Since the discovery of the invasive soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura, in the USA in 2000, populations have expanded throughout the Midwestern USA and Canada. Its negative economic impact on soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yield provides the impetus to continue investigating the effectiveness of host plant resistance which has been affected by soybean aphid biotypes that overcome soybean plants containing Rag (resistance to A. glycines) genes. In this study, 14 aphid clones collected on soybean and buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica L.) plants along with four known aphid biotypes (from our stock collection) were evaluated in no-choice assays by quantifying the number of aphids on soybean genotypes with Rag genes and the susceptible cultivar Williams 82. No-choice assays were conducted using detached leaves and whole plants. Inconsistent responses of the biotypes from the stock collection by using detached leaves confirm the efficacy of whole plant assays to accurately differentiate biotypes. None of the biotypes or field clones from Illinois, Indiana and South Dakota overcame the resistance of soybean genotypes LD14-8004 (Rag1) and PI437696. A soybean aphid clone from Wooster, Ohio readily colonized LD14-8002 (Rag2), but did not overcome any of the other resistance genes indicating that it is different from biotypes 3 and 4, which also overcome LD14-8002 (Rag2) and, respectively, LD14-8004 (Rag1) and LD14-8006 (Rag3).

Three species of ticks have been found in Northeast Missouri, where the incidence and prevalence of tick-borne infections is among the highest in the United States of America. We collected ticks and detected the presence of Rickettsia montanensis (instead of R. rickettsii) and Ehrlichia chaffeensis and the absence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum infections among adult ticks collected in conservation and private areas of Adair County, Missouri. Pathogens were detected and identified using PCR, DNA sequencing of PCR fragments and statistical sequence analysis. We found Ehrlichia chaffeensis in 10% of ticks of the species Amblyomma amercanum and Rickettsia montanensis in 7.95% of collected ticks of the species Dermacentor variabilis. These findings stress the importance of continuous monitoring and study of vector populations in the region. Such monitoring can contribute to risk assessment of ehrlichiosis, spotted fever infections, and anaplasmosis, which are considered endemic in the region.

The red cotton bug, Dysdercus koenigii F. (Hemiptera: Pyrrhocoridae) is a destructive pest of cotton in the cotton belt region of Pakistan. This pest attacks the cotton bolls, mature cotton seeds and causes serious damage to premature bolls. A trial was conducted under laboratory conditions to check the predatory potential of A. coquebertii on different stages of D. koenigii. Four stages of D. koenigii i.e. 3rd, 4th, 5th nymphal instars and adults were provided to A. coquebertii adults to check their survival, fecundity response and feeding potential. Results were statistically significant when comparing feeding preferences of A. coquebertii on different stages of D. koenigii. Adult male and female longevity of A. coquebertii was significantly higher when these insects were fed with 3rd instar nymphs of D. koenigii, which was 115.25 ± 6.91 and 88.75 ± 4.64 days, respectively. Maximum egg laying percentage of 34% was recorded on medium 3 and minimum egg laying percentage of 16% was recorded on medium 2. Based on the results of this study, survival and fecundity rate of A. coquebertii can be highly affected when the suitable stage of D. koenigii is not present.

Few reports have described the effect of starvation on insect muscle physiology and development. This study examined the role of troponin C (TnC) in the skeletal muscles and digestive tracts of the two-spotted cricket (Gryllus bimaculatus; Orthoptera: Gryllidae) during starvation and re-feeding. The TnC gene of G. bimaculatus (GrybiTnC) was cloned and found to encode a 153-amino-acid protein with a theoretical isoelectric point of 4.02 and molecular weight of 17,368.23 Da. Homology analyses revealed that GrybiTnC exhibited high amino acid similarities with TnCs from other insects, showing sequence identities ranging from ∼54 to 75%. GrybiTnC has two Ca2+-binding sites and five EF-hand motifs, similar to most TnC proteins. GrybiTnC gene expression was examined under starvation and re-feeding conditions in three different skeletal muscle and digestive tract regions. During starvation, GrybiTnC gene expression was unchanged in muscle but upregulated in the foregut and hindgut. Whereas GrybiTnC gene expression in muscle was similar under re-feeding and starvation conditions, it was upregulated in the foregut and midgut by re-feeding with carbohydrates and lipids and downregulated in the hindgut by re-feeding with carbohydrates, proteins and lipids.

Parocneria orienta Chao (Lepidoptera: Erebidae) is the primary defoliator of members of the conifer family Cupressaceae in China. Research is needed to identify the geographic distribution of P. orienta and its major areas of occurrence and to formulate measures for early warning, monitoring and control of this pest. Data on the occurrence P. orienta were collected from 4,688 monitoring sites in Sichuan Province, China from 2012 to 2016. Analyses of the spatial distribution and model fit were carried out using ArcGIS and Matlab software. We found that the occurrence of P. orienta complied with a normal distribution law (α = 1% confidence level) in terms of longitude and latitude and belonged to a generalized extreme-value distribution (α = 1% confidence level) in terms of elevation. According to the double factor variance analysis taking year-month as the time variance and longitude, latitude and elevation as the space variance, the hazard centroid shifted significantly by 6 minutes of longitude in March (105°46′37″E) and July (105°40′30″E) of the same year. The regions of greatest damage by P. orienta were located in eastern and southeastern parts of Sichuan Province (105.7°E–31.1°N, elevation 400 m), an area that features plains and low mountains with lush vegetation and abundant Cupressus funebris individuals.

A nest aggregation of the oil-collecting bee Rediviva intermixta (Cockerell, 1934) (Hymenoptera: Melittidae: Melittinae) was found associated with a mound of harvester termite, Microhodotermes viator (Latreille, 1804) occupying a clay-rich bank. We first noticed this nest aggregation by the intensive patrolling of seemingly hundreds of males searching for females close to the ground. We estimate the density of nests as 194 nests/m² or 2917 nests in the 15m² aggregation. This short communication presents observations on the daily activity and interactive behavior of males and females at the nesting holes. We provide the first account for this family of the males sleeping together in burrows, rather than on flowers.

Nesting, prey transportation mechanisms, and host preference are described for two Neotropical pompilid wasp species: Anoplius sp. and Anoplius triquetrus (Fox). Observations were made in a restinga area, in Regência district, Espírito Santo state, Brazil. Several Anoplius sp. individuals were observed foraging in small patches of vegetation along a beach, whereas A. triquetrus was observed and subsequently caught carrying a Psauridae spider into a nest on a sandy trail in a restinga forest. This is the first behavioral record for the genus Anoplius in South America. Finally, we formally move Psammochares triquetra (Fox) to the Anoplius subgenus Notiochares Banks.