First report on Apanteles ruidus, Wilkinson reared on Hyblaea puera (Lepidoptera: Hyblaeidae) teak defoliator from India

The present investigation is based on the first report on Apanteles ruidus, Wilkinson (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), reported for the first time on teak defoliator Hyblaea puera (Lepidoptera: Hyblaeidae) a serious pest of teak Tectona grandis (Lamiaceae) from Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. The investigation was carried out in the adjoining agro-forestry areas of Uttarakhand. The extensive collection of defoliator larvae from various forest trees species for laboratory rearing and emergence of Apanteles spp. The wasps were bred from parasitized larvae of H. puera in laboratory which were collected from teak forest, Thano range, Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Presently studied species, A. ruidus may also be used as biological control agent against teak defoliator H. puera after determining its biological control potential, followed by developing their mass multiplication techniques. Thus, Apanteles species are vital larval parasitoids of several lepidopterous insect pests of economic importance to agricultural crops, commercial cash crops and forest tree species. Therefore, there are fare chances of its application against the insect pests of forest tree species without adverse effect on biodiversity

Key to Indian species of genus Brachygrammatella Girault (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) with re-description of B. indica and some new distributional records

The aim of the study was to re-describe the egg parasitoid Brachygrammatella indica Viggiani and Hayat with some additional morphometric characters, especially of the genitalic component with SEM photography, they are mostly attacked on eggs of hemipterous insect pests and they keep their population under check and balance. During present research, materials were collected from the forestry and adjoining agro-forestry areas of Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh by sweeping with net and parasitized eggs collection. In this paper Brachygrammatella indica Viggiani & Hayat is re-described with some new distributional records and key to Indian species of genus Brachygrammatella Girault also updated

Effects of rotation of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] crops on soil fertility in Elizabeth, Mississippi, USA

The effects of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.): soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotation on the soil fertility levels are limited. An irrigated soybean: cotton rotation experiment was conducted from 2012 through 2015 near Elizabeth, Mississippi, USA. The crop rotation sequences were included continuous cotton (CCCC), continuous soybean (SSSS), cotton-soybean-cotton-soybean (CSCS), cotton-soybean-soybean-cotton (CSSC), soybean-cotton-cotton-soybean (SCCS), soybean-cotton-soybean-cotton (SCSC). The crop rotation sequences were followed continuous soybean, continuous cotton, cotton followed by soybean, soybean followed by cotton, soybean followed by two years of cotton, and cotton followed by two years of soybean. A weed control treatment of a non-glyphosate post-emergence vs. glyphosate post emergence was used in both crops. Soil samples taken prior to planting each year and in 2016 showed no differences in cation exchange capacity, organic matter, pH, or macro nutrient levels among the rotations, over the five sampling periods nor weed control methods used for either crop

Assessment of parasitic load in goat through the examination of faecal matter

Parasitic infection do not show heavy rate of mortality, however there occurrence being chronic, most of the time leads to serious production losses, this led to study about severity of parasitic load and type of parasitic infection in goats. Parasitic infection most of the time leads to serious production losses. Gastrointestinal nematodes are ubiquitous parasites of grazing ruminants and cause decreases in survival, live weight gain, wool and milk production and reproduction performance. Parasitic problems are a serious problem in goat. Total 60 goat faecal samples were analyzed. These results would serve as a baseline for future studies. The majority of the faecal samples (70%) of both zone I and zone II had heavy parasitic load (>3000 epg) followed by 60 per cent samples of zone III. This indicates that majority of the goats of the study area had severe parasitic infection. Chi-square analysis revealed non-significant relation between parasitic load and categories of zones. Majority of samples (48.33%) were infected with the combination of Strongyles, Strongyloides and Coccidiosis. It can be concluded that faecal egg count level was severe in majority of the samples examined

Effectiveness of different plant extracts against Galleria mellonella larvae in laboratory

The present investigation was undertaken to study the effectiveness of different plant extracts against Galleria mellonella larvae in laboratory. Acetone prepared extracts of leaves, stem, seed, root, husk of thirteen medicinal and healthy plants were used to examine their effects on the mortality of the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella larvae in laboratory.  Results revealed that only six plant extracts prepared with leaves and stem cause mortality of wax moth. Larval mortality was highest (93.33%) with husk prepared extract of P. psyllium followed by leaf prepared extract of H. sativum (80%), Raphanus sativus (73.33%), Linum usitatissimum (66.66%) Cucurbita moschata (46.66%) and Vicia sativa (46.66%). The larval mortality with stem/root/seed prepared extract was recorded highest in Hordeum sativum (73.33%) followed by Raphanus sativus (80%), Cucurbita moschata (60%)  Linum usitatissimum (53.33%) and Vicia sativa (40%) and found significant difference with the control (0.00%). There was no mortality of larvae was found in control and other remaining plant extract. Irrespective of the different plants, highest per cent mortality (52.22%) of wax moth larvae by stem/seed/ root prepared extract followed by leaf extract (48.66). Therefore, the plant extract of different plants were found effective against Galleria mellonella larvae

Nutrient characteristics assessment of two variants of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench.) found in Anambra State, Nigeria

Nutrient analysis was carried out on the leaves and fruits of two variants of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) namely: Clemson spineless and dwarf long green varieties of A. esculentus commonly found in Anambra State, Nigeria, to determine their nutritional data with regards to protein, carbohydrate, moisture, ash contents, crude fibre and crude fat contents of A. esculentus using standard analytical techniques. Results were analyzed using analysis of variance. The leaves and fruits of the two varieties of A. esculentus investigated were found to contain the examined nutrient in varying compositions. Carbohydrate and moisture were higher in the fruits of both varieties of A. esculentus (Clemson spineless and dwarf long green) when compared to the leaves (67.09±0.02 and 11.45±0.07), respectively. Ash content, protein, crude fat and crude fibre of A. esculentus were higher in the leaves of both varieties when compared to the fruits (9.10±0.14, 21.55±0.21, 5.33±0.18 and 18.68±0.04) of A. esculentus, respectively. Protein and ash of A. esculentus were higher in the leaves of Clemson spineless when compared to dwarf long green. Crude fat and crude fibre were higher in the leaves of dwarf long green when compared to Clemson spineless. This study has demonstrated that these varieties (Clemson spineless and dwarf long green) of A. esculentus examined are power house of nutrients and can contribute significantly to human health. The study revealed that the leaves of A. esculentus are more nutritious than fruits. It is concluded from the present study that nutritional trials of both varieties (Clemson spineless and dwarf long green) of okra could be an additional aid to the breeding improvement programme of A. esculentus.Breeding improvement programm

Production economics of Ginger (Zingiber officinale Rose.) in Salyan district of Nepal

This study investigates the economics of ginger (Zingiber officinale Rose.) production in the Salyan district of Nepal. The production economics was assessed by the household survey in purposively selected Sharada municipality and Siddhakumakh Rural Municipalities. The semi-structured interview schedule was administered to interview randomly selected forty-three producers from Sharada Municipality and thirty-one producers from Siddhakumakh Rural Municipality. The results indicated that the ginger production was found to be a profitable enterprise in the study area with an average B:C ratio of 1.55. The overall productivity of ginger in the study area was found to be 16.28 MT/ha. The Cobb-Douglas production function indicates that ginger production exhibited increasing returns to scale at a decreasing rate. The regression function of 0.784 implies that if all the inputs specified in the production function are increased by 100%, the gross return will increase by about 78.4%

Allelopathic effects of Juglans regia leaf extract on seed germination and seedling growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum) and rye (Secale cereale)

This investigation was conducted to study the allelopathic effects of Juglans regia (Walnut) leaf extract on seed germination and seedling growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum) and rye (Secale cereale). For this J. regia leaves extract was selected to analyze its allelopathic effects on seed germination and seedling growth of wheat and rye seeds. Applied seeds was treated with J. regia leaves extract using 2%, 4% and 6% concentrations. Different parameters i.e., seed germination, seedling growth, mortality percentage, fresh and dry weight of plumule and radicle was observed after the experiments. The higher seed germination percentage (50%) was recorded at 2% level, in both the applied seeds, which is followed by 4% in comparison to control. Almost higher concentration showed deleterious effects than the lower doses on germination percentage and seedling growth. The highest mortality percentage (70%) has been recorded at 4% level in wheat and 6% level in both wheat and rye seeds. Therefore, the results indicated that the growing weeds in high quantity between crops can affect the productivity rate of crops due to its allelopathic effects. The allelopathic compounds can be used as natural herbicides and other pesticides; they are less disruptive of the global ecosystem than are synthetic agrochemicals

First record of the Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus) from Sundarban Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India

This is the first occurrence report of Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus) from Sundarban Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India.  A Great Crested Grebe was observed at a river in the Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, while conducting the annual biodiversity survey within the Sundarban Tiger Reserve in November 2020. The species is a winter migrant to mostly man-made reservoirs at the northern districts of the state, and compared to the previous records, this is the southernmost occurrence report from West Bengal. The discovery of Podiceps cristatus at an undisturbed and favorable habitat inside a well-protected mangrove ecosystem within the Sundarban Tiger Reserve may prove significantly informative for the possible range extension and future conservation approaches of the species

Identification of terrestrial gastropods species in Sohag Governorate, Egypt

The study aims to identify of terrestrial gastropods species in Sohag Governorate during the year 2016 and 2017. The present study was carried out for survey and identification for random land snail in 11 districts, i.e. (Tema, Tahta, Gehyena, El-Maragha, Saqultah, Sohag, Akhmim, El-Monshah, Gerga, El-Balyana, and Dar El-Salam) at Sohag Governorate, Egypt. Samples were collected from 5 different locations in each district during 2016-2017 seasons. The monthly samples were taken from winter and summer crops (areas were cultivated with the field crops such as wheat, Egyptian clover, and vegetables crops. The results showed that found two species of land snails, Monacha obstracta (Montagu) and Eobania vermiculata (Muller). It was also observed that the occurrence of the spread of land snails was increased from the previous periods. The results further indicated that land snails were recorded in Sohag for a second time more widespread and may be that this pest moved to these governorates with transportation, passengers from places spread these new places and happened to her adaptation and after have transferred from infestation regions so, have adapted under weather factors of new region also, several factors e.g., the presence of more preferable food, shelter, intra-specific competition, fecundity increasing, several hosts or habitat in the new ecosystems. Therefore, this study gives an interesting indication of the development of a plan in effective strategy for land snail’s management program in agro ecosystems in Upper Egypt