Evaldo Martins Pires

Quality Control of Trichogramma atopovirilia and Trichogramma pretiosum (Hym.: Trichogrammatidae) adults reared under laboratory conditions

The objective of this work was to assess the flight capacity, parasitism and emergence of Trichogramma atopoviriliaand two strains of T. pretiosum (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) (L1 and L2). The flight capacity of these species was assessed in test units consisting of a plastic PVC cylinder with a rigid transparent plastic circle on the upper part and an extruded polystyrene disk closing its bottom. A tube was placed in each test unit containing a card with 300 Anagasta kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) eggs parasitised by Trichogramma. These cards were assessed to determine the parasitism rate and adult emergence of these natural enemies. T. atopovirilia and T. pretiosum L1 presented adequate flight capacity and parasitism, in addition to high percentages of adults emerged.

Attack of two new spider mites on sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) in Diamantina, Minas Gerais State, Brazil

Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam. Convolvulaceae is a plant whose tubers are potentially used as food in underdeveloped countries (Mukhopadhyay et al., 2011). There are few reports on pests that attack sweet potato in Brazil. In addition, reports on mites that attack this plant are rare, referring only to the species Brevipalpus phoenicis (Geijskes, 1939) (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) (Flechtmann, 1987) and Tetranychus desertorum Banks, 1900 (Acari: Tetranychidae) (Mineiro et al., 2007). The olericulture sector at Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri – UFVJM, in Diamantina, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, has a sweet potato germplasm bank, in pots, under greenhouse conditions. From August to November 2011, mites from the two species were observed attacking and causing severe damage and death in those plants (Figure 1). Infested leaves were taken out, packaged in plastic bags and later sent to taxonomist Dr. Gilberto José de Moraes from Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz” – ESALQ-USP, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil. These mites were identified as Tetranychus ludeni Zacher, 1913 and Tetranychus urticae Koch, 1836 (Acari: Tetranychidae). This is the first study reporting these species of Tetranychidae attacking the sweet potato. A recent revision related T. ludeni to the host plants Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Cucurbitaceae; Pelargonium hortorum L.H. Bailey Geraniaceae (geranium); Prunus domestica L. Rosaceae (plumb) and Citrus limonia L. Rutaceae (mandarin-lime). Tetranychus urticae was associated with the species Ambrosia polystachya D.C. Asteracea (ragweed); Parthenium sp. Asteracea (parthenium); Pyrostegia venusta Miers Bignoniaceae (flame vine); Phaseolus lunatus L. Fabaceae (lima beans); Macroptilium atropurpureum (L.) Fabaceae (siratro); Passiflora edulis Sims Passifloraceae (yellow passion fruit); Triticum aestivum L. Poaceae (wheat); Alpinia purpurata K. Schum Zingiberaceae (alpinia) and Lantana camara L. Verbenaceae (wild sage) (Mendonça et al., 2011). The species T. ludeni and T. urticae occur together and have potential to cause severe damage and death to sweet potato plants cultivated in Brazil. They should thus be considered in programmes of integrated pest management – IPM – for this crop.

EGG STORAGE OF Podisus nigrispinus (HEMIPTERA: PENTATOMIDAE) PREDATORS AT LOW TEMPERATURES

Podisus nigrispinus are bedbug predators that are used as biological control agents of defoliating larvae in eucalypt plantations. The mass rearing of natural enemies produces large numbers of insects, but the number of predators produced may not coincide with the timing of the outbreaks of pest populations in the field. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of different storage periods on the eggs of P. nigrispinus at low temperatures of 5, 13 and 15oC. The treatments consisted of periods of 5, 10, 15 and 20 days of storage of predator eggs at each temperature indicated. After the different periods of storage, the eggs were removed, and the egg viability, the survival and duration of nymphal instars and the sex ratio of emerged adults were evaluated. Egg storage at 5oC reduced the percentage of hatched eggs, while viability values close to 50% were observed for storage periods of up to 10 days at 13oC and up to 15 days at 15oC. For these treatments, the survival rates of nymphs were similar to those of the control. The different storage periods had no effect on the duration of the nymphal stage or the sex ratio of P. nigrispinus at any of the temperatures. Therefore, the storage temperature of 5oC caused the death of the majority of the embryos, while it is possible to store P. nigrispinus eggs up to 10 and 15 days at 13 and 15oC, respectively.

PLANTAS HOSPEDEIRAS DE Thyrinteina arnobia (LEPIDOPTERA: GEOMETRIDAE) AFETAM O DESENVOLVIMENTO DO PARASITOIDE Palmistichus elaeisis (HYMENOPTERA: EULOPHIDAE)1

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a eficiencia do parasitismo e a biologia da prole do parasitoide Palmistichus elaeisis Delvare e La Salle (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) em pupas de Thyrinteina arnobia Stoll (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) quando criadas em plantas de Psidium guajava ou Eucalyptus cloeziana. Ovos de T. arnobia foram coletados e colocados em sacos de tecido tipo organza envolvendo galhos de plantas de P. guajava (T1) e E. cloeziana (T2) ate as lagartas alcancarem a fase de pupa. Trinta pupas de cada tratamento foram individualizadas em tubos de vidro e expostas ao parasitismo por quatro femeas de P. elaeisis por 24 h. Avaliaram-se a emergencia da progenie do parasitoide por pupa; a porcentagem de parasitismo, pupas mortas e de adultos de T. arnobia emergidos; a duracao do ciclo de vida (ovo-adulto);a longevidade; a razao sexual; e o tamanho da capsula cefalica e do corpo do parasitoide. A porcentagem de parasitismo, a emergencia de P. elaeisis por pupa, a longevidade das femeas e o tamanho da capsula cefalica e do corpo dos machos do parasitoide foram menores quando seu hospedeiro foi criado em plantas de eucalipto. Isso pode ter ocorrido devido a grande quantidade de compostos do metabolismo secundario presentes nesta planta, que podem ser acumulados no corpo do herbivoro ao se alimentar, afetando negativamente o inimigo natural. Palmistichus elaeisis mostrou-se mais adaptado a mirtacea nativa da America P. guajava.

First report of "jewel wasp" Ampulex compressa (Fabricius, 1781) (Hymenoptera: Ampulicidae) in the Amazon Biome of Brazil.

Ampulex compressa (Fabricius, 1781) is a wasp of the family Ampulicidae, subfamily Ampulicinae and tribe Ampulicini, with 217, 22 and 16 species reported, respectively (Amarante, 2002; Buys, 2007). This insect presents a metallic body colour pattern, usually in blue or green, and this colouring is responsible for A. compressa being popularly known as “jewel wasp” or “emerald wasp.” Regarding reproductive/evolutionary aspects, A. compressa presents a direct relationship with some specimens of cockroaches (Blattaria: Blattidae) like

OCORRÊNCIA DE Poekilloptera phalaenoides EM ESPÉCIES ARBÓREAS NATIVAS EM PINDORAMA, SÃO PAULO

Adultos e ninfas de Poekilloptera phalaenoides (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hemiptera: Flatidae) foram observados em plantas de Cassia grandis L.f. e adultos em Senna macranthera (Collad.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby ambas especies da familia Fabaceae ou Leguminosae, subfamilia Caesalpinioideae, em Pindorama, Sao Paulo, em setembro de 2012. Este e o primeiro registro deste inseto para o municipio de Pindorama e em plantas de C. grandis e S. macranthera.

New record and characteristics of damage caused by Oligonychus yothersi on Eucalyptus urophylla

Oligonychus yothersi (Acari: Tetranychidae) causes damage to a wide range of plants. The aim of this work was to record the occurrence of this mite species feeding on one-year-old plants of Eucalyptus urophylla in the field and describe the damages that this mite causes to plant species. This mite species was commonly found attacking E. urophylla plants in Viçosa (MG), Brazil. The observed damage was similar to that caused by herbivorous mites that feed directly on the leaf surface and cause premature falling of the attacked leaves. This fact indicates that this mite species may be a potential pest for eucalyptus plants and crops, which makes it essential to carry out further studies on this subject, especially during periods with low intensity of rainfall and humidity.

The beetle Costalimaita ferruginea (Coleoptera: Chysomelidae) in Eucalyptus plantations in transition area of Amazon and Cerrado Biomes

Costalimaita ferruginea (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) attacks Eucalyptus plants causing severe damage through netting of the leaves. Recently, this Coleoptera has been reported attacking Myrtaceae in Mato Grosso State and, studies about the occurrence of this beetle in commercial plantations of eucalypts has been the subject of researchers through monitoring programmes in the forest protection area. With the beginning of the rainy season, adults were observed causing damage in eucalypt plantations in four cities that are part of the transition region of Amazon and Cerrado Biomes. The spots where these insects were observed are located in Feliz Natal, Lucas do Rio Verde, Sorriso and Vera. The purpose of this study was to report the new occurrences and to characterize the attack period of the beetle C. ferruginea in Eucalyptus plantations in Middle-North region of Mato Grosso State, region of Biomes Transition.

Walking stability of Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae)

Results obtained in studies can contribute to the advancement of science and innovative methods and techniques for developing practical activities. Reporting conditions that may restrict the implementation of research is critical to ensure the optimal development of further technical studies. The objective of this study was to assess the walking stability of R. dominica on a flat and smooth surface. The study was based on the determination of mortality, morphology and walking stability of the insect outside the grain mass, on a flat and smooth surface. Mortality of adults of this Coleoptera in conditions with and without food was similar, which explains the difficulty that this insect had for accessing the food source on the flat and smooth surface. The measurements of body length (BOL), width (BOW) and height (BOH) of R. dominica were compared with those of Tribolium castaneum (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), which showed good ability to walk in these conditions. This study indicated that the former presents lower BOL and BOW, and greater BOH than the second, and all these variables showed differences when analyzed simultaneously by means of the construction of multivariate morphometric indices (Width × Height, Length × Height and Height × Length × Width). These morphometric variables, together with the definition of the geometry most similar to the body shape, resulted in determination of the center of gravity (CG) and static rollover threshold (SRTgeom) for both species. Rhyzopertha dominica and T. castaneum presented CGs considered high and low, respectively, and together with the values obtained for SRTgeom, may justify that R. dominica can be considered a less stable species during movement, and presents greater risk of rollover on flat and smooth surfaces.

Triplaris americana L. (Polygonaceae), a New Host Plant For Aethalion reticulatum (Linnaeus, 1767) (Hemiptera: Aethalionidae)

Triplaris americana is a plant that has been applied as ornamental specie and also as natural medicine. Adults and immature stages of Aethalion reticulatum were observed colonizing specimens of this plant in Sinop, MT, Brazil, which represent the first record of this leafhopper colonizing this specie.