Populations of Brachycaudus schwartzi (Börner) were found on peach and nectarine (Prunus persica Siebold & Zuccarini) trees in Parlier, CA, in summer 2000. To determine if this aphid could be a pest of P. persica, a nine-variety host range test was conducted using a no-choice arena and temperature-dependent development studies of the aphid at 15, 20, 22.5, 25, 27.5, 30, and 32.5 C. Nectarine va...

Observed changes in mean temperature and increased frequency of extreme climate events have already impacted the distributions and phenologies of various organisms, including insects. Although some research has examined how parasitoids will respond to colder temperatures or experimental warming, we know relatively little about how increased variation in temperature and humidity could affect int...

One of the most complex and least understood transmission strategies displayed by pathogenic parasites is that of manipulation of host behaviour. A wide variety of parasites alter their host's behaviour, including species of medical and veterinary importance, such as Diplostomum spathaceum, Echinococcus spp. and Toxoplasma gondii. The manipulative ability of these parasites has implications for...

In 1995 and 1996, we conducted a study of the hymenopteran parasitoids of macrolepidopteran larvae in the George Washington National Forest (GWNF), Augusta County, Virginia, and the Monongahela National Forest (MNF), Pocahontas County, West Virginia. Macrolepidopteran larvae were collected from canopy foliage and from under canvas bands placed around tree boles. A total of 115 macrolepidopteran...

Ethoprop, oxamyl, PP 156, fenamiphos, carbofuran , AC 64,475, Bunema M, CG 12223, aldicarb, aldicarbsulfoxide, and aldicarbsulfone were tested for their effects on hatching and emergence of larvae from cysts of Heterodera schachtii. The oxime carbamates and carbofuran inhibited hatching , but this response was reversed by removing the chemical treatment . Inhibition of hatching by Bunema M and ...

Like many other nocturnal arthropods, the amblypygid Phrynus pseudoparvulus is capable of homing. The environment through which these predators navigate is a dense and heterogeneous tropical forest understory and the mechanism(s) underlying their putatively complex navigational abilities are presently unknown. This study explores the sensory inputs that might facilitate nocturnal navigation in ...

Superparasitism in solitary parasitoids results in fatal competition between the immature parasitoids, and consequently only one individual can emerge. In the semisolitary ovicidal parasitoid Echthrodelphax fairchildii (Hymenoptera: Dryinidae), 2 adults can emerge under superparasitism with a short interval (<24 h) between the first and second ovipositions. We determined the female parasitoid's...

Wildflower strip plantings in intensive agricultural systems have become a widespread tool for promoting pollination services and biological conservation because of their use by wasps and bees. Many of the trap-nesting wasps are important predators of common crop pests, and cavity-nesting bees that utilize trap-nests are important pollinators for native plants and many crops. The impact of wild...

Specimens of Spinitectus osorioi Choudhury and Pérez-Ponce de León, an intestinal nematode species previously considered to be specific to Chirostoma spp and endemic to some lakes in the Pacific drainage in Michoacán, were collected from the freshwater fish Atherinella alvarezi (Díaz-Pardo) (Atherinopsidae) of the Michol River near Palenque, Chiapas, Southern Mexico, which belongs to the Atlant...

New species of the rarely encountered megachilid genera Afroheriades Peters from South Africa, Afroheriades hyalinussp. n., and Noteriades Cockerell from Myanmar and Thailand, Noteriades jenniferaesp. n. and Noteriades spinosussp. n., are described and illustrated. The species are described to make their names available for forthcoming publications on phylogenetic studies of the family Megachil...