Mutillidae is a rather large family of solitary wasps, consisting of more than 4,300 species worldwide. As adults they feed on nectar, but the larvae are parasitoids of other insect immatures. Mutillid taxonomy is well-studied, but their biology is less well known, especially in the Oriental region. Host information is known for only about 3% of mutillid species. Here, we present the first documentation of the mating biology and host use of the velvet ant Trogaspidia pagdeni (Mickel, 1933), which uses the blue nest-renting wasp Chalybion malignum (Kohl, 1906) (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) as its host during its prepupal stage. We observed the male seizing the female in flight by grasping her neck with his mandibles. He then flew with her and landed on a leaf of the Chinese hibiscus, Hibiscus 3 rosa-sinensis L. His courtship display involved continuously wiggling the female harshly in the air, while simultaneously striking her head and mesosoma with his antennae for several seconds before attempting to copulate with her. Copulation lasted about 10 seconds, with the entire courtship and mating period lasting about two minutes.
Orthoptera holdings of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) are described based on recent determination, curation, and digitization efforts. The collection's strengths are in Nearctic and Neotropical fauna, and species diversity is greatest in the families Acrididae and Tettigoniidae. The historical nature of the collection captures a snapshot of the state of Orthopteran systematics in the past and provides myriad opportunities for future research. Areas for collection improvement are discussed.
Molecular techniques, such as DNA Barcoding, are useful in species identification. BOLDSystems, or Barcode of Life Data System, is an open repository database developed by the Centre for Biodiversity Genomics (CBG) that holds millions of sequences. This online workbench and database groups and organizes molecular and morphological information, and makes the data available to scientific community. One limitation of BOLDSystems data has been the reliability and accuracy of the species identifications. To evaluate usefulness of BOLDSystems data, we examined 229 specimens in the genus Alloxysta Forster, 1869 (Hymenoptera: Cynipoidea: Figitidae: Charipinae) borrowed from BOLDSystems. In addition to evaluating the quality available COI sequences, we also examined morphological characteristics from primarily lateral habitus images of the 229 vouchers and provide recommendations for improvement. We found some specimens were misidentified and discovered at least one new species among them. At the end of the study, we provided here recommendations for improvement and incorporated our results from this study via the database portal. Our results indicate that data on BOLD and other such databases require well-trained taxonomists to verify species determinations based on primarily molecular data. It is important that molecular and morphological information be combined in order to improve species identification.
Ethological studies in the field of arthropods have addressed various perspectives, although specific knowledge related to chilopods has been notably limited. This work addresses this gap through exhaustive research carried out in the town of Baru, Colombia. It focuses on the behavior of a chilopod belonging to the genus Otostigmus (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha: Scolopendridae), revealing a response mechanism against threats: the simulation of being dead. This tactic, identified as tonic immobility or thanatosis, constitutes a novel finding in the behavior of chilopods, enriching our understanding of the defensive strategies adopted by these arthropods. Through field observation, we document the process by which the chilopod exhibits this behavior in situations of perceived danger. This contribution not only expands our knowledge of chilopod ethology, but also highlights the importance of the diversity of behavorial responses in these organisms, underlining the complexity of their interactions with the environment.
European hornet, Vespa crabro, is widely distributed in the United States east of the Mississippi River. Occurrences of V. crabro to the west of the Mississippi River are comparatively sparse. The majority of documented specimens from the "Trans-Mississippi" region of the U.S. are primarily from the Ozarks Physiographic Province in Arkansas, Missouri and eastern Oklahoma, with only sporadic reports of solitary specimens from Arizona, California, Kansas, Louisiana, and Wisconsin. This patchy geographic distribution in the southern and southwestern United States suggests that V. crabro may be restricted by the upper lethal thermal limit of the species (448C), which can approach summertime temperatures in those regions.
Abstract The genus Polistes Latreille 1802 is the only cosmopolitan genus in the social Vespidae. In this paper, a new species of the genus is described, Polistes (Epicnemius) orlandoi Somavilla & Carpenter sp. n., collected in Amazonas State, Brazil. The male genitalia are described and comparative remarks are given.
Abstract The genera Bohartodynerus Fateryga, 2021, and Parkerodynerus Fateryga, 2021, are synonymized with Odynerus Latreille, 1802.
Consumption of vertebrates by ants may be an important part of nutrient turnover and ecosystem functioning, particularly in the tropics (Griffiths et al., 2018; Eubanks et al., 2019). As scavengers, ants have been observed to remove carrion at rates on par with all non-invertebrate scavengers (Romero et al., 2020), though their role in decomposition ecology remains largely understudied (Eubanks et al., 2019). As predators, ants can be an overlooked source of mortality for many terrestrial vertebrates (McCormick and Polis, 1982; Valdez et al., 2020), especially when their prey is at smaller or lessdefended (Murray et al., 2016; Bichinski, 2015) life stages. Bullet ants (Paraponera clavata Fabricius 1775) are omnivorous, flexible foragers: they are most frequently observed carrying nectar back to their nests, but will also scavenge larger carcasses and actively hunt small prey animals, mostly arthropods (Young and Hermann, 1980; Dyer, 2002; Romero et al., 2020). Paraponera clavata are known to occasionally attack and consume small vertebrates. However, these instances involved carcasses that were scavenged opportunistically (feeder mice, Romero et al., 2020), live animals experimentally presented to foraging ants (frogs, Fritz et al., 1981; Murray et al., 2016), or vertebrate parts being carried back to the nest (‘‘head of a small tree frog,’’ Young & Hermann, 1980). It is therefore unclear whether bullet ants commonly hunt small vertebrates, although Bichinski (2015) reported seeing P. clavata hunt bird nestlings. There is little reason to suppose they do not: many small frogs and lizards are approximately the same size as the ants or some of their invertebrate prey. Additionally, bullet ant venom affects both invertebrates and vertebrates (Johnson et al., 2017), and can be used to subdue or kill small vertebrate prey (Fritz et al., 1981; Murray et al., 2016) as well as defend the ant from larger animals.
Genetically determined melanic color forms of the spittlebug Philaenus spumarius (L.) absorb more incident radiation, reach higher equilibrium temperatures, and are more frequent in cooler, higher latitude populations. Across five NortheasternMinnesota localities from 1974 to 2021 mean September temperature increased 2.708C, while melanic dorsal color forms decreased significantly in frequency, from 22.1% to 14.2 % in females, and 12.7% to 7.3% in males. The frequency of dark ventral abdominal pleurites decreased in both males and females, and in males the frequency of TYP, the more pigmented of the two local non-melanic color forms, decreased relative to the alternative POP phenotype. In Tinley Park, Illinois, where temperature increased 1.858C from 1971 to 2021, the frequency ofMAR, the only common dark color form, did not change, but the relative frequency of TYP versus POP decreased in both males and females. These results suggest that: 1) northern melanic color forms are maintained by selection for thermal melanism, selection that has relaxed as a result of warming climate; 2) MAR frequencies are determined by other forms of selection, possibly selection for warning coloration; and 3) climate warming may shift the phenotypic balance between TYP and POP toward POP. If these changes are representative of broader geographical areas, the P. spumarius polymorphism may prove to be a useful barometer of climate change.
The genus Polistes Latreille 1802 is the only cosmopolitan genus in the social Vespidae. In this paper, a new species of the genus is described, Polistes (Epicnemius) orlandoi Somavilla & Carpenter sp. n., collected in Amazonas State, Brazil. The male genitalia are described and comparative remarks are given.
Abstract Herein, microstructures (setae, spicules, and multi-pronged spicules) found on 1) the outer surfaces of mature larvae of stingless bees (Meliponini) and 2) the posterior surfaces of the hind legs of adult workers of these same bees are described, anatomically compared, and their functions assessed. It is concluded that those features on the hind legs of workers are true setae whereas those on mature larvae are multi-pronged spicules. However, it is proposed that under certain circumstances the multi-pronged spicules may well serve to similarly reduce friction while being actively employed.
CARLOS AUGUSTO CORRÊA BRUNO PANDELO BRÜGGER*, AMÉLIA GUIMARÃES CARVALHO, JOSÉ COLA ZANUNCIO AND SÉRVIO PONTES RIBEIRO Laboratório de Ecologia do Adoecimento e Florestas, Núcleo de Pesquisas em Ciências Biológicas/NUPEB, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, 35400-000, Brasil. E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C), serviopr@gmail.com (S.P.R.). Laboratório de Controle Biológico de Insetos, Departamento de Entomologia/BIOAGRO, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil; E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C), brunopb2002@yahoo.com.br (B.P.B), zanuncio@ufv.br (J.C.Z.). Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e Bioacústica (LABEC), Programa de Pós-graduação em Biodiversidade e Conservação da Natureza, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, 36036-900, Brasil (present address); E-mail: brunopb2002@yahoo.com.br (B.P.B). Departamento de Engenharia Florestal, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil; E-mail: ameliagcarvalho@gmail.com Laboratório de Manejo Integrado de Insetos Florestais, Departamento de Entomologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil (present address); E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C).
CARLOS AUGUSTO CORRÊA BRUNO PANDELO BRÜGGER*, AMÉLIA GUIMARÃES CARVALHO, JOSÉ COLA ZANUNCIO AND SÉRVIO PONTES RIBEIRO Laboratório de Ecologia do Adoecimento e Florestas, Núcleo de Pesquisas em Ciências Biológicas/NUPEB, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, 35400-000, Brasil. E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C), serviopr@gmail.com (S.P.R.). Laboratório de Controle Biológico de Insetos, Departamento de Entomologia/BIOAGRO, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil; E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C), brunopb2002@yahoo.com.br (B.P.B), zanuncio@ufv.br (J.C.Z.). Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e Bioacústica (LABEC), Programa de Pós-graduação em Biodiversidade e Conservação da Natureza, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, 36036-900, Brasil (present address); E-mail: brunopb2002@yahoo.com.br (B.P.B). Departamento de Engenharia Florestal, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil; E-mail: ameliagcarvalho@gmail.com Laboratório de Manejo Integrado de Insetos Florestais, Departamento de Entomologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, 36570-900, Brasil (present address); E-mail: correa.ca.1989@gmail.com (C.A.C).
A list of the 2,196 arachnid taxa (Araneae: 2181, Ricinulei: 13) described by the late Norman I. Platnick, is presented: two families (in synonymy); 159 genera (2 homonyms, 1 synonym), 2,035 species (6 synonyms).
The complete bibliography of the late Norman I. Platnick is presented. His scientific contribution, published over the course of 39 years, includes almost 12,000 pages in 340 printed publications, including 42 monographs, six books and two edited volumes on subjects ranging from the theory and practice of systematics and historical biogeography to the taxonomy of spiders (Araneae), an online searchable database, the World Spider Catalog, and two children's books. During the past 22 years, he self-published 27 full-color books and three articles on the illustration art of magazine covers, advertisements, and articles from America's 'Golden Age of Illustration' (1905-1920).
