Molecular resistance of Spodoptera littoralis to gamma radiation and/or fungal pathogenic Beauveria bassiana via malate dehydrogenase (Mdhs) and peroxidase (Pxs) isozymes by using native- polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was the aim of this study. Under laboratory conditions, the pathogenicity of B. bassiana against 2nd instar larvae of S. littoralis was studied. Mortality percentage increased with the time period of fungal incubation. The LC₅₀ value of B. bassiana was (0.4×10⁵ spore/ml) after 5 days of treatment. Analysis of gel electrophoresis revealed 4 Mdhs and 6Pxs isozyme in the 6th instar larvae of S. littoralis. Tissue extracts have been assigned according to their mobility. Gamma rays revealed disorders of the Mdhs and Pxs isozyme expression and density. Mdh₁band intensity was decreased at 100 and150 Gy, while Mdh₂ band intensity was decreased only at 100 Gy. Furthermore, Px₁, Px₂ and Px₃ isozyme intensity was decreased at 100 and 150 Gy. S. littoralis exposed to 50 Gy showed resistance to radiation effects and an increase in Pxs and Mdhs bands intensity. Through the course of infection by LC₅₀ value of B. bassiana, Mdhs and Pxs were affected and disturbed. Combined treatment of 100 Gy and B. bassiana showed synergistic effects causing marked disturbance and decrease in the isozyme pattern intensity of Mdhs and Pxs or missing Px₃. However, Mdhs and Pxs isozymes intensity and expression were greatly affected after 96 h. That reflects the depression in the resistance of S. littoralis and explains the rate of mortality after 5 days post treatment.

Two new species, i.e. Hedotettix mainpurensis sp. nov. and Hedotettix torengensis sp. nov., are described from Udanti Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh, India. A key to the Indian species of the genus HedotettixBolivar, 1887 is also provided. The type specimens are deposited with the Zoological Survey of India.

This study aimed to evaluate the arthropod fauna associated with pecan trees [Carya illinoinensis (Wangenh.) K. Koch] (Juglandaceae) in the south of Brazil. The experiment was conducted in a C. illinoinensis plantation of approximately 1.2 hectares, divided into 7 m × 7 m areas that were subjected to different soil preparations and pit sizes, in Santa Maria, RS, Brazil. A randomized block design with five blocks and four treatments was used: planting in small pits of 20 cm × 60 cm (Sp); using a subsoiler with a leveling grader/shank and small pits (Ssp); using a rotary tiller and small pits (Tsp); and planting in large pits of 40 cm × 60 cm (Lp). Eighteen biweekly samplings were carried out from March 2014 to May 2015 using yellow adhesive traps in all treatment areas. No statistically significant difference in abundance or arthropod richness was observed. The population peak of Monellia caryella (Fitch) (Aphididae) occurred in April 2014. After the population growth of M. caryella, an increase in Coccinellidae in the traps was observed. It can be concluded that the different soil preparations and pit sizes proposed for pecan planting do not affect the diversity of the arthropods collected using yellow adhesive traps.

This study presents the first extensive distributional checklist of all the species of Lucanidae (Coleoptera) recorded from Turkey. A total of 13 species and 4 subspecies belonging to 4 genera of Lucanidae are listed from Turkey. New locality records, distributional records and ecological data are given. Because of reduced populations, some of these species under the threat of extinction in Turkey are in the IUCN Red List. It is important to protect them. Therefore, one aim of this study is to draw attention to these threatened species in Turkey and to add new information about them since not many studies have been conducted on these species.

Chrysoperla mutata (McLachlan, 1898), known from northern Africa, southern Europe, and western Asia, was found on Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands. Larval and adult morphology as well as acoustic song analysis confirm that the Tenerife species is indeed C. mutata, not the closely related African C. pudica (Navás, 1914). The fact that the two specimens were found at two places close to the Tenerife South International Airport, and never before on the well-sampled Canary Islands, suggests that C. mutata is a newly established immigrant species.

The genus Yponomeuta is widely distributed in the tropical regions of the planet. Yponomeuta antistatica (Meyrick, 1931) was previously reported from China and Java, and it is reported herein from India (Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal) for the first time. The adult is redescribed, and the female genitalia are described for the first time.

Scorpions feed on diverse prey types but are also preyed upon by larger predators. Hunting and defensive strategies can also influence predation success of animals. Ananteris mauryi Lourenço, 1982 (Scorpiones: Buthidae), a relatively small-sized scorpion and an active forager in leaf litter, is frequently preyed on by another scorpion species, Tityus pusillus Pocock, 1893 in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest. Here, we report the predation of A. mauryi by the predatory ant Ectatomma planidens Borgmeier, 1939 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a tropical rainforest. During a nocturnal active collection of scorpions, an ant (10 mm) was observed biting the prosoma of a scorpion (16 mm) and carrying it posteriorly while moving backwards. This record confirms that a smaller predator is able to prey upon a larger scorpion. We discuss herein the efficiency of Ectatomma species to prey on dangerous predators. In addition, this is the first report of E. planidens in the Pernambuco state, Brazil.

A survey was conducted in various districts of the Kashmir valley in India to assess the diversity of thrips species on apple in summer during the year 2016-17. Samples of flower clusters containing thrips were collected from apple, and the thrips identified to species. The results revealed that only one species of thrips, Thrips carthami Shumsher, was associated with apple. Information on the taxonomy and distribution is provided.

The present paper provides a new record of the genus Oxytauchira Ramme, 1941 from Uttar Pradesh, India and a new species of the same genus Oxytauchira is described and illustrated from India. The new species Oxytauchira rohilla sp. nov. is reported from Sambhal District of Rohilkhand Region. This is the second species of Oxytauchira reported after Oxtauchira jaintia Ingrisch, Willemse & Shishodia, 2004 from India. The characteristic features of the new species are the presence of a bilobate prosternal process, uniform coloration of hind femur without any marking, tegmina surpassing abdomen and hind femur knees and presence of an external apical spine on hind tibia.

Culex pipiens pipiens is an important vector responsible for West Nile virus outbreaks that have recently affected many areas of Tunisia, and the use of vector control insecticides is the most powerful and widely applied system for the control of the disease. Our purpose was to measure the impact of mosquito control on temephos resistance status of Culex pipiens pipiens. An evaluation of resistance to temephos in three field-collected populations of Culex pipiens pipiens between 2003 and 2005 was conducted in northern and southern Tunisia. The three collected populations showed low resistance ratio for temephos insecticide in all studied samples which ranged from 1.52-fold in sample #1 to 0.50-fold at the LC₅₀ level in sample #2. The use of two synergists showed that the increased detoxification by the Cytochrome P450 (CYP450) was involved in the temephos resistance in sample #1. Biochemical assay demonstrated that detoxification esterases were involved in the recorded resistance although they were not detected using synergist bioassays. Altered AChE gene was detected in all field populations. The low resistance observed in Tunisian populations of Culex pipiens pipiens is particularly interesting because it leaves a range of tools useable by vector control services.

Four new species of the genus Heterospilus Haliday, 1836 are described from an area of Cerrado stricto sensu in São Paulo State, Brazil. The species described in this paper belong to groups with striated and granulate vertex, according to Marsh et al. (2013). Details of morphology are illustrated and compared with other species of the genus.

The intertidal oribatid mite Fortuynia longisetaPfingstl, 2015, is reported for the first time from the coast of Pakistan, extending its known northern distribution limit in the Indian Ocean. Fortuynia longiseta was detected in oyster reefs, at the intertidal zone, in the Hab River Delta, Balochistan coast in March 2018. Large densities of these mites were found on the inside surface of dead oyster shells.