, and 549.54 ± 20.74 SD μm for third-instar larvae. Our research also uncovered a positive correlation between the number of progeny (eggs, larvae, pupae, and adults) and the mean length of the gallery system. Interestingly, the haplodiploid reproductive strategy did not significantly affect the number of offspring produced by the foundress. Additionally, we observed that foundresses displayed higher fecundity when subjected to nutrient-rich diets as compared to nutrient-poor diets. Our results will deepen our understanding of the biology of E. interjectus and provide criteria for larval instar classification. Additionally, managing nutrient availability within the colony could be considered a viable approach to regulating population size.

Negative relationships between the parental age and offspring life history traits have been widely observed across diverse animal taxa. However, there is a lack of studies examining the influence of parental age on offspring performance using mites, particularly phytoseiid predators as subjects. This study explored the influence of maternal age on offspring life history traits in Amblyseius herbicolus (Chant) (Acari: Mesostigmata), a phytoseiid predatory mite reproducing through thelytokous parthenogenesis. We hypothesised that increased maternal age negatively impacts offspring traits, including developmental duration, body size, fecundity and lifespan. Amblyseius herbicolus was reared under controlled laboratory conditions, and the life history traits of offspring from mothers of varying ages were analysed using linear mixed-effect models. Our results showed that the increase in maternal age significantly reduced individual egg volume, but did not significantly affect offspring developmental duration, body size, fecundity or lifespan. These findings indicate that while older A. herbicolus females produced smaller eggs, the subsequent performance (i.e. body size, fecundity and lifespan) of offspring remained largely unaffected, suggesting possible compensatory mechanisms in the offspring or alternative maternal provisioning strategies. The results of this study offer useful insights into the reproductive strategies of phytoseiid predators and asexually reproducing species, enhancing our understanding of how maternal age affects offspring fitness. Further studies can examine how offspring of A. herbicolus from mothers of different ages perform under adverse environmental conditions.

While the desire for systemic repellents is high, ineffective repellents put one at risk of insect-vectored pathogens. Vitamin B1, or thiamine, has been touted as a systemic insect repellent since 1943, and denounced as an ineffective placebo for just as long. This paper presents a scoping review of 104 relevant case reports, research studies, and review articles to trace the evolution of this idea and identify an evidence-based, scientific consensus. Reports of thiamine's systemic repellency are primarily anecdotal and based on uncontrolled trials and/or used bite symptoms as a proxy for reduced biting. Controlled experiments on insect landing and feeding found no evidence of repellency. Of the 49 relevant review papers, 16 insect bite prevention guidelines, and 4 government documents, none after the 1990s claimed thiamine is a repellent. The findings of this review are that thiamine cannot repel arthropods in any dosage or route of administration. Due to limited available evidence, the possibility that thiamine reduces the subjective symptoms of insect bites cannot currently be ruled out. Unfortunately, many medical professionals and travelers today still believe thiamine may be effective despite the evidence stating otherwise. Continued promotion of debunked repellents on the commercial market poses a serious risk in countries with the endemic, mosquito-vectored disease.

Parasitoids are an important group of insects because their species number is among the highest. Multiple studies have addressed the relationships between forest successional age and insect diversity by focusing on herbivorous organisms, but changes in diversity of parasitoids are still poorly known. This work analyses the diversity of parasitoids in tropical forests representing three successional stages. A total of 30 traps were placed, ten in each forest successional stages. We estimated true diversity of Ichneumonidae species and guilds and explored the relationship between their diversity and the abundance of plant species using an Indicator Species Analysis; the relationship between parasitoid species and plant richness and abundance was tested using a Redundancy Analysis. A total of 1522 individuals and 168 morpho-species were captured in four months. Species richness showed no differences; however, parasitoid abundance was higher in young forest, while intermediate forest had the highest true diversity values (1D) with 71.6 effective species. According to insect guilds, richness, abundance, and diversity were similar in the three vegetation successional stages. This finding may be explained based on the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, which postulates that moderate disturbance levels favor the highest diversity. In conclusion, successional age matters, i.e., diversity is the highest in intermediate stages, while the old forests harbors guilds unique to that successional stage, such as parasitoids of melitophagous larvae of bees. Other successional stages were characterized by a single species of parasitoid, belonging to the genera Eiphosoma and Anomalon, which may indicate altered and preserved forests, respectively.