New distributional record of Anthrenus dorsatus Mulsant & Rey, 1868 (Coleoptera, Dermestidae), Thessaloniki, Greece

Anthrenus dorsatus Mulsant & Rey, 1868 has been recorded from North Africa, Malta, and Iberia. During a recent visit to Thessaloniki, Greece, several Anthrenus species were collected, including A. dorsatus. The previously known distribution of A. dorsatus suggested that this species was restricted to the western Mediterranean basin, possibly with a coastal bias. This record extends the known range of A. dorsatus farther east and providing more evidence of range expansion in the pimpinellae species group across Europe, possibly driven by global climate change

A Role for Management Accountants in Best Practice Benchmarking

Best practice benchmarking (benchmarking for short) generally refers to the pursuit by organisations of enhanced performance by learning from the successful practices of others. Comparisons of processes which contribute to strategic success are made with other parts of the same organisation; competitors; or organisations operating comparable processes in a context which is in some way relevant. Benchmarking continues to grow in popularity in both private and public sector organisations – but does it always produce the desired outcomes? Although spectacular gains from benchmarking are claimed particularly in practitioner literature, there is also growing evidence of disappointment with the effectiveness of benchmarking. It can be very time consuming to undertake and manage, and ensuring that sharing information with competitors is to the mutual advantage of partner organisations is difficult. With this in mind, it is important to recognise that management accountants play pivotal roles at organisational interfaces and therefore could play a (more) significant part in successful benchmarking activities. This paper will report on an ongoing research project at the Open University Business School, funded by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, aimed at understanding, in depth, the processes which are undertaken by Management Accountants, in the name of benchmarking. The project team are using postal questionnaires and case studies to identify the features of successful benchmarking practice, and the characteristics of benchmarking organisations or benchmarking processes which are considered to be problematic. This research centres on an extensive survey of Management Accountants. This research has begun to identify the contribution which Management Accountants can make to successful benchmarking and the factors which have led organisations to abandon benchmarking activities. This study is also facilitating better understanding of the relationship between organisational size and level of benchmarking activity, the impact of benchmarking clubs, and the perceived costs and benefits of benchmarking to stakeholders. The final phase 3 of this research will focus on providing innovative ways to make the findings available to management accounting practitioners

Using areas of known occupancy to identify sources of variation in detection probability of raptors: taking time lowers replication effort for surveys

Species occurring at low density can be difficult to detect and if not properly accounted for, imperfect detection will lead to inaccurate estimates of occupancy. Understanding sources of variation in detection probability and how they can be managed is a key part of monitoring. We used sightings data of a low-density and elusive raptor (white-headed vulture Trigonoceps occipitalis) in areas of known occupancy (breeding territories) in a likelihood-based modelling approach to calculate detection probability and the factors affecting it. Because occupancy was known a priori to be 100%, we fixed the model occupancy parameter to 1.0 and focused on identifying sources of variation in detection probability. Using detection histories from 359 territory visits, we assessed nine covariates in 29 candidate models. The model with the highest support indicated that observer speed during a survey, combined with temporal covariates such as time of year and length of time within a territory, had the highest influence on the detection probability. Averaged detection probability was 0.207 (s.e. 0.033) and based on this the mean number of visits required to determine within 95% confidence that white-headed vultures are absent from a breeding area is 13 (95% CI: 9–20). Topographical and habitat covariates contributed little to the best models and had little effect on detection probability. We highlight that low detection probabilities of some species means that emphasizing habitat covariates could lead to spurious results in occupancy models that do not also incorporate temporal components. While variation in detection probability is complex and influenced by effects at both temporal and spatial scales, temporal covariates can and should be controlled as part of robust survey method

Anthrenus (anthrenus) augustefasciatus (coleoptera: dermstidae), a species new to Britain

An account of the discovery of a dermestid beetle new to Britain, Anthrenus (A.) angustefasciatus (Ganglebauer), is described. Three individuals were found on Oxeye daisy at Holme Green, Berkshire in May 2014. A brief description of the features separating A. angustefasciatus from A. pimpinellae (F.) is given. Morphological measurements of the specimens were taken and compared with similar measurements of A. angustefasciatus from the Mediterranean region. The possible modes of entry into the country are discussed along with the likelihood of finding further populations of A. angustefasciatus occurring in Britain

Effects of urbanisation and landscape heterogeneity mediated by feeding guild and body size in a community of coprophilous beetles

Although the impacts of urbanisation on biodiversity are well studied, the precise response of some invertebrate groups remains poorly known. Dung-associated beetles are little studied in an urban context, especially in temperate regions. We considered how landscape heterogeneity, assessed at three spatial scales (250, 500 and 1000 metre radius), mediates the community composition of coprophilous beetles on a broad urban gradient. Beetles were sampled using simple dung-baited traps, placed at 48 sites stratified across three distance bands around a large urban centre in England. The most urban sites hosted the lowest abundance of saprophagous beetles, with a lower mean body length relative to the least urban sites. Predicted overall species richness and the richness of saprophagous species were also lowest at the most urban sites. Ordination analyses followed by variation partitioning revealed that landscape heterogeneity across the urban gradient explained a small but significant proportion of community composition. Heterogeneity data for a 500-metre radius around each site provided the best fit with beetle community data. Larger saprophagous species were associated with lower amounts of manmade surface and improved grassland. Some individual species, particularly predators, appeared to be positively associated with urban or urban fringe sites. This study is probably the first to examine the response of the whole coprophilous beetle community to urbanisation. Our results suggest that the response of this community to urbanisation matches expectations based on other taxonomic groups, whilst emphasising the complex nature of this response, with some smaller-bodied species potentially benefitting from urbanisation

Variation in the susceptibility of Anopheles gambiae to botanicals across a metropolitan region of Nigeria

Pesticide resistance is normally associated with genetic changes, resulting in varied responses to insecticides between different populations. There is little evidence of resistance to plant allelochemicals; it is likely that their efficacy varies between genetically diverse populations, which may lead to the development of resistance in the future. This study evaluated the response of Anopheles gambiae (larvae and adults) from spatially different populations to acetone extracts of two botanicals, Piper guineense and Eugenia aromatica. Mosquito samples from 10 locations within Akure metropolis in Southwest Nigeria were tested for variation in susceptibility to the toxic effect of botanical extracts. The spatial distribution of the tolerance magnitude (T.M.) of the mosquito populations to the botanicals was also mapped. The populations of An. gambiae manifested significant differences in their level of tolerance to the botanicals. The centre of the metropolis was the hot spot of tolerance to the botanicals. There was a significant positive correlation between the adulticidal activities of both botanicals and initial knockdown. Hence, knockdown by these botanicals could be a predictor of their subsequent mortality. In revealing variation in response to botanical pesticides, our work has demonstrated that any future use of botanicals as alternative environmentally friendly vector control chemicals needs to be closely monitored to ensure that resistance does not develop

Interactive effect of cowpea variety, dose and exposure time on bruchid tolerance to botanical pesticides

Callosobruchus maculatus has for years remained a serious menace in cowpea in Sub-Sahara Africa. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of genotypic cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp) varieties, time and dose on C. maculatus exposed to powders of Piper guineense and Eugenia aromatica. Irrespective of duration and botanicals, bruchid reared on KDV showed the highest tolerance to both plant materials; while their counterparts from IAR48V were the most susceptible. Median lethal time (LT50) also varied according to the plant materials; with the highest in KDV reared bruchid [P. guineense: KDV (18.31), IAR48V (9.27), IFBV (13.17); E. aromatica: KDV (76.01), IAR48V (5.59), IFBV (6.49)]. There was a significant impact of cowpea variety (V), exposure time (T) and dose (D) on the tolerance of C. maculatus to both plant materials. The effect of all two-way (VxT, VxD, DxT) and three way interactions (V×T×D) on the tolerance of C. maculatus to both plant materials was also significant. Varietal effect was more pronounced in bruchids exposed to E. aromatica; while exposure time was more pronounced in bruchids exposed to P. guineense

CTENOLEPISMA LONGICAUDATA (ZYGENTOMA: LEPISMATIDAE) NEW TO BRITAIN

The silverfish Ctenolepisma longicaudata Escherich 1905 is reported for the first time in Britain, from Whitley Wood, Reading, Berkshire (VC22). This addition increases the number of British species of the order Zygentoma from two to three, all in the family Lepismatidae

New distributional record of Anthrenus dorsatus Mulsant & Rey, 1868 (Coleoptera, Dermestidae) on the island of Mallorca, Spain

The carpet beetle Anthrenus dorsatus has previously been recorded from North Africa and Malta. During a recent visit to the island of Mallorca several Anthrenus species were collected which included a number of Anthrenus dorsatusspecimens. This record adds a new species both to the island of Mallorca and to the Spanish checklist. These records extend our knowledge of the distribution of A. dorsatus and provide more evidence of range expansion in the pimpinel-lae species group across Europe, possibly because of global climate change