The impact of insect pollinators on the yield of two canola varieties (‘Ganyou’ in which pollen viability and germination are adversely affected by soil salinity, and ‘Oscar’ that is more tolerant of soil salinity) was studied at the Research Farm of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Agricultural University, Peshawar, Pakistan in 2009 and 2010. Yields were similar between the two cultivars. Significant differences were observed between pollinated and covered plants for three yield parameters (i.e., total yield, number of seeds per sliquae, and weight of 100 seeds). Average yields were 189.3 ± 1.7 pods/plant in the pollinated plots and 142.2 ± 2.4 pods/plant in the covered plots. There was an average of 15.0 ± 0.9 seeds/siliquae in pollinated plots and 11.0 ± 0.8 seeds/siliquae in covered plots. The weight of 100 seeds was 0.55 ± 0.02 g in pollinated plots and 0.37 ± 0.01 g in covered plots.

The purpose of this research was to develop a bio-intensive pest management system for the thrips, Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), on hybrid roses by incorporating biopesticides [spinosad, emamectin benzoate, and Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin] with neonicotinoides (imidacloprid and acetamiprid) at half the labeled dose. Soil and spray treatments with these insecticides and their combinations were done at 45-d intervals in 2009 and at 60-d intervals in 2010. An imidacloprid drench was the most effective treatment both years. Spinosad-alone, imidacloprid spinosad, imidacloprid emamectin benzoate, imidacloprid B. bassiana, acetamiprid alone, acetamiprid spinosad, acetamiprid emamectin benzoate, and acetamiprid B. bassiana also gave significant control of thrips at four days after spraying. In 2009, spinosad-alone or in combination with imidacloprid remained effective in controlling thrips populations significantly up to 10 d after insecticide treatment. In 2010, the spinosad-alone treatment gave similar results, but spinosad in combination with imidacloprid (half the labeled dose) showed significant thrips control up to 16 d after insecticide applications.

The efficacy of a dry, ready-to-use (RTU) termiticide formulation of fipronil was evaluated against termite foraging activity and survival by injection into foraging tunnels of Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in a laboratory study. Groups of workers (older than 3^rd instars) were placed in bioassay units consisting of a group site and a feeding site connected by termite tunnel(s) within a soil-filled Tygon tube. Two treatments (0.15 and 0.30 mg a.i. fipronil per treatment) were conducted by injecting the doses into a foraging tunnel near the feeding site. Bioassay units were monitored for termite movement utilizing Termatrac® T3i until no movement was detected. Termite movement ceased at day 5 and 7 for the 0.30 and 0.15 mg dose treatments, respectively. Dissection of the bioassay units confirmed 100% mortality at the days when both visual observations and Termatrac T3i indicated no termite movement. Termites in the treated units constructed significantly fewer tunnels post-treatment compared to control termites. Our results provided strong evidence for the efficacy of the dry RTU fipronil formulation against R. flavipes activity at the group level when a single tunnel was treated.

The cancellation of most organophosphate and carbamate insecticides, and the emerging resistance to currently available insecticides for managing the lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), necessitate efficacy studies on other classes of insecticidal compounds. Baseline dose-response bioassays were conducted with three different types of insect growth regulators (IGRs), fenoxycarb, diflubenzuron, and 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) on first and seventh instars, two day-old pupae, and one-week-old adult beetles. Insects were exposed to a range of concentrations through topical application, by residual contact with treated wood shavings, and through feeding on treated chicken feed diet. Insects were observed at 10-day intervals to estimate mortality, pupation, and abnormal growth for each treatment. The mean number of days to pupation increased and pupation was delayed in fenoxycarb-treated seventh instars in feeding, residual, and topical bioassays. Fenoxycarb-treated larvae continued to molt and gain weight, and died as deformed larvae, abnormal pupae, or intermediate larval-pupal and pupal-adult forms. In feeding bioassays, fenoxycarb was more toxic to seventh instars than to first instars or adults, whereas diflubenzuron was more toxic to first instars than it was to seventh instars or adults. The feeding bioassay was more suitable for the first and seventh instars, although the residual contact bioassay could also be used for seventh instars. Adults succumbed to lower concentrations of IGRs in a topical bioassay than in feeding or residual bioassays. All three bioassay methods produced usable dose-response curves and may be used for surveying temporal changes in the IGR susceptibility to lesser mealworm.

Dongxiang wild rice, Oryza rufipogon Griff. (Poales: Poaceae), has many excellent traits that are of interest to botanists and plant breeders. However, arthropod biodiversity and community structure for this rare species are not well known. Therefore, we investigated the arthropod communities in natural plots of Dongxiang wild rice at three locations in Jiangxi Province, China. The diversity and dominance indices of the arthropod communities within wild rice plots fluctuated only slightly over time. However, the diversity and dominance indices differed significantly among actively growing plots. The vegetation complex surrounding the wild rice plots affected the similarity coefficients of the arthropod communities within them. The surrounding vegetation also significantly affected the diversity and dominance indices of arthropod functional groups, except for the parasitoid group. The dominance of phytophagous groups, such as planthoppers, also was suppressed in more diverse arthropod communities. We are the first to report that the vegetation complex surrounding Dongxiang wild rice affects the pest complex within, and these data provide insight into the protection of Dongxiang wild rice from insect pests.

Anisaldehyde may be useful as a spatial repellent against Aedes albopictus, and it could play a major role in new repellent technology for mosquito management. This study characterized the delayed effects of anisaldehyde on Ae. albopictus adult host-seeking behavior, feeding behavior, and reproduction. Anisaldehyde was applied as a fumigant (0.25 µg/cm³) during different developmental stages of the mosquito (larvae from 1^st instar to pupation, larvae from 1^st instar to adult emergence, pupae, and two-day-old adults). Except when treated as pupae, the resulting adult females (at 5 days of age) exhibited significantly lower host-seeking capability and lower repeated-feeding rates than untreated females. Anisaldehyde treatments also significantly reduced the number of eggs and hatchability, and this chemical prolonged the gonotrophic cycle and egg development. These results showed that anisaldehyde acted as a spatial repellent, where it not only reduced host-seeking capability, but also greatly reduced vectoring capacity and reproduction potential, which is significant for mosquito control and disease prevention.

Massive home invasions by the Mupli beetle, Luprops tristis F. (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), with the onset of monsoon rains, aggregation in a prolonged state of dormancy at specific locations, and repeated selection of the same locations for years provides an excellent opportunity to control the beetles employing suitable insecticides. The weak physical stature of the surviving beetles during the last phase of dormancy lead to the proposition that there were differences in insecticide susceptibility during the early- and late-dormancy phases. Hence, efficacy of three pyrethroid insecticides were tested with filter-paper bioassays to determine LC₉₉ and KC₉₉ values in the early and late phases of dormancy and to analyse whether the efficacy of the compounds vary between the early and late phases. During the late-dormancy phase, these compounds caused immediate knockdown but not immediate mortality at the lowest application rates. However, because the beetles have to be controlled during the early phase of dormancy when home invasions occur, the best control strategy for this nuisance pest is to knockdown the beetles and physically remove them instead of direct mortality.

Considered relatively safe, boric acid formulations are commonly used in urban pest management and occasionally as baits in swine and poultry production facilities. Using the house fly, Musca domestica L. (Diptera: Muscidae), as a model insect, we conducted bait-consumption assays with 0.5% and 1.5% boric acid in 0.5 M sugar solution fed to flies in no-choice tests. Flies consumed little or no bait containing boric acid, and only fed on the boric acid bait as a last resort. House flies consumed up to seven times more untreated control solution per fly than they consumed the boric acid solutions. Consumption of aqueous bait and resultant mortality was not significantly different between either of the boric acid concentrations. We conclude that house flies were averse to feeding on sucrose solutions of greater than 0.5% boric acid.

Noctuid moths possess tympanal hearing organs capable of detecting ultrasonic echolocation calls of hunting bats, which leads to the supposition that ultrasound may be an environmental stress factor for these insects. Effects of non-bat ultrasound from a commercial ultrasound-producing device, LCH20 (Lihui, Inc., Wuhan, China), on the fecundity of adult Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) were investigated in the laboratory. In each of the three trials, 10 newly emerged pairs of male and female moths were introduced into cages with or without added ultrasound. The ultrasound device produced frequencies between 33 and 69 kHz and a 97 dB sound pressure level at a distance of 50 cm. In the cage with ultrasound, female moths had 11.7% more spermatophores and produced 54.5% more eggs than those not exposed to ultrasound. There were no differences between the daily development patterns of larval H. armigera in the absence or presence of ultrasound, however the pupation rate was reduced by 14.5% in the presence of ultrasound. This is the first report that ultrasound affects the mating, oviposition, and development in H. armigera.

Despite a number of studies on the prevalence of Nosema across the United States, limited information exists regarding comparative rates of N. ceranae and N. apis infection within individual states. We conducted a study to detect N. ceranae and N. apis using molecular diagnostics on managed honey bee colonies from New York and South Dakota. A total of 1200 apiaries were visited by New York state bee inspectors in 2009, and samples were collected from 4300 honey bee colonies. A total of 1023 apiaries were sampled from South Dakota in 2009. Microscopy was used to detect Nosema spore presence and to estimate the intensity of infection by estimating spore counts in positive samples. Nosema was detected in 528 (44%) of the New York and 300 (29%) of the South Dakota sampled apiaries. A total of 464 New York and 290 South Dakota Nosema-positive apiary samples were subjected to molecular diagnostic polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis. For the New York samples, 250 (54%) were PCR-positive for Nosema, with 96.8% being N. ceranae, 0.8% N. apis, and 2.4% both N. ceranae and N. apis. For the South Dakota samples, 122 (42%) were PCR-positive for Nosema, all of which were N. ceranae.