Entomology Commons^™

Acmaeodera (Coleoptera: Buprestidae): A New Species Of Acmaeodera Eschscholtz, 1829 From The Southwestern United States, With Three New Synonymies, New State And Host Records, And A Key To Species Occurring East Of The Rocky Mountain States, Jason A. Hansen

Insecta Mundi

Acmaeodera natlovei new species (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) is described from the southwestern United States. Details of phenology, geographic range, larval, flower and adult host plants, and similar spe­cies are discussed. Acmaeodera yuccavora Knull, 1962 is newly synonymized with Acmaeodera conoidea Fall, 1899. Acmaeodera thoracata Knull, 1974 and A. bryanti Van Dyke, 1953 are newly synonymized with Acmaeodera neoneglecta Fisher, 1949. New state and host records are reported for United States. A key to the 46 species of Acmaeodera occurring east of the Rocky Mountain states is provided.

Acmaeodera Eschscholtz, 1829 is one of the most speciose buprestid genera in America …

Community Complexity Of A Pollination Network: Analysis Of Plant-Pollinator Interactions In The Eastern Ecuadorian Cloud Forest, Anisa López-Ruiz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Global declines in pollinators and temporal/spatial mismatches between plants and pollinators threaten the integrity of plant-pollinator networks. Ecological network analysis provides a powerful framework for understanding the dynamics of plant-pollinator networks and measures of community complexity that can help inform areas of priority in conservation. This study observed a plant-pollinator network in a secondary forest close to the Río Zuñac Reserve in the eastern Ecuadorian cloud forest to identify assemblages of plants and pollinators and evaluate measures of community complexity, including specialization and nestedness. Flowering plants were identified and observed along a 1.2 km transect, and floral visitors to these …

Compensating For Effects Of Autotomy On Locomotion In Stink Bugs (Halyomorpha Halys), Lilian C. Jubb

Longwood Senior Thesis Proposal

Autotomy is the voluntary release of an appendage, typically to avoid predation or entrapment. Autonomy of a single leg can have minimal effects on locomotion in arthropods with more than six legs. Hexapods, however, use a double-tripod gait which is completely disrupted with the loss of a single leg, thus locomotor performance should be greatly reduced leading to lower survival. Autotomy is so costly to locomotion that some insects regenerate a lost limb in a subsequent molt leading to reduced investment in other important functions (e.g. reproduction). Autotomy persists in adult hexapods with no opportunity for regeneration, which suggests some …

If We Were Fiction: Insect-Human Stories, Isabella Delaney

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This creative project delves into the nonlinear, interconnected web of insect-human relations in Nepal. Through exploring humans’ perceptions and stories of insects, this work intends to remedy the limits of traditional entomological knowledge, which forgets the ubiquitous reality of insects as more than biological and ecological agents. Insects are social, economic, and ethical “characters” in our lives, and recognizing this opens up possibilities for connection, hope, and evolution in this world. The potential of the mundane, the forgettable, pulses within humans’ unique attitudes toward insects and the forces that shaped them. This potential is represented in the final product of …

Unravelling The Nutritional And Health Benefits Of Wheat Bread Enriched With Meat Powder From Laying Hen Fed Diet With Insect (Hermetia Illucens) Meal, Marcasy P. Makokha, Patrick S. Muliro, Peninah N. Ngoda, Changeh J. Ghemoh, Sevgan Subramanian, Cheseto Xavier, Brian O. Ochieng, Sunday Ekesi, Chrysantus M. Tanga

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Wheat bread is among stable foods that are nutritionally imbalanced, thus enrichment is crucial. We evaluated the nutritional impact of high-valued wheat bread enriched with varying levels of meat powder from hen fed diet with insect (Hermetia illucens)-based meal. Crude protein and ash in bread increased with increasing inclusion of meat powder. Limiting amino acids like lysine and threonine in enriched bread products increased by 3.0–4.5 and 1.8–3.1-folds, respectively. Omega 3 fatty acids were significantly enhanced in bread fortified with meat powder. Vitamins (retinol, nicotinic acid, and pantothenic acid) were significantly increased in supplemented bread products. Iron, zinc, and calcium …

The Pepsis Menechma Lepeletier (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae: Pepsinae) Taxonomic And Nomenclatural Problem, Frank E. Kurczewski

Insecta Mundi

Hurd (1952), in revising the Nearctic species of Pepsis Fabricius, separated P. cerberus Lucas from P. elegans Lepeletier based on external morphology and geography. Vardy (2005), in his Western Hemisphere Pepsis revision, combined these taxa and several Neotropical color and structural variants in a broad defini­tion of P. menechma Lepeletier extending across ~11,250 km and two continents. Vardy (2005) synonymized the familiar and well-documented, 160-year-old P. elegans under P. menechma probably because it appeared several pages later in Lepeletier’s (1845) Histoire Naturelle des Insectes. Hyménoptères. Vardy’s (2005) interpre­tation of Pepsis menechma as a viable species presents a taxonomic and …

Establishment Of Sinoxylon Anale Lesne (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) In Brazil And Its Potential Implications, Luana De Souza Covre, Robert A. Hack, Carlos A.H. Flechtmann

Insecta Mundi

Bostrichidae (Coleoptera) are a family of beetles with specialized xylophagous feeding habits that allow consumption of dry woody plant tissues. Bostrichids are often polyphagous and therefore pose a sig­nificant threat to many agricultural and forestry products, particularly in tropical regions. Bostrichids are commonly detected in solid wood packaging material at international ports of entry. Notably, Sinoxylon anale Lesne has been intercepted in wood crates and pallets worldwide and has now become established in Brazil. This paper reports the first documented establishment of S. anale in Brazil, being found both in domestic wood pallets and within native forest and monoculture. The …

Chinese Species Of The Genus Tricondyla Latreille, 1822 (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) And A New Record For The Country, Xinxin Xiong, Jürgen Wiesner

Insecta Mundi

Tricondyla wiesneri Naviaux, 2002 (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) is reported from China for the first time. Photographs, short descriptions, and an identification key for all six taxa of the genus Tricondyla La­treille, 1822 known from China are given.

The first author recently received several specimens of Tricondyla wiesneri Naviaux, 2002 that had been collected in Yingjiang County, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. The second author compared them with the type specimens and confirmed the identification. The species was originally described from Laos, Louang Namtha province (Naviaux 2002: 48), later reported from Vietnam, Dien Bien province (Wiesner 2022: 191), …

First Report Of The Stinkbug Edessa Leucogramma (Perty) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Edessinae) Attacking Handroanthus Chrysanthus (Jacq.) S.O. Grose (Bignoniaceae), With Descriptions Of The Adult And Immatures And Notes On Associated Fungi And Protozoa, Gonzalo Abril R., Allan H. Smith-Pardo

Insecta Mundi

The stinkbug Edessa leucogramma (Perty) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae: Edessinae) is reported as a pest of young yellow guayacán trees (Handroanthus chrysanthus (Jacq.) S.O. Grose, Bignoniaceae) in the met­ropolitan area of the Aburra Valley in Antioquia, Colombia (AMVA). We provide a short description of the adult and immature stages and report for the first-time protozoa associated with the digestive system of this species of true bug in addition to information regarding a fungus found associated with Edessa leucogramma in the field.

Se reporta el chinche Edessa leucograma (Perty) (Hemíptera: Pentatomidae: Edessinae), como plaga importante de árboles jóvenes del guayacán amarillo ( …

Cyclocephala Kuijteni (Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Cyclocephalini), A New Species From Suriname, Meindert A. Hielkema

Insecta Mundi

Cyclocephala kuijteni, new species (Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Cyclocephalini), is described from Suriname. It is illustrated together with its aedeagus, and the characteristics differentiating it from the most similar species C. castanea (Olivier), C. hardyi Endrödi and C. pygidialis Joly are briefly discussed.

The New World genus Cyclocephala Dejean, 1821 contains about 360 described species, with most representatives occurring in the Neotropics (Ratcliffe and Cave 2015). While investigating the scarabaeoid fauna of Suriname with my son Auke, we collected a large number of Cyclocephala specimens with a so-called mothing sheet, including a single male specimen I was unable to identify. The …

Toward A Brighter Future For Entomological Collections, Susan Weller

University of Nebraska State Museum: Entomology Papers

Entomology collections, and natural history collections more generally, are critical research infrastructure. Specimens and metadata such as specimen labels, field notebooks, images, dissections, genetic sequences, and host plant data (to name a few) enable team science to examine biological diversity through time and study the impacts of humans on landscapes and climate (Johnson et al. 2023). However, some do not grasp the connection between drawers of insect specimens and modern science driven by advances in computational methods, molecular biology, and big data. Scientific specimens are key to connecting large-scale research questions within and among entomology and other disciplines.

Appendage Abnormalities In Spiders Induced By An Alternating Temperature Protocol In The Context Of Recent Advances In Molecular Spider Embryology, Teresa Napiorkowska, Julita Templin, Pawel Napiorkowski, Mark A. Townley

Faculty Publications

In the literature there are numerous reports of developmental deformities in arthropods collected in their natural habitat. Since such teratogenically affected individuals are found purely by chance, the causes of their defects are unknown. Numerous potential physical, mechanical, chemical, and biological teratogens have been considered and tested in the laboratory. Thermal shocks, frequently used in teratological research on the spider Eratigena atrica, have led to deformities on both the prosoma and the opisthosoma. In the 2020/2021 breeding season, by applying alternating temperatures (14 °C and 32 °C, changed every 12 h) for the first 10 days of embryonic development, …

The Recently-Described Ant-Like Leaf Beetle Elonus Gruberi (Coleoptera: Aderidae) In Michigan, Daniel R. Swanson

The Great Lakes Entomologist

The ant-like leaf beetle Elonus gruberi Gompel, 2017 (Coleoptera: Aderidae) is reported for the first time in Michigan. This new state record, initially based on two recent collections by the author and then supplemented with additional material in a Michigan entomological collection, highlights how the constituents of faunal lists can require re-appraisal after taxonomic revision, particularly where splitting of species has occurred. The composition of Elonus Casey, 1895 in Michigan as well as characters for identifying E. gruberi also are discussed.

First Records Of Three Carpophilinae (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) In Quebec, Ludovic Leclerc, Pierrick Bloin, Françoise Pelletier, Christian Hébert, Kishan Sambaraju

The Great Lakes Entomologist

We report first records for three species of Carpophilinae (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae), two for the province of Quebec (Caplothorax lugubris and Carpophilus corticinus), a third species (Carpophilus marginatus) being a first report for Canada. These beetles were trapped while conducting population assessments of oak wilt vectors and in amateur collections. Biological information and a brief description of the records including distribution data in Quebec for the three species are presented.

Four New State Records Of Delphacid Planthopper Species (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea) From Illinois, Usa, Morgan E. Brown, Christopher H. Dietrich

The Great Lakes Entomologist

Four planthopper species– Aethodelphax aetocephalus (Beamer 1948), Bakerella cinerea Beamer, 1945, Bakerella minuta Beamer, 1950, and Pissonotus aphidioides Van Duzee, 1897 – are newly recorded from Illinois based on collections obtained in the summers of 2005 and 2022. Specimens were collected via net-sweeping and vacuuming of herbaceous vegetation and identified using external morphology and male genitalia morphology. Locality and collection data for each species are summarized; and relevant taxonomic and ecological information for each species is provided. Photographs of pinned specimens and male genital capsules are also provided. These new records reveal apparently disjunct populations of A. aetocephalus and B. …

Periodical Cicadas (Magicicada Spp.): Predator Satiation, Or Too Much Of A Good Thing?, John R. Cooley, Greg Holmes

The Great Lakes Entomologist

We report a novel mode of ecdysis failure in periodical cicadas (Magicicada spp. Davis) tied to the cicadas’ reliance on high densities for survival in the face of predation. Under extremely high densities, cicadas can disrupt others undergoing ecdysis by knocking them loose from their perches, trapping them, or causing physical damage. Our observations raise the possibility that while periodical cicadas thrive at high densities, it is possible that some densities are so high that they inhibit success.

Synopsis Of Biological Control For European Fruit Lecanium (Parthenolecanium Corni) By Parasitoids In North America And Preliminary Findings In Hybrid Hazelnut Orchards, Simone G. Traband, Hailey N. Shanovich, John C. Luhman, Brian Aukema

The Great Lakes Entomologist

The European fruit lecanium, Parthenolecanium corni (Bouché) (Hemiptera: Coccidae) is a native insect to North America that causes significant damage to a large variety of fruit and ornamental trees worldwide. Here we provide a summary of the insect’s worldwide distribution and synopsis of all the Hymenopteran parasitoid wasps found to parasitize P. corni in North America from past literature. Additionally, a preliminary parasitoid survey of P. corni was carried out in two hybrid hazel (Corylus avellana × C. americana) plantings as hazelnuts represent a potential new crop for the region. European fruit lecanium, Parthenolecanium corni (Bouché) (Hemiptera: Coccidae), were collected …

Abundance And Diversity Of Bees Visiting Flowering Pennycress, A New Oilseed Crop In The Midwestern Usa, Frank Forcella, Zachary M. Portman, Samantha S. Wells, William Perry, Russ W. Gesch, Yesuf Mohammed, Cody Hoerning, Alex Hard, Tad L. Wesley, Winthrop B. Phippen

The Great Lakes Entomologist

Oilseed pennycress (Thlaspi arvense) is a new, autumn-sown, “cash cover crop” for the Midwestern USA and elsewhere. Anthesis occurs in early spring when few other plants bloom, and its flowers attract early-emerging bees. However, the taxonomic composition of these bees was unknown. Consequently, we systematically captured and identified the genera and species of bees visiting pennycress flowers throughout anthesis at five site-years: two in Illinois and three in Minnesota. A cumulative total of 28 bee species were found across site-years. The most common genera were Andrena (10 species), Lasioglossum (12 species), and Halictus (2 species). Rarer genera were …

Limoniic Acid Is A Sex Attractant Pheromone Component Of Limonius Agonus (Coleoptera: Elateridae), Wim Van Herk, Regine Gries, Jocelyn Smith, Ian Scott, Gerhard Gries

The Great Lakes Entomologist

Recently, (E)-4-ethyloct-4-enoic acid (limoniic acid) has been reported as the major sex attractant pheromone component of L. canus and L. californicus (Coleoptera: Elateridae) in western North America. Our objective was to determine whether limoniic acid is also a sex attractant pheromone component of the eastern field wireworm, Limonius agonus (Say). In gas chromatographic-electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) analyses of headspace volatiles from L. agonus females, antennae from male L. agonus responded to limoniic acid as a trace component. In field experiments, traps baited with synthetic limoniic acid, or its analog (E)-5-ethyloct-4-enoic acid, afforded captures of male L. …

Observations On Two Stem-Boring Coleoptera Of Prickly-Ash (Zanthoxylum Americanum) In Michigan: Micracis Suturalis (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) And Sternidius Alpha (Cerambycidae), Robert A. Haack

The Great Lakes Entomologist

The xylophagous scolytine Micracis suturalis LeConte and the cerambycid beetle Sternidius alpha (Say) were reared or collected from trunk sections of prickly-ash, Zanthoxylum americanum Mill., in Ingham County, Michigan during 1986 to 1988. Most M. suturalis gallery systems were initiated by August in host material cut in late May 1987. Micracis suturalis gallery-system density data are presented. No M. suturalis were reared from caged host material one-year after cutting. Sternidius alpha was univoltine, with adults emerging from mid-May to mid-July from host material cut the previous spring. From 1 to 8 S. alpha larvae originated from individual oviposition sites, averaging …