Report of Cirrospilus variegatus (Hym.: Eulophidae), parasitoid of dipterous leafminers from Iran

During the study of parasitoids of leafminer flies, some parasitoid wasps belonging to the family Eulophidae, including Cirrospilus variegatus (Masi), Diglyphus isaea (Walker) and Hemiptarsenus zilahisebessi Erdös were collected and identified, of which C. variegatus is a new report for Iran. The latter species was reared from Liriomyza sativa Blanchard (Diptera: Agromyzidae) on cucumber in the glasshouses of Varamin, Tehran in April 2003, as well as an unidentified leaf miner fly from the same family on Tanacetum sp. in Shiraz in June 2004

Report of two chalcid wasps (Hym.: Chalcidoidea) from fig soft scale in Iran

In this study, two reared chalcid wasps are newly recorded from Fars province, Iran, as the natural enemies of fig soft scale, Eulecanium sp. (Hemiptera: Coccidae): (1) Scutellista caerulea (Fonscolombe) (Pteromalidae: Eunotinae) and (2) Blastothrix hungarica Erdös (Encyrtidae: Encyrtinae). Both species were collected from Estahaban (May 2005) and Darab (September 2005; June 2006)

Metaphycus bogdanovikatkovi (Hym.: Encyrtidae), a new record for the Iranian fauna

Metaphycus bogdanovikatkovi Myartseva is recorded here for the first time from Iran. This species is reared on Rhizopulvinaria sp. (Hem.: Coccidae) on wild almond shrubs in Darab region, Fars province of Iran

Resistance to imidacloprid in different field populations of Aphis gossypii Glover (Hem.: Aphididae) in South of Iran

The cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is a key cucurbits pest in Iran and is managed with repeated insecticide applications. Reports of insecticide control failures have recently increased, particularly with imidacloprid. To quantify resistance to imidacloprid in cotton aphid, seven populations were collected from 7 different places in South of Iran (Shiraz, Jahrom, Saadatshahr, Marvdasht, Kavar, Sadra1 and Sadra2, all in Fars province). To estimate the response of 5 days old A. gossypii populations to imidacloprid, leaf dip bioassays were performed in the laboratory. Lethal concentrations at 50% (LC50) values were estimated by probit analysis and used to calculate the resistance ratios (RR). The bioassay results showed significant discrepancy in susceptibility to imidacloprid among the populations. The lowest and highest LD50 were estimated for Shiraz population with 37.09 and Sadra1 with 636.80 µg mL–1 respectively. The highest levels of resistance to imidacloprid were detected for Sadra1 (RR=17.17 fold). In the other populations some levels of resistance were detected. In Jahrom, Kavar, Marvdasht and SaadatShahr populations the RRs were from 3.85 to 7.11. As emphasized by the slope of responses and after a comparison of RRs with other studies it is supposed that resistant populations appear in first stages of development and have the ability to become more resistant with age