We determined if mature ladybirds use colour to initially find suitable host plants. We also determined whether ladybird beetles are capable of associating characteristics such as colour with the presence of prey. Here, we show that the multicoloured Asian ladybird beetle, Harmonia axyridis, has a differential response to yellow compared to green colours. Naive ladybirds, of both sexes, make significantly more visits and spend more time on yellow vs. green coloured pillars. After pairing yellow and green colours with the presence or absence of aphid prey, ladybirds alter their foraging behaviour. Beetles conditioned to having food on both pillar colours exhibited the same responses as naive beetles, while beetles conditioned to only yellow or green pillars did not exhibit a preference for visiting or spending time on different colours. However, there was a trend towards females spending more time on pillar colours on which they received reinforcement, and males spending more time foraging on colours opposite to that which they were reinforced. Thus, H. axyridis is capable of responding to cues such as colour, and its foraging behaviour can be altered as a result of prior experience.

We asked if the structural heterogeneity of a laboratory arena differentially affected the abandonment of the plot, residence time, locomotory rate, pause duration and turning rate of adult Eriopis connexa and Hippodamia variegata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). We simulated an increase in heterogeneity by distributing vertically-oriented toothpicks in a circular arena: one control (without toothpicks), one uniform plot (toothpicks every 1 cm) and one random plot (randomly distributed toothpicks). No food was provided inside the arena. Coccinellids were released individually in the centre of each plot and their movement was videotaped. Fewer H. variegata adults left the plots as these become more heterogeneous. E. connexa did not discriminate between plots in their residence time, but H. variegata remained longer in the uniform and longest in the random plots. H. variegata only stayed longer than E. connexa in the random plots. This resulted because adults of H. variegata were stationary for longer periods, moved more slowly and less linearly and explored a higher number of toothpicks than adults of E. connexa in more heterogeneous environments. Thus, the physical structure of the environment differentially affects the movement patterns of insects. Eriopis connexa seems to be less sensitive to structural heterogeneity than H. variegata.

Chapman & Hall, London, 1998, 409 pp.

Water is an essential part of all living organisms and terrestrial arthropods are no exception. They have to balance water loss and water gain to and from their bodies, often over a wide range of environmental conditions. Water exists in the arthropod body in two main forms: free, bulk or freezable water (usually forming 65-75% of fresh weight), and unfreezable water (often inappropriately termed bound water) associated with membranes and other macromolecular structures. Many factors influence the body water content of arthropods from the physical environment and climatic effects to feeding activity, metabolism and life stage. Some species are adapted to withstand dehydration (loss of 17-89% of their body weight), whilst others enter a state of anhydrobiosis or dormancy induced by partial desiccation.

Body water plays an important role in arthropod cold hardiness. Partial dehydration may significantly affect the cold resistance of both freezing tolerant and freezing susceptible forms. An increase in the quantity of unfreezable water in arthropods of both strategies may occur through the production of low molecular weight sugar alcohols (polyols), and desiccation promotes polyol (e.g. glycerol) synthesis in some species.
Hibernating insects and other terrestrial arthropods may be threatened by lethal desiccation in their natural habitats, and in cold environments this may be in addition to the possibility of freezing, which could result in death. Whilst a 50% reduction in body water content may double the haemolymph osmolality in an arthropod, the effect of this on its supercooling ability will depend largely on the cryoprotectant concentration and the initial haemolymph osmolality. On the other hand, partial dehydration in winter may increase the supercooling capacity of micro-arthropods by reducing ice nucleator activity.
Whilst the biochemical and physiological similarities of the effects of cold and drought may be obvious, it should not be overlooked that desiccation tolerant arthropods may be pre-adapted for freezing tolerance, Thus cold and drought should be viewed as not necessarily competing mortality factors in overwintering arthropods, but as producing complementary adaptations for aiding survival in some species.

Some previous work on arthropod development is insufficiently detailed or incompletely reported. Much of the published information in this area is of limited use for the general analysis of life cycles. These difficulties arise primarily because many experiments do not control fully for the strain of the material (and even its specific identity) nor for rearing conditions, do not adequately take account of the complexity of life cycles and their stages, or are restricted to only part of the life cycle. For example, 285such factors as variable numbers of instars, sexual differences, abbreviated or hidden stages and dormancies may mean that the "average durations" reported apply to an unknown mixture of developmental types. Nor are experiments always designed or results reported and analysed in a logical and transparent manner. Undefined terms may obscure what actual developmental intervals were measured. Highly derived developmental or demographic measures may obscure core data. Statistical information may be inadequate. Such pitfalls are reviewed here, suggesting ways to ensure that results on the duration of development are both valid for specific studies and more widely useful. General experimental difficulties, recommended background information that should be provided, recommended life-cycle intervals and their terminology, and recommended ways to report numerical and statistical information are briefly summarized in tabular form.

Centre suisse de cartographie de la faune (CSCF), Neuchâtel, 219 pp., 280 figs, 98 distribution maps.

A revision of species of the genus Macroscytus Fieber distributed in Madagascar and adjacent islands is presented. Four previously known species [M. fryeri Distant, M. lobatus Signoret, M. madagascariensis (Signoret), M. privignus Horváth] are redescribed, and lectotypes are designated for three of them. Four new species (M. mayottensis sp. n., M. simulans sp. n., M. tamatavei sp. n., and M. viettei sp. n.) are described and compared with their congeners. A key to all species of the genus known from Madagascar and adjacent islands is also provided.

Certain alkanes or their mixture present on the surface of ladybird elytra is important in the recognition of potential mates. Similar chemicals are present in the tracks of larvae, which deter conspecific female ladybirds from laying eggs in aphid colonies already being attacked by larvae. Finally, the shell of ladybird eggs is covered with alkanes that deter other species of ladybirds from eating the eggs. In each case the alkanes are similar although they fulfil different functions. There are, therefore, indications that ladybirds exploit their natural product with parsimonious versatility.

Two aeshnid dragonflies are described from the Lower Miocene deposits in the Bílina mine in the north of the Czech Republic, including a new genus and species of Anactini, Merlax bohemicus gen. n., sp. n., and a further specimen assigned to the genus Aeshna.

Focussing on one stressor in ecophysiological research, such as low temperature or water shortage, may be practical but is unrealistic, and extrapolation based on these data e.g. to biogeographical distribution patterns, may fail. Ecophysiological research on temperate Collembola during estivation and overwintering serve as an example to show the importance of multiple stressor studies, including the simultaneous effects of food and water shortage and those of food shortage and low temperature. it is advocated to perform multiple stressor studies including toxic substances, such as heavy metals and organic toxicants.

Apollo Books, Stenstrup, 1998, 416 pp.

Diapausing larvae of Aphidoletes aphidimyza (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) had relatively low supercooling points (SCP) ranging from -19.0 to -26.4°C. None of the specimens that froze at this temperature survived. A high survival rate (up to 87%) at -10°C for 10 days was observed in supercooled larvae. Such features are characteristic for insects that use a chill-tolerance strategy of cold hardiness. However, the cocoons formed by the diapausing larvae were penetrable by external ice crystals and the larvae showed a relatively high survival rate (23 - 34%) at -10°C for 10 days also in the frozen state caused by inoculation by external ice at high subzero temperatures. Such a duality with respect to cold hardiness strategies seems to be ecologically relevant to overwintering in soil habitats where there may be unpredictable contact with external ice.

A range of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques, ¹H liquid spectroscopy and T₁ and T₂ relaxation measurements, and microimaging, have been used to observe changes taking place within the bodies of live samples of Coccinella septempunctata, under a variety of conditions. NMR measurements showed that various organs could be seen and identified. It also showed that by changing the diet of the ladybird from aphids [Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris)] to a standard artificial diet, major changes took place in the insects' tissues. By using a combination of all three techniques it was concluded that on changing the diet of C. septempunctata a mass of nutrient was built up within the insect's abdomen possibly in the same manner as happens before diapause. Changes in the response to NMR measurements were also seen after infection of C. septempunctata by the parasitoid wasp (Dinocampus coccinellae). Most significantly an image of the parasitoid larva could be seen within the body mass of the ladybird. It was concluded that NMR could become a major tool in the non-destructive study of insects not just as a means of studying anatomy but also to observe changes in the nature of body tissue.

Feeding experiments with female Pisaura mirabilis were carried out in the laboratory. Several species of Diptera, ranging in their size from small fruitflies to large blowflies, were offered. Each spider received a single fly, and then the absolute as well as the relative amount of prey consumption was recorded. Absolute consumption was measured as the amount of a fly consumed by the spiders. Relative consumption, i.e. the utilization rate, was calculated as amount of fly consumed by the spiders divided by the initial mass of the fly. Absolute consumption was positively correlated with the mass of the fly, i.e. the larger the fly the more the spider consumed. No satiation effects were observed. P. mirabilis ingested on average 75% of the prey item, but was able to extract up to 95%. The relative consumption showed no relationship with mass of fly, i.e. the prey size did not influence the utilization rate. Also, neither body size nor age of spiders affected absolute or relative consumption. Furthermore, the fly remnants discarded by the spiders, and uneaten control flies were analysed for their C and N contents. Fly remnants showed a significantly higher C and N content, whereas their C/N ratio was lower. The results show that in the single-prey situation P. mirabilis increases absolute biomass intake with increasing amount of prey available. However, low values and a high variance of the utilization rate indicated that it is not only prey quantity which may be essential for the spiders. We therefore conclude that in future studies the nutritional qualities of prey should be considered more closely.

Three antibodies against secretions of the male accessory glands of Tenebrio molitor react with specific regions of the male reproductive system in a damselfly, cockroach, cricket and the bug Pyrrhocoris apterus. Immunoreactivity was used to assess maturation of the system in the reproducing and diapausing P. apterus. In bugs reared continuously at 16 h photophase and 25°C (LD regimen), antigens detected with the PL 6.3 and PL 15.2 antibodies accumulate in the accessory glands and vas deferens (in case of PL 6.3 also in the testes) gradually during the last larval instar. The PL 3.4 antibody begins to react three days after adult emergence (1 day before the males become ready to mate), and the reaction is confined to the accessory glands. Insects reared, since the 3rd larval instar, under the diapause-inducing SD conditions(10 h photophase at 25°C and 14 h scotophase at 15°C), do not exhibit any immunoreactivity throughout the last larval instar or during the first week of adult life, and only a weak reaction to PL 15.2 is detected in the older males. Immunoreactivity to PL 6.3 and PL 15.2 can be induced in the last instar SD larvae by brains implants from the LD larvae or two injections of 1 µg makisterone A.

An immunoaffinity chromatography of the neuropeptide sericotropin using rabbit polyclonal antibodies towards the 16 amino acids synthetic fragment of the molecule was used for the purification of the peptide from Galleria mellonella larval brains. The method employed CNBr-activated Sepharose and the isolated IgG fraction of the corresponding antiserum. The purity of the peptide was proven by means of HPLC and immunoblotting techniques.

The H-organs of lepidopteran larvae, which have been previously described as neurohaemal organs, were reinvestigated using electron microscopy. The results of this study revealed that there are no signs of neurosecretion in the H-organs of Galleria mellonella and Manduca sexta. Moreover, the Horgans consist of fibroblasts and are considered to be connective tissue and not neurohaemal organs.

The macropterous form of psocid Dorypteryx domestica (Smithers, 1958), previously only known as brachypterous, is described. The macropterous individuals were reared from brachypterous parents in a laboratory culture. Morphology of macropterous male and female and wing variation is given. Wing polymorphism in psocids is discussed.

Jesenikia filiformis gen. n., sp, n. from the subfamily Anurophorinae (Collembola: Isotomidae) is described from Jeseniky Mountains in North Moravia, Czech Republic. The new genus and species are reported also from Rodopi Mountains in Bulgaria. The new genus is related to Pseudanurophorus Stach, 1922 and Antarctophorus Potapov, 1991. The status of Pseudanurophorus alticolus Bagnal, 1949 is discussed.

An extensive zoocenotic study of arthropod populations was performed on a Siberian plant Leuzea carthamoides, which was recently introduced to Central Europe as a medicinal crop. Because it contains a very high concentration of insect hormones (ecdysteroids) (300-1,000 ppm of 20-hydroxyecdysone equivalents in the leaves), the plant was thought to be resistant to attack by non-adapted arthropod herbivores (effective concentrations 25-100 ppm in insect diet). Two consecutive seasons of analysis revealed that, in spite of the high ecdysteroid content, the crops of L. carthamoides contained a well-established and consolidated arthropod fauna. 126 species of arthropods were observed on these plants during 1993 and 1994. Of this number, 74 were feeding on the leaves, and 33 of these could complete their adult development on the plants without apparent difficulties. There were also 52 parasitoid and predatory arthropod species of secondary importance.

The results revealed the following four observations that are relevant to the possible resistance of L. carthamoides to phytophagous arthropods: (a) the plant is by no means universally resistant to all phytophagous arthropods; (b) the most abundant and, perhaps, most resistant herbivores that can complete their life cycle on the plant are from groups in which ecdysteroid action is little known or unknown, e.g., spider mites, collembolans, thysanopterans, psocopterans or Exopterygota with sucking mouthparts; (c) Endopterygote insect pests, which are the most sensitive to ecdysteroid-containing diet, were represented by only a few species and relatively low abundances; and, (d) all arthropods colonizing this plant belonged to polyphagous or oligophagous species with a relatively wide range of different host plants. Composition of arthropod fauna within plantations of L. carthamoides was similar to that observed in studies of the sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), which is also an introduced plant. Physiological conditions associated with possible resistance of insects to dietary ecdysteroids are discussed in terms of the following two points of virtual insensitivity: (a) use of molecules other than the plant-contained ecdysteroid as the endogenous hormone, and (b) elimination of the exogenous dietary ecdysteroid by excretion during feeding period.

The site of parasitism on a host selected by the ectoparasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis affected the water composition of developing larvae. Second instar wasp larvae developing on anteriorly-parasitized pharate adults of Sarcophaga bullata contained 12% more water by mass than wasps feeding on the posterior end of the fly. Similar differences, although less pronounced, were detected in third instar larvae and are attributed to a greater dry weight (fat). Regardless of the amount of fat present in wasp larvae, rates of water loss and oxygen consumption were the same. This suggests that variation in parasitoid fat content did not contribute to water conservation. Parasitism resulted in an elevation in the hemolymph and fat body lipid content of Salcophaga bullata, but the induced-hyperlipaemia was most pronounced in posteriorly-parasitized flies. Wasp larvae reared on the latter type of host contained the most extractable lipid, implying that variation in parasitoid Eat content simply reflects differences in host composition. Differences in the quantity of host lipids did not alter the duration of parasitoid development.

In this study the entomopathogen Beauveria bassiana caused no humoral immune response in Galleria mellonella when it entered the host through the integument in a natural manner. Initiation of my cosis by injection of living or heat-inactivated blastospores elicited the release of antimicrobial proteins such as lysozyme and cecropins within the hemolymph. Maximum levels were reached 24 h after treatment. Afterwards, these levels declined faster in larvae with established mycosis. Subsequent studies documented the ability of B. bassiana to suppress increases in antibacterial activity within the hemolymph of G. mellonella larvae that were pretreated with injections of microbial provocators. The latter induced non-specific de novo synthesis and subsequent release of several proteins within the hemolymph. The protein synthesis of diseased larvae was not generally affected, even when the larvae were moribund. Among the proteins synthesised during the humoral response, only certain proteins such as lysozyme were suppressed, as detected by SDS-PAGE and autoradiography. The effects of B. bassiana upon the humoral immune response of G. mellonella are discussed in regards to other parasites such as nematodes or Hymenoptera, which reportedly suppress the synthesis of endogenous host proteins.

Synthesis of fatty acids by the ovaries of Aedes aegypti was demonstrated by incubating ovaries in tritiated water. Mostly phospholipids were synthesized, however, in mature oocytes the vast majority of lipids are triacylglycerol. 80% of the fatty acids synthesized in vitro were saturated while in the mature oocytes 70% of the fatty acids are unsaturated. These results suggest that lipids synthesized in the oocytes contribute only a minor portion of the lipid complement of the egg and that most of the oocyte lipids are taken up from external sources. The amount of lipid synthesized in vitro by the ovaries was extremely small, less than 1/1000 of the amount of lipid that accumulates in the oocytes. This result, however, may have been influenced by the in vitro conditions. Fat body, under the same conditions, synthesized less than 1/100 of the amount synthesized in vivo. The rate of lipid synthesis in this in vitro system was low, however, the regulation of lipid synthesis appeared to function. Lipid synthesis in ovaries and fat body was strongly inhibited by Tabanus adipokinetic hormone, whereas four other peptides isolated from A. aegypti did not influence lipid synthesis. In the fat body of sugar-fed mosquitoes, lipid synthesis was twice as great as in blood-fed animals.

In recent years, several sibling species have been discovered in chrysopid lacewings. In Europe, the common green lacewing Chrysoperla carnea (Stephens) sensu lato seems to correspond to a ''complex'' of three morphologically and biologically different taxons: Ch. carnea sensu stricto, Ch. kolthoffi (Navás) and Ch. lucasina (Lacroix), the status of which is not yet fully clarified. We examined, by means of polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the esterase and acid phosphatase polymorphism in a natural population of the Chrysoperla complex collected in the centre of France. Five groups of esterases and two groups of phosphatases were investigated, but only two loci, Est-3 and Acp-2, achieved a good resolution allowing a satisfying genetic interpretation. The genetic analysis confirmed the significant divergence between Ch. lucasina, and the two others forms. The genetic similarity between Ch. carnea and Ch. kolthoffi seems to be higher. No alternative allozymes demonstrate that gene flow does not occur in field populations, nor a full reproductive isolation of the different taxons.

Females of Coccinella septempunctata L. were deterred from ovipositing at sites previously exposed to larvae of C. septempunctata or Chrysopa oculata Say. If aphidophagous predators can respond to one another's deterring allomone then they may avoid competing for prey. The deterrent effect from exposure to C. septempunctata or C. oculata larvae considerably decreased when contaminated sites were kept in open air for 24 h. Females of C. oculata avoided ovipositing at sites exposed to larvae of C. oculata, but the deterrent effect of sites exposed to larvae of C. septempunctata was negligible.

Sperm transfer in five Coproica Rondani was studied by separating copulating pairs at varying time intervals from the onset of copulation. In Coproica ferruginata (Stenhammar), C. hirticula (Collin), C. lugubris (Haliday), and C. vagans (Haliday) rapid sperm transfer, which occurs shortly before the termination of copulation, is preceded by a preinsemination phase of species-specific duration. In C. acutangula (Zetterstedt) sperm transfer starts soon after the initiation of copulation and is accomplished slowly. At the beginning of copulation a tight fit of the secondary male gonopore or phallotreme and the openings of the spermathecal ducts, which are located at a vaginal sclerite, is established in all species. However, only in C. acutangula, C. hirticula, and C. lugubris sperm is transferred while those male and female structures are coupled. Males of C. ferruginata and C. vagans unhook their distiphalli before ejaculation and transfer a sperm mass into the female's vagina. In both species a mating plug blocks the female's secondary gonopore after copulation. The observed traits are discussed with respect to sperm competition and the possibility of sperm manipulation by the females. Three male behaviour patterns observed during copulation are discussed in the context of copulatory courtship: compression of the female abdomen, post-abdominal contractions which cause thrusts of the distiphallus, and drumming of the male leg on the female abdomen. The evolution of sperm transfer in Coproica is examined by mapping the observed sperm transfer traits onto a Coproica cladogram.

The generic assignments of 84 fossil Phoridae preserved in Oligocene amber from the Dominican Republic are summarised. The fossil species Abaristophora domicamberae Disney sp. n. is described. Antipodiphora Schmitz is returned to the status of being a subgenus of Abaristophora Schmitz. A modern species A. nepalensis Disney sp. n. is described from Nepal. The fossil species Puliciphora rontaleri Disney sp, n. is described. Critical features of the type species of this genus, P. lucifera Dahl, are figured. The recognition of P. tokyoensis Kinoshita is clarified.

Eighteen new synonymies are given for taxa of chewing lice taken from hosts in the avian order Falconiformes. Colpocephalum Nitzsch, 1818 is synonymized with Falcocephalum Tendeiro, 1989. The latter genus contained a single species which thus becomes a new combination: Colpocephalum pricei (Tendeiro, 1989), comb. n. Further synonymies include 12 species (Colpocephalum turbinatum Denny, 1842 = C. wernecki Orfila, 1959, syn, n.; C. nanum Piaget, 1890 = C. meridionale Pérez-Jiménez et al., 1988, syn. n.; C. trachelioti Price & Beer, 1963 = C. aegypii Tendeiro, 1989, syn. n.; C. ateri Price & Beer, 1964 = C. sinuosum Tendeiro & Mendes, 1994, syn. n.; C. maculatum Piaget, 1880 = C. chimangoi Tendeiro & Mendes, 1994, syn. n.; C. holzenthali Clayton & Price, 1989 = C. violanii Tendeiro & Mendes, 1994, syn. n.; Nosopon milvus Tendeiro, 1959 = N. aduncum Tendeiro. 1993, syn. n.; Laembothrion vulturis (F., 1775) = L. gigas Nitzsch, 1861, syn, n.; L. tinnunculi (L., 1758) = L. iberum Pérez-Jiménez et al., 1988, syn. n.; Craspedorrhynchus ranjhae Ansari, 1955 = C. pennati Gállego, Martin Mateo & Aguirre, 1987, syn. n.; Degeeriella rufa (Burmeister, 1838) = D. carrikeri Orfila, 1959, syn. n.; Falcolipeurus assessor (Giebel, 1874) = Trollipeurus kleinmachnowensis Zlotorzycka, 1963, syn. n.), and 5 subspecies (Colpocephalum zerafae Ansari, 1955 = C. zerafae biarmicus Tendeiro, 1988, syn. n.; C. subzerafae Tendeiro, 1988 = C. subzerafae exiguum Tendeiro, 1988, syn. n.; Nosopon lucidum (Rudow, 1869) = N. lucidum pyargus Tendeiro, 1959, syn. n.; Laemobothrion vulturis (F., 1775) = L. vulturis daneckii Zlotorzycka, 1969, syn. n.; Degeeriella mookerjeei Clay, 1957 = D. mookerieei pilgrimi Tendeiro, 1979, syn. n.).

Visual and olfactory responses of onion maggot flies (OMF), Delia antiqua (Meigen), to food and oviposition resources in relation to sex, ovarian development, and time of day, were evaluated in a commercial onion field in Cloverdale, British Columbia, using horizontal coloured sticky traps baited with the oviposition attractant dipropyl-disulphide (DPDS) or feeding attractant, enzymatic yeast hydrolysate (EYH). White and blue were among the most attractive colours to both males and females, but the sex ratio was strongly male-biased (2.7 : 1). Both olfactory baits increased catches of male OMF on all coloured traps to the same extent but neither bait affected the attractiveness ranking of colours. EYH significantly increased female catches on all coloured traps, whereas DPDS only significantly increased response to white traps. The joint action of visual and olfactory stimuli appeared additive in both sexes, not synergistic. DPDS significantly increased catches of mature, gravid females, whereas EYH increased catches of immature females and unbaited traps caught equal proportions of immature and mature flies. The addition of DPDS to white sticky traps could improve monitoring programmes for OMF by attracting more ovipositing females, especially at low populations levels. Census of trap catches every 2 h established a minor flight peak between 10.00 and 12.00 h, primarily in response to food baits, and a major early evening peak (18.00-20.00 h) in response to DPDS. Daily activity patterns of males and females were not significantly different and activity patterns were independent of trap colour. Response to DPDS was low throughout the morning and only started to increase in late afternoon, which is correlated with oviposition patterns observed in laboratory studies. A general crepuscular behaviour and high early evening activity supports the view that where insecticide sprays are still used effectively, these should be applied in early evening.

Reproduction in Aphelinus albipodus (Hayat & Fatima) from China on Diuraphis noxia (Mordvilko) hosts was studied in the laboratory. Studies were conducted at three constant temperatures, 10.0, 21.1, and 26.7°C (± 1.0°C), 14L : 10D photoperiod, and 50-70% R.H. The longevity of both males and females was greatest at 10.0°C (26.0 and 41.5 d, respectively); differences in longevity were not significant (p > 0.05) between 21.1 and 26.7°C in both sexes (males 13.1 vs. 10.0 d, females 20.9 vs. 16.4 d, respectively). Fecundity was greater at 26.7 (294.7 ± 27.6 mummies) and 21.1°C (214.8 ± 33.5 mummies) than at 10.0°C (569 ± 11.7 mummies), but was not significantly different (p > 0.05) between the former two temperatures. Aphelinus albipodus did not successfully develop to adulthood at 10°C, thus r_m and R_o values were zero, and T_c (generation time) could not be estimated. At 21.1°C, r_m = 0.188, R_o = 68.9, and T_c = 23.9 d; those values were 0.288, 67.4, and 15.2 d, respectively, at 26.7°C. The offspring sex ratio (females) was male-biased at all three temperatures: 0.364 ± 0.061 at 10.0°C, 0.437 ± 0.029 at 21.1°C, and 0.341 ± 0.002 at 26.7°C. Moreover, daily offspring sex ratio decreased with the age of the female parent at all three temperatures (p < 0.05). A pre-oviposition period of 1.5 d was observed in A. albipodus at 10° C, and female offspring were not produced during the first 7.5 d of adult life of mated females. The limited number of ovarian eggs, 6.5 ± 2.5, in newly emerged females (< 6 h old) together with their fecundity schedule indicated synovigeny in A. albipodus. Results are discussed in relation to the colonization in North America of A. albipodus for biological control of D. noxia.