Nickel hyperaccumulator plants contain unusually elevated levels of Ni (> 1 000 μg Ni/g). Some insect herbivores, including Lygus hesperus (Western tarnished plant bug), have been observed feeding on the California Ni hyperaccumulator Streptanthus polygaloides. This bug may be able to utilize S. polygaloides as a host either through its feeding behavior or by physiological tolerance of Ni. This...

The plant bug, Nesidiocoris tenuis (Hemiptera: Miridae), is one of the most thermophilous dicyphines in agroecosystems and is widely distributed in China. Little is known regarding the genetic structure of N. tenuis and the effect of historical climatic fluctuations on N. tenuis populations. We analyzed partial sequences of three mitochondrial protein-coding genes (COI, ND2 and CytB) and nuclea...

Macrolophus pygmaeus (Rambur, 1839) is recorded for the first time in New Zealand. Viable adult M. pygmaeus were collected in the field in Auckland, in 2007, indicating that the species had already established itself in this country. The biology of M. pygmaeus is briefly discussed in the light of its potential economic benefits to growers of vegetable crops affected by whitefly (Aleyrodidae). T...

Sampling methods for square and boll-feeding plant bugs (Hemiptera: Miridae) occurring on cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., were compared with the intent to assess if one approach was viable for two species occurring from early-season squaring to late bloom in 25 fields located along the coastal cotton growing region of south Texas. Cotton fleaphopper, Pseudatomoscelis seriatus (Reuter), damages s...

Source populations of polyphagous pests often occur on host plants other than the economically damaged crop. We evaluated the contribution of patches of a non-native meadow grass, Lolium multiflorum Lam. (Poaceae), and other weeds growing in fallow fields or meadows as source hosts of an important native pest of rice, Stenotus rubrovittatus (Matsumura) (Hemiptera: Miridae), in an agricultural ...

BACKGROUND This is the third in a series of papers detailing the terrestrial arthropods collected during an intensive survey of a site near Steel Creek campground along the Buffalo National River in Arkansas. The survey was conducted over a period of eight and a half months using twelve trap types - Malaise traps, canopy traps (upper and lower collector), Lindgren multifunnel traps (black, gree...