6,315 research outputs found
New Michigan State Record for a Sphecine Wasp, \u3ci\u3ePodium Rufipes\u3c/i\u3e (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)
Podium rufipes, previously unrecorded from Michigan, has been found occupy- ing trap nests in the southwestern lower peninsula
Parasitism of \u3ci\u3eAncistrocerus Antilope\u3c/i\u3e (Hymenoptera: Eumenidae) by Leucospis Affinis (Hymenoptera: Leucospididae)
The chalcid wasp Leucospis affinis has been known to parasitize only megachilid bees. Its rare occurrence as a parasite of the eumenid wasp Ancistrocerus antilope indicates that eumenid wasps may be a large resource this chalcid is not exploiting
Carnivory in Adult Female Eumenid Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) and Its Effect on Egg Production
Seventy captive adult female wasps of the eumenid genera Ancistrocerus and Euodynerus were observed to feed on multiple prey items. It was shown experimentally that E. foraminatus females that fed on prey had significantly larger egg volumes than adult wasps deprived of prey
Methods for Artificial Rearing of Solitary Eumenid Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae)
Solitary eumenid wasps of the genera Ancistrocerus and Euodynerus can be reared in small cages. Laboratory-reared larvae of the spruce budworm caterpillars, Choristoneura fumiferana (Lepidoptera: Torlricidae) are suitable prey
The 8 Micron Phase Variation of the Hot Saturn HD 149026b
We monitor the star HD 149026 and its Saturn-mass planet at 8.0 micron over
slightly more than half an orbit using the Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) on the
Spitzer Space Telescope. We find an increase of 0.0227% +/- 0.0066% (3.4 sigma
significance) in the combined planet-star flux during this interval. The
minimum flux from the planet is 45% +/- 19% of the maximum planet flux,
corresponding to a difference in brightness temperature of 480 +/- 140 K
between the two hemispheres. We derive a new secondary eclipse depth of 0.0411%
+/- 0.0076% in this band, corresponding to a dayside brightness temperature of
1440 +/- 150 K. Our new secondary eclipse depth is half that of a previous
measurement (3.0 sigma difference) in this same bandpass by Harrington et al.
(2007). We re-fit the Harrington et al. (2007) data and obtain a comparably
good fit with a smaller eclipse depth that is consistent with our new value. In
contrast to earlier claims, our new eclipse depth suggests that this planet's
dayside emission spectrum is relatively cool, with an 8 micron brightness
temperature that is less than the maximum planet-wide equilibrium temperature.
We measure the interval between the transit and secondary eclipse and find that
that the secondary eclipse occurs 20.9 +7.2 / -6.5 minutes earlier (2.9 sigma)
than predicted for a circular orbit, a marginally significant result. This
corresponds to e*cos(omega) = -0.0079 +0.0027 / -0.0025 where e is the planet's
orbital eccentricity and omega is the argument of pericenter.Comment: 17 pages, 12 figure, accepted for publication in Ap
A map of the day-night contrast of the extrasolar planet HD 189733b
"Hot Jupiter" extrasolar planets are expected to be tidally locked because
they are close (<0.05 astronomical units, where 1 AU is the average Sun-Earth
distance) to their parent stars, resulting in permanent daysides and
nightsides. By observing systems where the planet and star periodically eclipse
each other, several groups have been able to estimate the temperatures of the
daysides of these planets. A key question is whether the atmosphere is able to
transport the energy incident upon the dayside to the nightside, which will
determine the temperature at different points on the planet's surface. Here we
report observations of HD 189733, the closest of these eclipsing planetary
systems, over half an orbital period, from which we can construct a 'map' of
the distribution of temperatures. We detected the increase in brightness as the
dayside of the planet rotated into view. We estimate a minimum brightness
temperature of 973 +/- 33 K and a maximum brightness temperature of 1212 +/- 11
K at a wavelength of 8 microns, indicating that energy from the irradiated
dayside is efficiently redistributed throughout the atmosphere, in contrast to
a recent claim for another hot Jupiter. Our data indicate that the peak
hemisphere-integrated brightness occurs 166 degrees before opposition,
corresponding to a hot spot shifted east of the substellar point. The secondary
eclipse (when the planet moves behind the star) occurs 120 +/- 24 s later than
predicted, which may indicate a slightly eccentric orbit.Comment: To appear in the May 10 2007 issue of Nature, 10 pages, 2 black and
white figures, 1 colo
PREDICTING THE OUTCOME OF RODENTICIDE TRIALS AGAINST NORWAY RATS LIVING ON FARMS
Difenacoum and bromadiolone treatments against Norway rats may fail because: 1) the animals eat little or no bait, 2) reinvasion rapidly offsets any success, or 3) the population contains resistant individuals. By monitoring bait takes and employing independent measures of rat activity such as tracking plates, it is possible to identify, often in the early stages of a treatment, patterns that indicate the contribution of each of these causes to the eventual outcome. If there is no bait take from the majority of bait points visited by rats in the first week then the treatment is unlikely to be successful, no matter how long it continues. Furthermore, treatments carried out on arable farms, where cereals are stored and the environment is relatively undisturbed, are likely to be less successful than those carried out on livestock farms, where alternative food may also be abundant but where the environment is less predictable. Bait takes that persist at the same bait points for longer than 16 days strongly suggest the presence of resistant rats, while immigration may be significantly affecting the treatment if takes recur at more than 30% of points after a period of seven days. Once a given problem has been identified remedial measures can be taken
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