Parasitoid complex (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) of the leaf-mining fly Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau) (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Russia

Yefremova Z, Strakhova I, Kravchenko V, von Tschirnhaus M, Yegorenkova E. Parasitoid complex (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) of the leaf-mining fly Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau) (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Russia. PHYTOPARASITICA. 2015;43(1):125-134.Sixteen species of Eulophidae were reared from Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau) collected from 14 host plants in the Middle Volga Basin (Russia). Chrysocharis viridis (Nees), Closterocerus trifasciatus Westwood, Diglyphus pusztensis (Erdos), Minotetrastichus frontalis (Nees), Neochrysocharis aratus (Walker), Pediobius cassidae Erdos, and Pnigalio pectinicornis (Linnaeus) are new host records. Two parasitic species, D. isaea (Walker) and P. metallicus (Nees), were dominant. The pre-imaginal stages of both dominant (ecto- and endoparasitoid) species are illustrated. The sex ratio between the ecto- and endoparasitoids differed. In June/July, there were about threefold more females in ectoparasitoids than in endoparasitoids. These differences in sex ratio were not related to the plant species only. The endoparasitoid species were found on all species of host plants of C. horticola, whereas the ectoparasitoid species were restricted to about half the plant species. Diglyphus isaea and Pediobius metallicus are very important regulating species against leaf miner pests such as C. horticola

Changes to the Fossil Record of Insects through Fifteen Years of Discovery

The first and last occurrences of hexapod families in the fossil record are compiled from publications up to end-2009. The major features of these data are compared with those of previous datasets (1993 and 1994). About a third of families (>400) are new to the fossil record since 1994, over half of the earlier, existing families have experienced changes in their known stratigraphic range and only about ten percent have unchanged ranges. Despite these significant additions to knowledge, the broad pattern of described richness through time remains similar, with described richness increasing steadily through geological history and a shift in dominant taxa, from Palaeoptera and Polyneoptera to Paraneoptera and Holometabola, after the Palaeozoic. However, after detrending, described richness is not well correlated with the earlier datasets, indicating significant changes in shorter-term patterns. There is reduced Palaeozoic richness, peaking at a different time, and a less pronounced Permian decline. A pronounced Triassic peak and decline is shown, and the plateau from the mid Early Cretaceous to the end of the period remains, albeit at substantially higher richness compared to earlier datasets. Origination and extinction rates are broadly similar to before, with a broad decline in both through time but episodic peaks, including end-Permian turnover. Origination more consistently exceeds extinction compared to previous datasets and exceptions are mainly in the Palaeozoic. These changes suggest that some inferences about causal mechanisms in insect macroevolution are likely to differ as well

PARASITOID COMPLEX (HYMENOPTERA, EULOPHIDAE) OF MINING FLIES (DIPTERA, AGROMYZIDAE) IN THE MIDDLE VOLGA RIVER BASIN

Strakhova IS, Yefremova ZA, von Tschirnhaus M, Yegorenkova EN. PARASITOID COMPLEX (HYMENOPTERA, EULOPHIDAE) OF MINING FLIES (DIPTERA, AGROMYZIDAE) IN THE MIDDLE VOLGA RIVER BASIN. Zoologichesky Zhurnal. 2013;92(5):553-561.A parasitoid complex of fifteen Agromyzidae species (Agromyza nana Meigen, Aulagromyza populi (Kalt.), Amauromyza sp. n. aff. insularis, Calycomyza humeralis (von Roser), Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau), Liriomyza eupatoriana Spencer, L. demeijerei Hering, L. dracunculi Hering, L. strigata (Meigen), L. soror Hendel, L. tanaceti de Meijere, L. taraxaci Hering, Ophiomyia quinta Spencer (first recorded for the Palaearctic Region), Phytomyza petoei Hering and Ph. griffithsi Spencer) reared from 20 host plants were studied. A total of 38 host-parasitoid associations were analyzed, 31 of them were previously unrecorded. During this research, 17 Eulophidae parasitoid species (Cirrospilus viticola (Rondani), Chrysocharis pubicornis (Zetter-stedt), Ch. viridis Nees, Ch. crassiscapus (Thomson), Closterocerus tnfasciatus Westwood, Diglyphus crassinervis Erdos, D. chabrias (Walker), D. isaea Walker, D. poppoea Walker, D. pusztensis (Eras, Novicky), Minotetrastichus frontalis (Nees), Neochrysocharis aratus (Walker), N. formosa (Westwood), Pnigalio pectinicornis (Linnaeus), P. soemius (Walker), Pediobius metallicus (Nees) and P. cassidae Erdos)) were found. There are new parasitoid records for the pest species, Ch. horticola, A. nana and Ph. petoei. The number of ectoparasitoid species was 1.25 times greater than that of endoparasitoids in the parasitoid complexes, and the number of reared specimens of ectoparasitoids was 1.7 times greater than that of endoparasitoids. Dominant species of the parasitoid complexes of Agromyzidae were D. isaea (28.4%), Pediobius metallicus (14.5%), N. formosa (13.7%), and Pnigalio soemius (12.7%)

Helical shoot-tip mines on three genera of Asteraceae in Jamaica are caused by different species of Melanagromyza-Implications for the biological control of Chromolaena odorata using Melanagromyza eupatoriella

Bowers MA, Zachariades C, Robinson DE, Cohen JE, von Tschirnhaus M, Uyi O. Helical shoot-tip mines on three genera of Asteraceae in Jamaica are caused by different species of Melanagromyza-Implications for the biological control of Chromolaena odorata using Melanagromyza eupatoriella. Biological Control. 2023;179: 105151.Field host-range surveys and fixed plot trials were undertaken in Jamaica to gain an understanding of the host range of the fly Melanagromyza eupatoriella (Diptera: Agromyzidae), a potential biological control agent of the neotropical shrub Chromolaena odorata in South Africa. The fly larvae form helical mines in growing, vegetative stem tips, causing them to wilt and die. Seventy-seven sites at which C. odorata was present along with 30 other species of Asteraceae were surveyed for the presence of damage similar to that caused by M. eupatoriella. Twelve of these sites, chosen for the high (>10) number of M. eupatoriella mines present on C. odorata, were used to determine the abundance of 19 Asteraceae species encountered and the proportion of shoot tips with helical mines on each of these species. Similar mines were found on six species other than C. odorata: Mikania micrantha, M. cordifolia, Bidens alba, B. pilosa, B. reptans and Calea jamaicensis. Damaged plant material was field-collected from M. micrantha, C. odorata and B. alba and the causative herbivores (all Agromyzidae) were preserved for identification. Mines on Mikania species were longer than those caused by M. eupatoriella, and the species collected from M. micrantha was tentatively identified as Melanagromyza vulgata. Helical shoot-tip mines on Bidens species continued internally to completion further down the stem, unlike those of M. eupatoriella, where pupation occurs near the base of the helical mine. Only adult females were reared out of B. alba, therefore the fly could only be identified as a Melanagromyza species. The proportion of shoot tips with helical mines was highest on the two Mikania species, intermediate on C. odorata, and lowest on B. alba. For the quantitative, 12-site survey, five plant species in addition to C. odorata were present at four or more sites, and were significantly less likely than C. odorata to host M. eupatoriella. A fixed-plot trial was undertaken using two forms of C. odorata (plants from Jamaica and the southern African biotype), six Asteraceae (all encountered in the host-range sur-veys) and two crop species. Over 19 months, both C. odorata forms were attacked by M. eupatoriella and one mine was encountered on B. alba. The surveys, trials and identification of insects indicate that shoot-tip mines caused by M. eupatoriella were encountered only on C. odorata, out of 31 Asteraceae and two other plant species. Further laboratory-based host-range trials are required, should there be a need for this insect as a biocontrol agent in future

Development and validation of the mastocytosis quality of life questionnaire: MC-QoL

Background: Mastocytosis is a heterogeneous disease characterized by a clonal expansion of mast cells in various organs. The vast majority of patients affected suffer from signs and symptoms caused by mediator release from mast cells. Although the disease burden is high, there is currently no specific instrument to measure health-related quality of life (HRQoL) impairment in patients with mastocytosis. Objective: The aim of this study was to develop and validate a disease-specific tool to assess HRQoL impairment in patients with cutaneous and indolent systemic mastocytosis, the Mastocytosis Quality of Life Questionnaire (MC-QoL). Methods: Sixty-two potential MC-QoL items were developed in a combined approach consisting of semi-structured patient interviews, expert input and literature research. Item selection was performed by impact analysis with 76 patients and a final review for face validity. The resulting MC-QoL was tested for validity, reliability and influence factors. In parallel, an US American-English version of the MC-QoL was developed. Results: A total of 158 patients (41 CM, 41 MIS and 76 ISM) took part in the MC-QoL validation study. The final 27-item questionnaire was found to have a four-domain structure ('symptoms', 'emotions', 'social life/functioning' and 'skin'), a valid total score and an excellent test-retest reliability. Multiple regression analysis revealed disease duration, but not age, gender or skin involvement to be a significant determinant of HRQoL impairment in mastocytosis. Conclusions: The MC-QoL is the first disease-specific HRQoL questionnaire for adult patients with cutaneous and indolent systemic mastocytosis. This short, validated and reliable instrument will serve as a valuable tool in future clinical studies and in routine patient care