Calotropis procera (Apocynaceae) is a good host plant of several insect pest species. In this report, Calotropis procera is presented as a new host plant for a polyphagous lepidopteran pest, Olepa ricini Fabricius, 1775 for the first time from Indian region with 9±0.5 days adult longevity. Apart from this, complete list of other insects feeding on C. procera Aiton is also enlisted here.

Three new species of Arescon Walker (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) Arescon insularis Manickavasagam & Palanivel, sp. nov., Arescon raniae Manickavasagam & Palanivel, sp. nov. and Arescon sagadaii Manickavasagam & Palanivel, sp. nov. are described from Andaman Nicobar Islands and North Eastern states of India. Arescon sparsiciliatus Jin & Li is reported for the first time from India.

Vesperus saquranussp. nov. is described with specimens collected in the Natural Park Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas (Jaén, Spain). A comparative diagnosis with the closest taxa of group II (sensuVerdugo, 2008) of the Iberian Peninsula, Vesperus xatarti Dufour, 1839; Vesperus fuentei Pic, 1905; Vesperus gomezi Verdugo, 2004 and Vesperus lucasiBarreda & Mejías, 2013, is established. V. saquranussp. nov. may be separated from the closest species by morphological and biometric characters.

The Asian chestnut gall wasp, Dryocosmus kuriphilus Yasumatsu is an invasive species of global concern that was inadvertently introduced into North America where it induces gall formation on chestnut species including Castanea mollissima Blume, C. crenata Siebold & Zucc., and C. sativa Mill. as well as on the American chestnut, C. dentata (Marshall) Borkh. The gall former was introduced into the United States in the 1970's and since its initial introduction into Georgia, it has been reported to have spread to 13 other states. It has previously been documented as far to the northeast as Connecticut and Massachusetts and as far to the northwest as Michigan. Prior to this study it had been reported in 13 counties within the state of Pennsylvania. The introduction and spread of D. kuriphilus is of particular concern given the intensive efforts to restore American chestnuts into the North American landscape. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the distribution and spread of the Asian chestnut gall wasp in Eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states. During the course of this study, specimens of Castanea spp. (Fagaceae) were assessed/monitored for the presence of galls caused by D. kuriphilus at over 100 sites in four states. Herein, galls caused by the Asian chestnut gall wasp are documented, for the first time, on Castanea spp. at several sites in the U.S. states of New Jersey, New York, and Delaware, new state records. Additionally, we report an expansion of the range of the Asian chestnut gall wasp to encompass twenty additional counties within Eastern Pennsylvania. Dispersal of the gall wasps in this study appears to have been influenced by topographical features and wind direction. For further confirmation of identity, we reared D. kuriphilus from galls collected at several sites. These findings establish the range expansion of this gall-forming invasive pest species in the United States to now encompass all of the Mid-Atlantic States.

The micromoth genus ScrobipalpomimaPovolný, 1985, mainly distributed in southern South America, is one of the more diverse Neotropical genera of Gonorimoschemini (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae: Gelechiinae). The adult stage of Scrobipalpomima agustini sp. nov. is described and illustrated from the Andes of northern Chile. Larval feeding and pupation of S. agustini occur inside fusiform stem galls on the native spiny shrub Adesmia spinosissima Meyen (Fabaceae). The larva and pupa of S. agustini are illustrated and briefly described. This discovery expands the northern limit of Scrobipalpomima and represents the first record of immature stages and host plant for this genus of micromoths

The genus Dioctria Meigen, 1803 (Diptera: Asilidae, Dioctriinae) was sampled in northern Iran. The specimens were collected using Malaise traps during 2010–2012. A new species Dioctria faciata Mohammadi, Talebi & Van den Broek sp. nov., is described and illustrated. Dioctria tauricaLehr, 2001 is recorded for the Iranian fauna for the first time. The new species can be distinguished from Dioctria cornutaLehr, 2001 by the following characters: black mystax; face slightly swollen at edge of mouth and larger body (8-9 mm vs 5.8 mm). The number of Dioctria species in Iran is now increased to 17. An updated checklist of Iranian species of the genus Dioctria is provided.

The larval instars of the genus Meloe L. are known to develop on provisions and immature stages of various species of ground-nesting bees. The first instar of Meloe, commonly known as a triungulin, attains its food source through phoresy on adult bees. In most species, the triungulins quest on flowers and attach to visiting bees. It has long been known that triungulins also attach to a variety of pilose flower visitors such as Diptera that do not serve as hosts. The fate of triungulins attaching to non-host visitors has been questioned and considered by some to be dead-end behavior. In this study of Meloe strigulosus Mannerheim in a coastal dune habitat we provide the first direct evidence that attachment to non-host insects can result in flower to flower dispersal and thus is not necessarily a mortality factor. In addition, we show that non-host attachments, largely on species of Tachinidae, are relatively common and constitute a significant fraction of the total triungulin load carried by flower visitors. A survey of variation in the COI mitochondrial gene of M. strigulosus throughout our study area reveals four haplotypes; their distribution also provides limited evidence for within habitat dispersal prior to final host attachment.

A survey for scolytine bark and ambrosia beetles undertaken on the entomologically understudied and ecologically devastated Hawaiian island of Lāna‘i, revealed the remarkable presence there of Xyleborus mauiensis Perkins, 1900, an endemic Hawaiian ambrosia beetle in the tribe Xyleborini not previously recorded from the island. Its presence on Lāna‘i ‘fills the gap’ in a distribution encompassing the now isolated islands of Molokai and Maui that together with Lanai composed the single historically large island of Maui Nui more than half a million years ago. We emphasize the reliance of X. mauiensis upon its only known host plant, the endemic Hawaiian Cheirodendron trigynum (Araliaceae), and highlight the conservation importance of ensuring the persistence of even a small number of native plants in environments otherwise dominated by exotic flora. We also report five additional new species records for introduced exotic bark and ambrosia beetles in the tribes Xyleborini and Trypophloeini new to Lāna‘i, discussing their significance to our understanding of the distribution of bark beetles in Hawai‘i. We provide a checklist of all Scolytinae recorded from Lāna‘i to date, together with their known host plants and photographs of the newly recorded beetles together with a map indicating where they were sampled.

Trap-jaw ants, Odontomachus spp., are large, predaceous species with potent stings. The Neotropical trap-jaw ant, Odontomachus ruginodis, common throughout much of the West Indies, was first found in Florida in 1931. Whether O. ruginodis is native or exotic to Florida has remained uncertain. Here, I compiled published and unpublished records from 300 sites in Florida, including my own records from 112 sites, to examine the spread of O. ruginodis in Florida. Whereas the earliest Florida records of O. ruginodis were restricted to the southernmost part of the state, the known range has expanded progressively northward. This species is now known from 43 counties in Florida, as far north as Fernandina Beach (30.7°N), a few km from the Georgia border. This recent spread and its prevalence in human disturbed habitats, combined with an apparent lack of co-evolutionary history with a native predator of Odontomachus, support the supposition that O. ruginodis is not native to Florida. There appear to be no geographic or climatic barriers to prevent the spread of O. ruginodis into the panhandle area of Florida and further west along the Gulf Coast. As a result, more people may get an opportunity to experience the stings of O. ruginodis when they encounter them, for example, in urban and suburban gardens.