On some arthropods associated with Ficus species (Moraceae) in the Maltese Islands

An account is given on the 39 arthropod species which were found on different Ficus trees in the Maltese Islands. Seventeen species represent new records for Malta including Anothopoda fici, Asetadiptacus emiliae, Astichus bachmaieri, Ecphylus caudatus, Empoasca alsiosa, Eupristina verticillata, Ficocyba ficaria, Gynaikothrips ficorum, Josephiella microcarpae, Philotrypesis caricae, Pleistodontes sp., Rhaphitelus maculats, Rhyncaphytoptus ficifoliae, Scobicia chevrieri, Silba adipata, Singhiella citrifolii and Zanchius breviceps. Anothopoda fici and Zanchius breviceps, also represent new records for the entire European territory. Of the 39 arthropods, 33 feed on Ficus trees, whereas the rest are either parasitoids or predators of some of these plant feeders. The 33 species which use Ficus as their host-plant spend most of their development on and utilise the aforementioned trees as their main source of food, at least during their larval development.peer-reviewe

UN NUOVO ACARO ERIOFIDE (DITRYMACUS ATHIASELLUS K.) SU OLIVO IN PUGLIA

Ditrymacus athiasellus KEIFER (Acarina - Eriophyoidea) ON OLIVE TREES IN APULIA The Eriophyid mite, Ditrymacus athiasellus Keifer (Eriophyidae, Phyllocoptinae), has been found on Olive (Olea europea L.) in Apulia. Morphological details observed under scanning electron microscope are described. Besides the characteristics reported in the origina! Keifer's description, it has been observed from 12 to 18 small spines on the anterior edge of the shield lobe and a cuticular ornamentation of the coxe with granules

ACARI ERIOFIDI (ACARINA: ERIOPHYOIDEA) DELL'ALLORO CON LA DESCRIZIONE DI TRE NUOVE SPECIE

Mediante fotografie effettuate al microscopio elettronico a scansione sono state illustrate tre specie di Acari Eriofidi infeudate all'Alloro (Laurus nobilis L.) e già conosciute: Cecidophyopsis malpighianus (Can. e Massai.) Calepitrimerus russai Di St. e Diptacus camarai Carm.; di una di tali specie, il C. russai, sono riportati anche disegni per definire meglio alcuni caratteri morfologici; è ricordato anche l'Epitrimerus carmonae K., noto per l'Alloro, ma non osservato nelle nostre ricerche. Sono inoltre descritte e illustrate con disegni e fotografie al microscopio elettronico a scansione tre nuove specie, pure viventi sull'Alloro: Cecidophyes lauri n. p., Phytoptus lauricolus n. sp., e Calepitrimerus cerosus n. sp. ERIOPHYID MITES (Acarina: Eriophyoidea) LIVING ON LAUREL WITH DESCRIPTION OF THREE NEW SPECIES Morphological characters of Cecidophyopsis malpighianus (Can. e Massai.), Calepitri- merus russai Di St. and Diptacus camarai Carm. are illustrateci by scanning electron micrographs . The Authors describes the new species also with draws. Cecidophyes lauri n. Female. - 150 ,um long, 35 ,um thick, 37 ,um wide; fusiform in shape; color light yellowish-wite. Rostrum 23 ,um long; curved down; antapical seta present. Shield 28 ,um long, 27 ,um wide; shield design nearly obsolete. Sides of shield with some latera! lines and granules. Forelegs 26 ,um long; Tibia 5 ,um long with seta 7 ,um long at 1/3; tarsus 6 ,um long; featherclaw 5 ,um long 5-rayed . Hind-legs 26 ,um long; tibia 4 ,um long ; tarsus 6 ,um long; featherclaw 5 ,um long. Coxae divergent with short centra! contact of anterior coxae. First setiferous coxal tubercles ahead of anterior coxal approximation; second setiferous coxal tubercles wel! ahead of line across third; second tubercles sur- rounded by curved lines. Abdominal thanosome with about 35 tergites and 47 sternites; the microtubercles elongate subdorsally and dorsally; touching rear ring margin'; slightly acuminate at rear. Latera! seta 19 ,um long on ring 8; first ventral seta 50 ,um long on ring 18; second ventral seta 9 f'ffi long on ring 29. Abdominal telosome with about 6 rings; telosomal seta 16 1-'ffi long. Accessory seta absent. Female genitalia 18 f'm wide and 12 f'ffi long; coverflap with about 16 longitudinal ribs, partly broken into two uneven ranks; seta 10 f'm long. Male . - about 125 f'm long T ype locality : Bari, September 1976 Collected: by N. VovLAS Host: Laurus nobilis L. Relation to host: the mites make small erineum tufts on the underside of the leaves; this erineum is of single hairs and is situated at the angle between the midrib and a main side vein. Type material: a type slide, six paratipe slide, a slide sent to H. H. KEIFER and a paratipe slide sent to « Istituto Sperimentale per la Zoologia agraria di Firenze»

Description of Discocriconemella uruguayensis n.sp. (Nematoda : Criconematidae)

Summary -A new species of Discocriconemella, collected from native forests in the cenaal part of Uruguay from the rhizosphere of Populus sp. and unidentified grasses grown in an uncultivated habitat, is described. Discocriconemella untguayensis n.Sp. falls into " group 4" of Vovla

Strutture ed organi esoscheletrici in Batrisodes oculatus (Aubé) (Coleoptera, Pselaphidae)

EXOSKELETAL STRUCTURES AND ORGANS OF BATRISODES OCULATUS (AUBÉ) (COLEOPTERA, PSELAPHIDAE) Observation by SEM of the integument of both sexes of this species was carried out to search for presence of secondary sex dimorphism. Interesting organs were found in both sexes: i) setae with digitate apex; ii) glandular area of the fore femora; iii) pluricellular gland of the eighth abdominal sternum. Males exhibit additional organs - the well-known antennal glands - and structures which do not concern the sensory system. No particular type of sensilla was found in the females.  Esplorando, al microscopio elettronico a scansione, l'esoscheletro dello Pselafide Batrisodes oculatus, sono stati censiti vari organi e strutture comuni e non comuni ai due sessi. Fra quelli comuni, sono di particolare interesse morfo- funzionale: a) le setole del tipo con digitazioni apicali, b) l'area ghiandolare dei femori anteriori, c) la ghiandola pluricellulare dell'ottavo urosterno. Il dimorfismo sessuale secondario risiede nella presenza nel solo maschio delle ghiandole antennali e di varie strutture aggiuntive, che non riguardano il sistema sensoriale

Host-parasite relationships in root-knot disease of white mulberry

Severe infections of white mulberry feeder roots and heavy soil infestations by Meloidogyne arenaria race 2 were found in southern Spain. This is the first record of M. arenaria on white mulberry in Europe. Morphometric observations, analysis of the esterase electrophoretic pattern, and artificial inoculations of race differentials were used to characterize nematodes. Nematode-induced mature galls were spherical and usually contained one or more females, males, and egg masses with eggs. Feeding sites were characterized by the development of giant cells that contained granular cytoplasm and many hypertrophied nuclei. Giant cell cytoplasm was aggregated along a thickened cell wall. Vascular tissues within galls appeared disorganized. The relationship between the initial nematode population density (Pi) in a series from 0 to 1,024 eggs and juveniles/cm3 soil and growth of white mulberry seedlings was tested in the greenhouse. A Seinhorst model was fitted to plant height and top fresh weight. Tolerance limits of white mulberry to M. arenaria race 2 for plant height and top fresh weight were, respectively, 1.1 and 1.38 eggs and juveniles/cm3 soil. The minimum relative values for plant height and top fresh weight were 0 at Pi > 64 and Pi > 128 eggs and juveniles/cm3 soil, respectively. Maximum nematode reproduction rate was 435-fold at the lowest Pi. Additional keywords: histopathology, Morus alba, pathogenicity, threshold limitPeer reviewe

Molecular phylogeny of the genus Rotylenchus (Nematoda, Tylenchida) and description of a new species

17 pages, 8 figures.A description of a new species of plant parasitic nematodes of the genus Rotylenchus from the family Hoplolaimidae is given and a recognition of Rotylenchus jaeni comb. n., previously known as subspecies R. magnus jaeni, as separate species is proposed. Rotylenchus montanus sp. n. is characterized by a hemispherical lip region with six rarely seven annuli, stylet 33–37 µm, female tail rounded, regularly annulated tip with 12–18 annuli and phasmid located 2–9 annuli anterior to anus. Rotylenchus montanus sp. n. is close to species of the monosexual group R. arsenjevi, R. corsicus, R. fragaricus, R. helicus, R. indorobustus and R. neorobustus, by a number of specific characteristics resulting from its specific matrix code: A5, B1, C1, D4, E2, F2, G3, H2, I2, J2, K2. Molecular characterization of R. montanus sp. n. and other Rotylenchus species are provided using D2–D3 expansion segments of 28S and the ITS1 of rRNA genes. The D2–D3 of 28S rRNA and the ITS1–rRNA sequences of R. montanus sp. n. differed in one nucleotide and in 16–20 nucleotides from those of an unidentified Rotylenchus species from Russia, respectively. Molecular analysis of populations of R. magnus and R. jaeni comb. n. demonstrated differences in the D2–D3 and the ITS1–rRNA sequences. These genetic differences together with some minor morphological characters support that both subspecies should be considered as two cryptic sibling species and warranted their elevation to species rank. The result of phylogenetic analysis of Hoplolaimidae for 45 sequences of the D2 and D3 expansion regions of 28S rRNA gene using Bayesian inference analysis under the complex model is presented. Phylogenetic tree of Rotylenchus species represents seven moderate to highly supported lineages. Grouping of Rotylenchus species within other hoplolaimids and analysis of phylogenetic relationships within the genus Rotylenchus using the ITS1 of rRNA gene sequences are also discussed.The second author acknowledges support from NSF PEET grant DEB-0731516, and the fifth author acknowledges support from Consejería de Innovación Ciencia y Empresa (CICE) of Junta de Andalucía grant P06-AGR-01360.Peer reviewe

First report of Meloidogyne arenaria parasitizing lettuce in southern Spain

During the 2005-2006 autumn to winter lettuce-growing (Lactuca sativa cv. Iceberg) season, severely stunted and yellowing lettuce plants with disease incidence ranging from 80 to 100% were observed in four commercial, fall-sown fields at Almodóvar del Río (Córdoba Province) in southern Spain. Early symptoms consisted of severely reduced growth of the plants that continued with extensive leaf yellowing and the absence of tight-head formation. Attacks by the disease were estimated to cause near complete loss of the crop yields since the lettuce head produced in affected fields were unmarketable. Observations of affected lettuce plants revealed high parasitism of the root system by a root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne sp.) in the main and feeder roots as well as heavy soil infestations by the nematode. The nematode was identified by the female perineal pattern, esterases phenotype, and a sequence-characterized amplified region polymerase chain reaction (SCAR-PCR) technique. Measurements and morphological observations of 20 second-stage juveniles (J2s) (body length = 463 ± 28 μm, dorsal gland orifice from stylet base = 2.8 ± 0.6 μm, stylet length = 10.4 ± 0.5 μm, tail length = 54.4 ± 0.6 μm; hyaline tail terminus = 9.4 ± 0.6 μm) and 10 adult females (stylet length = 14.5 ± 0.7 μm, dorsal gland orifice from stylet base = 4.7 ± 0.5 μm, and perineal pattern with low and rounded dorsal arch with coarse striae) conformed to the description of Meloidogyne arenaria. On the basis of the characteristics of the perineal pattern, the 2-band esterase phenotype, and the 420-bp SCAR fragment, the causal agent was identified as the peanut root-knot nematode M. arenaria. Nematodes were extracted from soil and root samples by standard procedures and their populations quantified. M. arenaria was detected in nearly all soil and root samples assessed, with nematode population densities ranging from 206 to 1,072 eggs and J2s per 5 g of fresh roots. Different Meloidogyne spp. have been reported parasitizing lettuce roots, especially M. hapla in northern areas (2); however, to our knowledge this is the first time that M. arenaria is reported parasitizing lettuce roots in Spain and elsewhere.Peer reviewe

Integrative diagnosis, biological observations, and histopathology of the fig cyst nematode Heterodera fici Kirjanova (1954) associated with Ficus carica L. in southern Italy

Morpho-biological notes and histopathology, based on LM and SEM observations, of the fig cyst nematode Heterodera fici isolated from Ficus carica roots, collected in home and public gardens of Apulia region, southern Italy, are described and illustrated. Seventy-five localities throughout the Apulia region were sampled and one-quarter of the sampled localities had fig roots infested with H. fici, with population densities ranging from 44 to 180 cysts/100 ml of soil. All attempts to detect H. fici on ornamental Ficus spp. as well as on imported bonsai in Italy were unsuccessful. Morphometric characters of the Italian population conform to those of the type and re-description populations reported for H. fici. Molecular analysis using ITS, D2–D3 expansion domains of the 28S rRNA, and the partial 18S rRNA sequences of H. fici newly obtained in this study matched well with the corresponding sequences of H. fici present in the GenBank database. Phylogenetic trees confirmed and supported the grouping of H. fici in the Humuli group. Heterodera fici completes its embryogenic development in 14–16 days at 25 °C. Post-invasion development and maturity in the roots of F. carica seedlings is completed in 64–68 days at 25–28 °C with juveniles and adults showing different parasitic habits, being endoparasitic and semi-endoparasitic respectively. The establishment of permanent feeding sites that consist of the formation of large syncytia causes anatomical modification of vascular elements and general disorder in the root stelar structures. Syncytia structures associated with mature females showed different degrees of vacuolisation, numbers of syncytial cells, and contained nuclei and nucleoli which were constantly hypertrophied

Occurrence of Sheraphelenchus sucus (Nematoda: Aphelenchoidinae) and Panagrellus sp. (Rhabditida: Panagrolaimidae) Associated with Decaying Pomegranate Fruit in Italy

Two different nematode species were recovered from pomegranate decaying fruit in two localities in Southern Italy: The mycetophagus nematode Sheraphelenchus sucus and a bacterial feeder nematode belonging to the Panagrolaimidae (Rhabditida) family. Morphometrics of the Italian population of S. sucus closely resemble that of the type population, whereas some differences were found when compared with another population from Iran. Molecular characterization of the Italian S. sucus using the 18S rRNA gene, D2-D3 expansion domains of the 28S rDNA, the ITS region, and the partial mitochondrial COI were carried out. Sequences of the 18S rRNA gene, the D2-D3 domains, and the ITS were analyzed using several methods for inferring phylogeny to reconstruct the relationships among Sheraphelenchus and Bursaphelenchus species. The bacterial feeder Panagrellus sp. was characterized at the molecular level only. The D2-D3 expansion domains and ITS sequences of this Italian panagrolaimid were determined. The D2-D3 sequences of the Italian panagrolaimid showed 99% similarity with the corresponding sequence of Panagrellus sp. associated with Rhynchophorus ferrugineus. This is the first report on the tritrophic association of S. sucus and Rhabditida that uses both insects and pomegranate fruit as hosts