STN keys for the identification of adult european syrphidae 2012

The identification keys presented here include a key to the genera of European Syrphidae and Microdontidae and keys to the species of various genera. They do not comprise a comprehensive set of keys to the identification of European syrphid species. While every effort has been made to ensure that each key is as self-contained and accurate as possible it is not suggested that these keys be used in isolation from other literature on identification of European syrphids. In the StN Species Accounts volume (Speight, 2012) information is given for each species on identification literature, sources of figures of the male terminalia, sources of coloured illustrations of the adult fly etc., together with suggestions (where appropriate) of additional features to use for identification purposes. That information is not repeated here. A genus for which an StN key to the European species exists is indicated in the generic key following the name of the genus, by the phrase “see StN key to European species”. Various syrphid genera are represented in Europe by no more than one species. For these, the generic key provides a mechanism for identification to species level and the name of the European species is given in the generic key, following the name of the genus. This volume is presented in two sections, an English section and a French section. The key to European syrphid genera appears only in the English section. But all of the keys to the species of individual genera appear in both sections. Each key is dated, to show when it was most recently updated. The keys to the species of individual genera are presented in alphabetical order of the genera they cover, under Microdontidae and Syrphidae. No grouping is made of genera in subfamilies or tribes. For further information on the known European species in each genus the StN Species Accounts volume (Speight, 2012) should be consulted. There is unfortunately no standard set of English-language terms used for morphological features in taxonomic literature on Syrphidae. Contrasting accounts are provided by Thompson (1999) and Speight (1987). Part 3 of the present volume presents a Glossary of the terms used for morphological features in the StN keys, together with figures showing those features

Width and dual width of subsets in polynomial association schemes

AbstractThe width of a subset C of the vertices of a distance-regular graph is the maximum distance which occurs between elements of C. Dually, the dual width of a subset in a cometric association scheme is the index of the “last” eigenspace in the Q-polynomial ordering to which the characteristic vector of C is not orthogonal. Elementary bounds are derived on these two new parameters. We show that any subset of minimal width is a completely regular code and that any subset of minimal dual width induces a cometric association scheme in the original. A variety of examples and applications are considered

What do Eumerus Meigen larvae feed on? New immature stages of three species (Diptera: Syrphidae) breeding in different plants

The genus Eumerus Meigen 1822 (Diptera: Syrphidae) is widely distributed in the Old World, though recently introduced into America, and their larvae feed on decaying vegetal material and/or inside underground storage organs of many plants, sometimes generating economic losses as pests. However, little is known about Eumerus larval cycles and their interactions with host plants. Here, immatures of three Eumerus species from different continents are described, noting their feeding habits and host plants. Larvae of Eumerus figurans Walker 1859 were obtained from Hawaiian cultured ginger roots; puparium of Eumerus alpinus Rondani 1857 originated from larvae collected in Asphodelus ramosus L. in France; puparia of Eumerus superbus Shannon 1927 were reared from larvae found in two Zamiaceae species from Australia. Mitochondrial COI sequences served for diagnosing E. figurans larvae. Optical and scanning electron microscopy were used to describe body features, head skeletons, anterior spiracles, pupal spiracles, and posterior respiratory processes. Overall, E. alpinus resembles E. nudus Loew 1848 immatures. Eumerus superbus has a remarkable morphology among all described immatures of the genus, being the only Eumerus reported from gymnosperms. Head skeleton of E. figurans suggests this species is a filtering one. Present findings show that larvae of Eumerus can be separated at the species level and that this genus is polyphagous, feeding on a wide range of plant tissues and taxa, including commercial species. This study emphasizes immature stages and breeding sites as important means to understand species life cycles and the interactions with their host plants and ecosystems.This study is part of Gabriel J. Souba-Dols’ PhD thesis. His position at the University of Alicante (FPU-UA 2016), as well as that of Antonio Ricarte (Ref. UATAL05), are funded by the “Vicerrectorado de Investigación y Transferencia del Conocimiento.” Additionally, this research was partly funded by the Project PGC2018-095851-A-C65 of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities

Prediction of intramammary infection status across the dry period from lifetime cow records

The dry period is very important for mammary gland health, with the aim not only to cure existing intramammary infections (IMI) but also to prevent new IMI. Although it is known that the dry period is an important time for optimizing udder health, the probability that individual cows will succumb to a new IMI or, if infected, will fail to cure an IMI is not well established. The aim of this study was to investigate whether lifetime cow data, available through routine on-farm milk recording, could be used to predict changes in IMI status across the dry period for individual cows that were (1) deemed high somatic cell count (SCC; >199,000 cells/mL) or (2) low SCC (<200,000 cells/mL) at the last test day before drying off. Milk recording data collected between September 1994 and July 2014 from 114 herds in the United Kingdom were used. Two 2-level random effects models were built and both cure and new IMI were used as outcome variables in separate models. Cows with a smaller proportion of test days with a high SCC in the lactation before drying off, a smaller proportion of test days recording a high SCC in the lactation before the current lactation, of lower parity, producing less milk before drying off, of lower days in milk at drying off, and of lower SCC just before drying off were more likely to cure across the dry period. Dry period length had no effect on the likelihood of cure. Individual cows with a smaller proportion of test days recording a high SCC in the lactation before the current, of lower parity, of lower milk production at drying off, and fewer days in milk at drying off were less likely to develop a new IMI. Dry period length was found to have no effect on the probability of new IMI. Model predictions showed that a high level of discrimination was possible between cows with a high and low risk of both cures and new infections across the dry period

Valence-quark distributions in the pion

We calculate the pion's valence-quark momentum-fraction probability distribution using a Dyson-Schwinger equation model. Valence-quarks with an active mass of 0.30 GeV carry 71% of the pion's momentum at a resolving scale q_0=0.54 GeV = 1/(0.37 fm). The shape of the calculated distribution is characteristic of a strongly bound system and, evolved from q_0 to q=2 GeV, it yields first, second and third moments in agreement with lattice and phenomenological estimates, and valence-quarks carrying 49% of the pion's momentum. However, pointwise there is a discrepancy between our calculated distribution and that hitherto inferred from parametrisations of extant pion-nucleon Drell-Yan data.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, REVTEX, aps.sty, epsfig.sty, minor corrections, version to appear in PR

Inhomogeneous Magnetism in La-doped CaMnO3. (II) Mesoscopic Phase Separation due to Lattice-coupled FM Interactions

A detailed investigation of mesoscopic magnetic and crystallographic phase separation in Ca(1-x)La(x)MnO3, 0.00<=x<=0.20, is reported. Neutron powder diffraction and DC-magnetization techniques have been used to isolate the different roles played by electrons doped into the eg level as a function of their concentration x. The presence of multiple low-temperature magnetic and crystallographic phases within individual polycrystalline samples is argued to be an intrinsic feature of the system that follows from the shifting balance between competing FM and AFM interactions as a function of temperature. FM double-exchange interactions associated with doped eg electrons are favored over competing AFM interactions at higher temperatures, and couple more strongly with the lattice via orbital polarization. These FM interactions thereby play a privileged role, even at low eg electron concentrations, by virtue of structural modifications induced above the AFM transition temperatures.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

The headgroup orientation of dimyristoylphosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate in mixed lipid bilayers: a neutron diffraction study

AbstractThe trisodium salt of dimyristoylphosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate (DMPI-4P) has been synthesised specifically deuterated at particular sites in the headgroup. These materials have been used in neutron diffraction experiments, which successfully located the position (depth) of each of these deuterated sites to within ±0.5 Å in a mixed model membrane (a 1:1 molar mixture of DMPI-4P with dimyristoyl-phosphatidylcholine, DMPC, in the Lα phase, hydrated to the level of 28 water molecules per lipid molecule). The diffracted intensities were measured at four different D2O/H2O ratios and six orders of diffraction were obtained. These data sets, in conjunction with computer modelling, have been used to determine the orientation of the inositol ring of DMPI-4P, localising each vertical H–H distance to within approximately ±0.03 Å. The orientation of the inositol ring is found to be one in which the C5 hydroxyl is extended out into the aqueous medium. This is, therefore, the most accessible site for water-borne reagents. This may be significant for the important pathway leading from PI-4P to PI-4,5P2. On the assumption that the P/ODAG bond is orientated parallel to the bilayer normal, these results are consistent with two possible conformations for the portion of the headgroup connecting the diacylglycerol to the inositol ring. Distinction between these two is difficult, but one may be favoured since the other involves close atom–atom contacts

Les diptères syrphides face aux critères de sélection des bioindicateurs terrestres

La biologie de la conservation est un thème émergent des sciences de la biodiversité. Ce thème confronte les approches de l'écologie des populations et des communautés, des sciences économiques, de l'éthique, du droit et de la gestion de l'environnement autour des problèmes de préservation de la biodiversité. Une conception biologique de la conservation implique que les politiques de gestion du milieu naturel soient attentives au maintien du potentiel évolutif du vivant en créant les conditions de viabilité des populations et d'entretien de leur diversité génétique. Elles doivent aussi veiller au maintien de la richesse spécifique et de la diversité biologique et fonctionnelle des communautés. De telles politiques de gestion relèvent du concept de développement durable qui associe sciences économiques et juridiques pour définir des modes de développement respectueux de la qualité de l'environnement. La biodiversité représente à cet égard à la fois un indicateur et un enjeu pour la persistance de ressources potentielles et le maintien de la fonctionnalité des écosystèmes. Si ce champ interdisciplinaire est bien développé outre-atlantique, son émergence est plus récente en Europe, et plus particulièrement dans les régions francophones. Néanmoins de nombreuses opérations de conservation biologique réalisées dans ces régions sont accompagnées de programmes de recherche comme en atteste la multiplication des thèses de doctorats soutenues dans ce domaine. Le développement de ce champ interdisciplinaire a motivé l'idée d'organiser une réunion qui donnerait aux chercheurs impliqués dans ces thèmes émergents la possibilité de présenter leurs travaux. Les gestionnaires d'espaces naturels ou les administrations en charge de la préservation de la biodiversité pourraient trouver dans cette réunion une opportunité d'exprimer et de confronter leurs attentes aux derniers progrès méthodologiques et conceptuels. Ce colloque a permis de faire le point sur la discipline dans les contrées francophones et de faire le lien entre la communauté francophone et la section européenne de la Society for Conservation Biology

Design and Optimisation of a Microwave Reactor for Kilo-Scale Polymer Synthesis

Current industrial production of polymer resins is generally undertaken in large multi-tonne stirred tank reactors. These are characterised by relatively slow heating and cooling cycles, resulting in long vessel cycle times and extended production campaigns. In this work we present a design for a hybrid microwave/oil jacket proof of concept system capable of producing up to 4.1 kg of polymer resin per batch. By exploiting rapid volumetric heating effects of microwave energy at 2.45GHz, we have optimised the synthetic regime, such that a 3.7 kg batch of polyester resin pre-polymer can be made in only 8 hours 20 minutes, with higher molecular weight (Mn 2,100) compared to the conventional process taking 22 hours 15 minutes (Mn 1,200), yielding an increase in synthesis rate of at least 265. The increase in polymer molecular weight also suggests a higher conversion was achieved over a shorter time scale