We Know Too Little about Parasitoid Wasp Distributions to Draw Any Conclusions about Latitudinal Trends in Species Richness, Body Size and Biology

Much has been written about latitudinal trends in parasitoid diversity and biology, though it is widely recognised that they are a comparatively poorly known group. Here I show that for both braconid and ichneumonid wasps there are highly significant relationships between body size and the mean recorded latitude of species. Numbers of species per genus (surrogates of clades) peaks in the temperate zone for both families contrasting with data from the virtually complete inventories for mammals, birds and monocot plants, suggesting massive under-description of tropical parasitoid faunas. If the ichneumonoids may be expected to show similar trends to mammals, birds and other groups, the implication is that taxonomic work both in terms of active generic revisions, but also likely, the collecting and processing of museum specimens, and selection of taxa for revision, is woefully inadequate to allow latitudinal patterns in biology to be analysed

Species pool structure determines the level of generalism of island parasitoid faunas

Copyright © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.AIM To examine whether island parasitoid faunas are biased towards generalists when compared with the mainland and their species pool, and to evaluate the effects of climate, island characteristics and regional factors on the relative proportions of idiobionts (i.e. generalists) and koinobionts (i.e. specialists) of two parasitic wasp families, Braconidae and Ichneumonidae. LOCATION Seventy-three archipelagos distributed world-wide. METHODS We used data on the distribution and biology obtained from a digital catalogue and several literature sources. We related level of generalism, measured as the ratio between the number of idiobiont and koinobiont species, to climatic, physiographic and regional factors using generalized linear models. We compared models by means of Akaike weighting, and evaluated the spatial structure of their residuals. We used partial regressions to determine whether the final models account for all latitudinal structure in the level of generalism. RESULTS Islands host comparatively more idiobionts than continental areas. Although there is a latitudinal gradient in the level of generalism of island faunas correlating with both environmental factors and island characteristics, the most important determinant of island community structure is their source pool. This effect is stronger for ichneumonids, where generalism is higher in the Indomalayan region, arguably due to the higher diversity of endophytic hosts in its large rain forests. MAIN CONCLUSIONS The level of generalism of island parasitoid faunas is largely constrained by regional factors, namely by the structure of the species pool, which emphasizes the importance of including regional processes in our understanding of the functioning of ecological communities. The fact that generalist species are more predominant in islands with a large cover of rain forests pinpoints the importance of the indirect effects of ecological requirements on community structure, highlighting the complex nature of geographical gradients of diversity

\u3ci\u3eIshtarella thailandica\u3c/i\u3e Martens, new genus, new species (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae) of aphid parasitoid from Thailand, with a country checklist of Aphidiinae

Ishtarella Martens new genus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae) and I. thailandica Martens new species are described and illustrated from Doi Phu Kha National Park, Nan Province, Thailand. The genus is assigned to the tribe Aphidiini, subtribe Trioxina. Based on morphology, Ishtarella appears most closely related to Binodoxys Mackauer. An updated checklist of the aphidiine fauna of Thailand, based on published records, is presented. Parasitoid wasps in the subfamily Aphidiinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) comprise about 60 genera and more than 650 species worldwide (Yu et al. 2016). The Aphidiinae of Thailand were all but unknown prior to a Thai­land Inventory Group for Entomological Research (TIGER) project from 2006–2009 (Starý et al. 2008). As part of the TIGER project the Thai aphidiine fauna was surveyed using Malaise and pan traps; 20 species collectively representing 15 genera were reported from mixed deciduous or pine forests from 230 m to 2500 m above sea level (Starý et al. 2008, 2010a, 2010b). Although there are no identification keys to the Thai Aphidiinae, genus-level identifications can be made using the keys presented in Starý and Schlinger (1967), Starý and Ghosh (1983), Raychaudhuri (1990), and Chen and Shi (2001). The new genus described herein is assigned to the tribe Aphidiini, subtribe Trioxina. Females of most genera in this subtribe possess an elongate and curved ovipositor sheath and ovipositor. Additionally, females of some genera, like Binodoxys Mackauer and Trioxys Haliday, possess distinctive hypopygial prongs that are used to hold and restrain the aphid host during oviposition (Völkl and Mackauer 2000)

A new enigmatic genus of the ichneumonid subfamily Ctenopelmatinae (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae) from Thailand

The Ctenopelmatinae is one of the least explored groups of Ichneumonidae in South East Asia. We describe and illustrate an enigmatic new genus, Thaictenopelma Ranjith, Reshchikov & Quicke with the type species, T. splendida Ranjith, Reshchikov & Quicke, sp. nov., from a moderately high altitude site in northern Thailand. The new genus shows a unique set of morphological characters that distinguishes it from all other ctenopelmatine genera. The presence of a pair of complete latero-median as well as complete dorso-lateral carinae on the T2 are considered autapomorphic characters of the new genus. Affinities of the new genus within the Ctenopelmatinae are discussed and a note on the taxonomic placement is provided

Are species-area relationships from entire archipelagos congruent with those of their constituent islands?

Copyright © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.AIM To establish the extent to which archipelagos follow the same species–area relationship as their constituent islands and to explore the factors that may explain departures from the relationship. LOCATION Thirty-eight archipelagos distributed worldwide. METHODS We used ninety-seven published datasets to create island species–area relationships (ISARs) using the Arrhenius logarithmic form of the power model. Observed and predicted species richness of an archipelago and of each of its islands were used to calculate two indices that determined whether the archipelago followed the ISAR. Archipelagic residuals (ArcRes) were calculated as the residual of the prediction provided by the ISAR using the total area of the archipelago, standardized by the total richness observed in the archipelago. We also tested whether any characteristic of the archipelago (geological origin and isolation) and/or taxon accounts for whether an archipelago fits into the ISAR or not. Finally, we explored the relationship between ArcRes and two metrics of nestedness. RESULTS The archipelago was close to the ISAR of its constituent islands in most of the cases analysed. Exceptions arose for archipelagos where (i) the slopes of the ISAR are low, (ii) observed species richness is higher than expected by the ISAR and/or (iii) distance to the mainland is small. The archipelago's geological origin was also important; a higher percentage of oceanic archipelagos fit into their ISAR than continental ones. ArcRes indicated that the ISAR underpredicts archipelagic richness in the least isolated archipelagos. Different types of taxon showed no differences in ArcRes. Nestedness and ArcRes appear to be related, although the form of the relationship varies between metrics. MAIN CONCLUSIONS Archipelagos, as a rule, follow the same ISAR as their constituent islands. Therefore, they can be used as distinct units themselves in large-scale biogeographical and macroecological studies. Departure from the ISAR can be used as a crude indicator of richness-ordered nestedness, responsive to factors such as isolation, environmental heterogeneity, number and age of islands

Ophiclypeus, a new genus of Cardiochilinae Ashmead (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) from the Oriental region with descriptions of three new species

A new genus of the braconid subfamily Cardiochilinae, Ophiclypeus gen. nov., is described and illustrated based on three new species: O. chiangmaiensis Kang, sp. nov. type species (type locality: Chiang Mai, Thailand), O. dvaravati Ghafouri Moghaddam, Quicke & Butcher, sp. nov. (type locality: Saraburi, Thailand), and O. junyani Kang, sp. nov. (type locality: Dalin, Taiwan). We provide morphological diagnostic characters to separate the new genus from other cardiochiline genera. A modified key couplet (couplet 5) and a new key couplet (couplet 16) are provided with detailed images for Dangerfield’s key to the world cardiochiline genera to facilitate recognition of Ophiclypeus gen. nov

Two new genera and one new species of the tribe Adeshini (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Braconinae) from India and South Africa

Two new genera and one new species of the Braconinae tribe Adeshini are described and illustrated: Crenuladesha Ranjith & Quicke, gen. nov., type species Adesha narendrani Ranjith, 2017, comb. nov. from India, and Protadesha Quicke & Butcher, gen. nov., type species Protadesha intermedia Quicke & Butcher, sp. nov. from South Africa. The former lacks the mid-longitudinal propodeal carina characteristic of the tribe, and the latter displays less derived fore wing venation with two distinct abscissae of vein 2CU. A molecular phylogenetic analysis is included to confirm their correct placement. Since neither of the two new genera displays all of the characters given in the original diagnosis of the Adeshini a revised diagnosis is provided, as well as an illustrated key to the genera

Insect assemblages attacking seeds and fruits in a rainforest in Thailand

Insect seed predators are important agents of mortality for tropical trees, but little is known about the impact of these herbivores in rainforests. During three years at Khao Chong (KHC) in southern Thailand we reared 17,555 insects from 343.2 kg or 39,252 seeds/fruits representing 357 liana and tree species. A commented list of the 243 insect species identified is provided, with details about their host plants. We observed that: (1) about 43% of identified species can be considered pests. Most were seed eaters, particularly on dry fruits. (2) About 19% of parasitoid species (all Opiinae) for which we could determine whether their primary insect host was a pest or not (all Bactrocera spp. breeding in fruits) can be considered beneficials. (3) The seeds/fruits of about 28% of the plant species in this forest were free of attack. Phyllanthaceae, Rubiaceae, and Meliaceae were attacked relatively infrequently; in contrast, Annonaceae, Fabaceae, Sapindaceae, and Myristicaceae were more heavily attacked. There was no apparent effect of plant phylogeny on rates of attack but heavily attacked tree species had larger basal area in the KHC plot than rarely attacked tree species. (4) Insects reared from fleshy fruits were more likely to exhibit relatively stable populations compared to insects reared from dry fruits, but this was not true of insects reared from dipterocarps, which appeared to have relatively stable populations throughout the study period. We tentatively conclude that insects feeding on seeds and fruits have little effect on observed levels of host abundance in this forest

Wolbachia and DNA barcoding insects: patterns, potential and problems

Wolbachia is a genus of bacterial endosymbionts that impacts the breeding systems of their hosts. Wolbachia can confuse the patterns of mitochondrial variation, including DNA barcodes, because it influences the pathways through which mitochondria are inherited. We examined the extent to which these endosymbionts are detected in routine DNA barcoding, assessed their impact upon the insect sequence divergence and identification accuracy, and considered the variation present in Wolbachia COI. Using both standard PCR assays (Wolbachia surface coding protein – wsp), and bacterial COI fragments we found evidence of Wolbachia in insect total genomic extracts created for DNA barcoding library construction. When >2 million insect COI trace files were examined on the Barcode of Life Datasystem (BOLD) Wolbachia COI was present in 0.16% of the cases. It is possible to generate Wolbachia COI using standard insect primers; however, that amplicon was never confused with the COI of the host. Wolbachia alleles recovered were predominantly Supergroup A and were broadly distributed geographically and phylogenetically. We conclude that the presence of the Wolbachia DNA in total genomic extracts made from insects is unlikely to compromise the accuracy of the DNA barcode library; in fact, the ability to query this DNA library (the database and the extracts) for endosymbionts is one of the ancillary benefits of such a large scale endeavor – for which we provide several examples. It is our conclusion that regular assays for Wolbachia presence and type can, and should, be adopted by large scale insect barcoding initiatives. While COI is one of the five multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) genes used for categorizing Wolbachia, there is limited overlap with the eukaryotic DNA barcode region

A highly-resolved food web for insect seed predators in a species-rich tropical forest

The top-down and indirect effects of insects on plant communities depend on patterns of host use, which are often poorly documented, particularly in species-rich tropical forests. At Barro Colorado Island, Panama, we compiled the first food web quantifying trophic interactions between the majority of co-occurring woody plant species and their internally-feeding insect seed predators. Our study is based on more than 200,000 fruits representing 478 plant species, associated with 369 insect species. Insect host-specificity was remarkably high: only 20% of seed predator species were associated with more than one plant species, while each tree species experienced seed predation from a median of two insect species. Phylogeny, but not plant traits, explained patterns of seed predator attack. These data suggest that seed predators are unlikely to mediate indirect interactions such as apparent competition between plant species, but are consistent with their proposed contribution to maintaining plant diversity via the Janzen-Connell mechanism