Cossyphodini Wasmann, 1899 (Tenebrionidae: Pimeliinae) from South Africa, Namibia and adjacent regions are revised, and newly collected material is presented. All species are figured, including as much as possible type specimens of African taxa for comparison. New species are described: Cossyphodes andreaei sp. n. and Cossyphodes caecus sp. n. (both South Africa), Cossyphodes naukluftensis sp. ...

The following new gregarine taxa are described from larvae of flour beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae): Awrygregarina billmani, n. gen., n. sp., from Tribolium brevicornis; Gregarina cloptoni, n. sp., from Tribolium freemani; Gregarina confusa, n. sp., from Tribolilum confusum; and Gregarina palori, n. sp., from Palorus subdepressus. In addition, the description of Gregarina minuta Ishii, 1914...

The surface architecture of oocysts produced by Gregarina niphandrodes (Eugregarinorida) from Tenebrio molitor adults (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) as revealed by scanning electron microscopy is reported. Gametocysts were allowed to dehisce on 15-mm, round cover glasses; the cover glasses with their oocysts chains were then mounted on stubs without further processing, and sputter-coated with 20-n...

-Habitat selection in the darkling beetle Eleodes hispilabris Say (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) on the shortgrass prairie of the central United States was nonrandom at both a broad (km2) and a fine (cm2) scale, relative to the abundance of broadly defined habitat types and, within these, microhabitats. On a broad habitat scale, darkling beetles were more numerous and had longer residence times (a...

Nearctic species of Iphthiminus Spilman (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) are revised by examining external morphological structures and genital characters. Of the six Nearctic species, only three are considered valid: Iphthiminus serratus (Mannerheim 1843), I. opacus (Leconte 1866), and I. lewisii (Horn 1870). Photographs are taken to highlight structures and a key is created to identify the species...

Cantharidin, a terpenoid defensive toxin mainly produced by blister beetles, is among the most widely known insect natural products in the world. However, little is known about the site of cantharidin biosynthesis in vivo. Our previous research showed that 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutary-CoA reductase (HMGR) is an essential enzyme in cantharidin biosynthesis. In this report, we further investigated c...

The lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus Panzer 1797 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), is a cosmopolitan insect pest affecting poultry production. Due to its cryptic behavior, insecticide control is usually not efficient. Thus, sustainable and effective methods would have an enormous and positive impact in poultry production. The aim of this study was to confirm the identity of the male-produced ...

Massive invasion of the litter dwelling beetle, Luprops tristis Fabricius (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), numbering about 0.5 to 4 million per residential building following summer showers, and their prolonged stay in a state of dormancy, make them an extreme nuisance in rubber tree plantation belts of the Western Ghats in south India. Food preference of post-dormancy adults, larvae and teneral ad...