Triatomine insects (Hemiptera: Reduviidae), commonly known as kissing bugs, are a potential health problem in the southwestern United States as possible vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. Although this disease has been traditionally restricted to Latin America, a small number of vector-transmitted autochthonous US cases have been reported. Because triatomine bu...

In this paper, glandular areas associated with the phallus in Triatoma rubrofasciata are described and illustrated for the first time. The glandular areas lie in the membrane surrounding the articulatory apparatus. In order to unambiguously define the locality of the respective glandular areas, some features of the pygophore-phallus connection are redescribed. A possible functional context of t...

abstract information on reduviidae species are sporadic and very rare in iran due to the few survey conducted on this bugs. a study was done to determine the diversity of this family during 2008 - 2009. several species were collected among them holotrichius mesoleucus (kiritshenko, 1914) was found to be the species recorded for the first time in iran. this species was collected from avena fatua...

The factors affecting the sexual behaviour of Panstrongylus megistus were studied under laboratory conditions. A general description of mating behaviour is presented for this species. The effect of the time elapsed after the first imaginal feeding on the mating frequency, the motivation of males to mate and the rejection behaviour by females, were analyzed. We also determined the number of copu...

INTRODUCTION This paper reports, for the first time, the presence of the Eratyrus mucronatus species in the State of Rondonia, Brazil. METHODS These specimens were caught by chance in the forest and later they were collected using luminous traps. RESULTS After finding these specimens, the number of the Triatominae genera in Rondonia rose to four, while its species rose to seven. CONCLUSIO...

The small reduviid subfamily Physoderinae has the greatest species diversity in the Oriental region and Madagascar. Only the two monotypic genera Cryptophysoderes Wygodzinsky and Maldonado and Leptophysoderes Weirauch are currently known from the Neotropical region. We here describe and document a new, sexually dimorphic species of Physoderinae, Leptophysoderes sarapiqui sp. nov. from Costa Ric...

The influence of blood meal and mating on Triatoma brasiliensis (Neiva) female fecundity, fertility, life-span and the preoviposition period were investigated under laboratory conditions. Nourishment increased fecundity, fertility and adult lifespan, whereas mating increased fecundity, fertility and decreased the preoviposition period. Females also required more than one mating to reach their f...

Triatomines (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) are blood-sucking insect vectors of the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi which is the causative agent of Chagas' disease. Rhodnius prolixus is the most epidemiologically important vector of T. cruzi in Colombia. Triatomines are regarded to be vessel-feeders as they obtain their blood meals from vertebrate hosts by directly inserting their mouthparts into vessels. ...

Trypanosoma cruzi and the majority of its insect vectors (Hemiptera, Reduviidae, Triatominae) are confined to the Americas. But while recent molecular studies indicate a relatively ancient origin for the parasite ( approximately 65 million years ago) there is increasing evidence that the blood-sucking triatomine vectors have evolved comparatively recently (<5 mya). This review examines the evid...

(1) Assess the distribution and abundance of four common, flower-visiting, predatory Southern California assassin bug species (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) on their host plants in sage scrub and chaparral habitats of the Shipley-Skinner Reserve. (2) Use gut metabarcoding analyses to test the hypothesis that native pollinators constitute a significant proportion of assassin bug diets, and that the die...