The consumption and preferences of polyphagous ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) for the seeds of herbaceous plants was determined. The seeds were stuck into plasticine in small tin trays and exposed to beetle predation on surface of the ground. In the laboratory the effect of carabid (species, satiation) and seed (species, size) on the intensity of seed predation was investigated. The consumption of the generally preferred Cirsium arvense seed by 23 species of common carabids increased with body size. Seed of Capsella bursa-pastoris was preferred by small carabids and their consumption rates were not related to their size. The average daily consumption of all the carabid species tested (0.33 mg seeds . mg body mass^-1 . day^-1) was essentially the same for both kinds of seed. Because of satiation the consumption of seed of C. arvense provided ad libitum to Pseudoophonus rufipes decreased over a period of 9 days to 1/3-1/4 of the initial consumption rate. Preferences of P. rufipes (body mass 29.6 mg) and Harpalus affinis (13.4 mg) for the seeds of 64 species of herbaceous plants were determined. The small H. affinis preferred smaller seed than the large P. rufipes. Predation of seed present on the ground in the field was studied in 1999-2000, at Praha-Ruzyne (50°06´ N 14°16´E). Seeds were placed in stands of different crops as in the laboratory experiments and vertebrate predation was excluded by wire mesh cages. Pitfall traps placed near the cages revealed that carabids were the only seed predators active in the area. Rates of removal of seed of 6 weed species varied with crop, season, seed and site. Average rate of removal in June-August was 2.5 seeds.day^-1.tray^-1 and was smaller before and after this period. The rates of removal increased with increasing activity density of the carabids and paucity of seed from naturally occurring weeds, which may have satiated the carabids. In stands of winter wheat, millet and soybeans there were significant differences in the rates of removal of the seed of 43 herbaceous species. The field preferences were correlated with those established in the laboratory. Predation of seed on the ground in arable fields can be as high as 1000 seeds.m^-2.day^-1 and may selectively influence the quantity of seed of particular herb species that enters the soil seed bank. Seed predation thus may be an effective component of weed control on arable land, particularly at low weed densities.

A total of 23 uropodine species of the genus Trachytes (Acari, Mesostigmata) are reliably recorded to occur in Central Europe and included in identification keys for adults (23 spp.) and deutonymphal stages (9 spp.), respectively. For the first time, the diagnostic characters of deutonymphs of the species T. baloghi, T. minima, T. minimasimilis, T. mystacinus and T. splendida are figured. Ten species found in Slovakia are redescribed (T. aegrota, T. baloghi, T. hirschmanni, T. irenae, T. lamda, T. minima, T. minimasimilis, T. mystacinus, T. pauperior and T. splendida) and characterised by their external morphology, geographic distribution and ecological requirements in terms of habitat preference, affinity to merocoenoses and vertical distribution. The zoogeographic origin of Trachytes is analysed. Most species are found only in woodlands and have not been recorded in the distribution area of the Pannonian flora in Central Europe (except for T. aegrota and T. baloghi). Short taxonomic remarks are given for the species of dubious taxonomic status or whose occurrence is not reliably known.

Tomicus piniperda is a pest in pine stands in Eurasia and is also found in the USA, where it has caused a decline in the abundance of pine since 1992. Knowledge of the genetic structure of pine shoot beetle populations is important for understanding their phylogeographic history and for quarantine control. In this study, European, Asian and American T. piniperda populations were analyzed by sequencing a region of the mitochondrial COI gene. Twenty-five haplotypes (HT) were detected and over 70% of these HT were found in individual areas, e.g. 5 HT in China, 5 HT in France and 3 HT in Spain. Nested clade analysis revealed that most European and the American population was in a clade containing 9 HT connected by one to two mutational steps. A second clade contained HT from France (2 HT), Spain (2 HT), Sweden (1 HT), Russia (1 HT) and China (5 HT). In this clade, one to 13 mutational steps and 13 missing or theoretical HT were detected. The third clade had 5 HT from France, Russia, Poland, Finland and Switzerland; 1 to 7 mutational steps and 5 missing or theoretical HT were detected. Although only a few significant relationships were found in the nested clade analysis, the following conclusions can be drawn: (1) T. piniperda is a polymorphic species with numerous HT throughout Europe, and HT are likely to exist regarding the missing or theoretical HT; (2) It is likely there were refugial areas in Southern Europe and Western Russia; (3) The Pyrenees formed a barrier to migration after the last ice age; (4) Chinese and European populations have been separated for at least 0.6 MYA.

Precocious activity of parasitoids is a key factor for cereal aphid control. We investigated the oviposition, flight and walking capacities at low temperature of four aphid parasitoids (Aphidius rhopalosiphi, A. ervi, Praon volucre, P. gallicum) on one of their aphid hosts (Sitobion avenae). Oviposition behaviour was tested at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 15 and 20°C, under a photoperiod of 12 h light. Some females of A. rhopalosiphi oviposited at 6°C while the percentage of parasitization below 10°C remained low for the other species. The proportion of males decreased with temperature for A. ervi, P. volucre and P. gallicum but not for A. rhopalosiphi. For all species, flight and walking activities increased with temperature, Aphidius species being active at lower temperature than Praon species. Field captures showed that the activity threshold for A. rhopalosiphi is 12°C, 15°C for A. ervi and P. volucre, and 19.5°C for P. gallicum. These results are discussed regarding the potential of these four species for aphid control.

The rose grain aphid, Metopolophium dirhodum (Walker) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) is one of the three most important cereal aphid species in Europe. High temperature is detrimental for the survival of this species. Detailed experiments were conducted on the effect of high temperature (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 31.5, 32.5, 33 and 34°C), period of exposure (2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 h per day for 1, 2, 4, 6 days) and developmental stage (2nd, 3rd, 4th instar nymph and adult) on the survival of the aphid. The results show that all three factors significantly affect survival. Temperatures over 29°C for 8 h significantly reduced survival, which decreased generally as the temperature increased. The survival was inversely related to the period of exposure. Exposing aphids to 32.5°C for 4 h or longer significantly reduced survival. Mature aphids had a lower tolerance of high temperatures than nymphs. Periods of high temperature experienced by 4th instar and adult aphids can greatly affect their survival. The value of these results for forecasting and determining control thresholds, the effect of global warming on cereal aphid abundance and the dropping off behaviour of the aphids are discussed.

A phylogenetic analysis of the four coleopteran suborders (Polyphaga, Archostemata, Myxophaga and Adephaga), four other endoneopteran taxa (Strepsiptera, Neuropterida, Mecopterida and Hymenoptera) and three neopteran outgroups (Orthoneoptera, Blattoneoptera and Hemineoptera) is performed based on 63 characters of hind wing venation, articulation and folding patterns, with character states coded for the groundplan of each taxon (not for exemplar genera or species). The shortest tree found using Winclada with Nona exhibits the following topology: Orthoneoptera + (Blattoneoptera + (Hemineoptera + Endoneoptera: (Hymenoptera + ((Neuropterida + Mecopterida) + (Coleoptera + Strepsiptera))))). Homologization of the hind wing venation in Coleoptera is reviewed and updated, and comments are made concerning recent works on wing folding. Recent phylogenetic schemes proposed for the orders of Endoneoptera and suborders of Coleoptera are reviewed and their supporting evidence critically examined. The special role and influence of the hind wing anojugal lobe on the diversification of Neoptera and Endoneoptera is discussed. A scenario is proposed for the origin and evolution of the insect hind wing.

Second to fifth instars of nine New Caledonian species of Tingidae are described. A key to fifth instars is provided. The comparison of immature stages among the known larvae shows that translocation of marginal tubercles in larvae, considered as the general rule, is absent in New Caledonian larvae. Also, external morphology of larvae becomes more complex through development, by the addition and ramification of tubercles, as it does also through evolution. Such a tendency is reminiscent of a heterochronous phenomenon, like peramorphosis. Translocation phenomenon could be an intermediate stage of evolution in terms of aquiring more tubercles.

The Large Copper butterfly, Lycaena dispar batavus, is extinct in Britain and rapidly declining in Europe, due predominantly to loss of its wetland habitats. Northern populations have more specialised foodplant and habitat requirements than their more southerly counterparts and rely solely on Rumex hydrolapathum, the Great Water Dock, as their hostplants. Southern colonies use a greater range of Rumex. Previous work has shown that specialisation is not due to foodplant chemistry and in this paper we investigate the ability of different Rumex species to support the larval stages of L. d. batavus in a natural environment. Comparisons were also made between a captive colony at Woodwalton Fen, Cambridgeshire, UK and native larvae at De Weerribben, Netherlands. Field experiments using a captive colony revealed that other Rumex hosts can successfully support larvae throughout each of their larval stages in wet grassland and fenland habitats with no significant differences in survival rates compared with their natural hostplant R. hydrolapathum. An overwintering experiment using a native wild population of both butterfly and Rumex species in De Weerribben found 25% of larvae survived on the natural hostplant R. hydrolapathum and no survivors on alternative Rumex hosts. It is suggested that R. crispus and R. obtusifolius growing in their natural habitat may harbour significant competitors to L. d. batavus leading to its specialisation on R. hydrolapathum in fenland habitats.

During a survey of 23 wet heathland sites in Flanders (north Belgium) in 1999 and 2000, using both manual nest searching and pitfall traps as sampling techniques, we found 28 ant species. One species (Myrmica lonae) was new to the Belgian fauna and several rare species were encountered. Three ecological groups could be distinguished based on soil preference: the first group of species was characteristic of sandy soil, the second contained species that were more numerous on peat soil (with Sphagnum spp.), and the third group of species had no soil preference. Ant nest numbers increased strongly between 1999 and 2000, especially on the plots that were inundated during the winter of 1999-2000, but the number of ant species did not differ significantly between years. Ant nest density showed an optimum at a Purple Moor-grass (Molinia caerulea) cover of about 45%; the number of species did not show such an optimum. Pitfall traps yielded more species than manual nest searching; in particular temporary social parasites, species with a large foraging range and winged females from the surrounding habitats were missed by the latter technique. Finally, we give some recommendations for the conservation of, and suitable management measures for, ants on wet heathland.

Components of daily and seasonal timing systems in insects are reviewed. Photoperiod indicates seasonal position reliably, but signals can be much modified by habitat, latitude and season. Several receptor features and pigment systems are known, with different daily, seasonal and general functions, including differences between circadian and seasonal reception. Clocks can serve several different purposes, functioning as daily oscillators, interval timers or through successive requirements. The molecular functioning of circadian clocks is best known, but even so there is considerable complexity and diversity and much remains to be discovered. We know relatively little about the internal states that provide information for timed responses (such as the photoperiodic "counter"), about the central controlling mechanism, or about the effectors that transmit output signals. Nevertheless, temporal responses serve a very great range of purposes in insects, and the reported complexity in all of the components of timing systems reflects complex ecological needs across daily and seasonal intervals. The variety of components and the complexity of interactions reported (even within species), as well as the diversity of such elements as photosensitive pigments, molecular clock function and potential neurotransmitters, suggests that - unlike some earlier expectations - there is no single master clock for all timing functions in insects.
Insect photoperiodism and rhythmicity have been studied by both observational or direct approaches (examination of system elements or devices, and qualities such as survival), and by inferential or indirect approaches (such as interpretation of various responses to photoperiod, modelling, and estimating fitness). Many students work with only one approach, but the power of different approaches is not equal, and knowledge at one level may not give answers at another. These difficulties tend to limit our understanding of the linkages among components.
This overview suggests several lessons for the study of photoperiodism and rhythmicity. There are multiple elements, complex integration and a diversity of clocks, showing that different processes serve different purposes. The diversity of findings also results from the fact that different investigative approaches, which depend on the question being asked and on the perspective of the investigator, can influence the outcome of the investigation. Given these complexities, I believe that the key to interpreting photoperiodic and circadian responses is their ecological value. Notwithstanding the interest of timing mechanisms or their parts and of specific responses, daily rhythms and seasonal timing are best understood through the essential context provided by the ecological demands on the actual organisms under study.

Host-ant specificity of Maculinea alcon, an endangered obligatory myrmecophilous lycaenid butterfly, was studied at two sites in southern Poland (Świętokrzyskie Mts near Kielce). M. alcon larvae and pupae were found in nests of both Myrmica vandeli and M. scabrinodis, which is the typical host in Poland and Southern Europe. To our knowledge this is the first record of M. vandeli as a host of M. alcon. Our results show that M. scabrinodis and M. vandeli are about equally suitable as hosts. We hypothesize that both host ant species are closely related and have similar chemical profiles, and that the M. alcon "scabrinodis-vandeli" populations we studied belong to the M. alcon "scabrinodis" race. More than half of the M. alcon pupae, both from M. vandeli and M. scabrinodis nests, were parasitized by a single wasp species of the genus Ichneumon, which also suggests that the cuticular chemistry of the two ant species is similar.

The inhibitory potential of primary and secondary reproductives was studied using half-orphaned colonies of Kalotermes flavicollis. Both primary and secondary reproductives (neotenics) were equally effective in inhibiting the development of replacement reproductives. Single females totally inhibited the development of female secondary reproductives but did not affect the development of male secondary reproductives. Single males had neither a stimulatory nor inhibitory effect on the development of secondary reproductives. The inhibitory ability of pairs of primary reproductives shortly after dealation and at the stage of incipient colony formation (couple with the first batch of eggs) was also examined. While pairs of freshly dealated reproductives were not able to inhibit the development of neotenics, pairs of primary reproductives that had their first batch of eggs, fully inhibited the development of neotenics.

Abnormal spermatogenesis in Pityogenes chalcographus (L.) and Ips typographus (L.) results in oversized spermatozoa in all the populations investigated. They can be identified by light microscopy and classified as 2n up to 16n polyploid. The percentage of polyploid sperm increases when allopatric parents are crossed: Parental populations with less than 1% polyploid, result in male F₁ with more than 20% polyploid. Wild populations of P. chalcographus and I. typographus have very different percentages of polyploid sperm. Populations from allochthonous sites for the host tree, Picea abies (Karst.), are distinguished by higher rates of sperm polyploidy than those from autochthonous areas. Thus, it is assumed that polyploid sperm indicates populations originating from the mixing of partially incompatible beetles.

The third instar larva of Anacaena cordobana Knisch, and the egg case of Anacaena lutescens (Stephens) are described and illustrated. The taxonomic status of the immature stages of Anacaenini is clarified by comparing their morphology with that described in the literature. Larval descriptions of Anacaena and Paracymus published by Richmond (1920) are interchanged, as are the identifications of all subsequent authors based on Richmond's work. All Anacaenini genera for which larvae are known are diagnosed. A comparative morphological study of Anacaena larvae shows many similarities between Crenitis and Anacaena larvae, suggesting a close relationship between these two genera.

More than half of the insects collected on snow in Central Poland were flies (Diptera). Altogether 83 species of Diptera from 27 families were identified, of which 9 families were recorded for the first time. Two thirds of the Diptera belonged to the Mycetophilidae and Trichoceridae, which were also very species-rich. Other families with many species were the Heleomyzidae, Sphaeroceridae and Phoridae.
The peak activity was in the first part of December. Flies were most active on snow when the humidity ranged from 80 to 100%, temperatures between -1 to 5°C and the snow was from 20 to 40 cm deep. The occurrence of Trichoceridae was strictly associated with high humidities, in contrast to Drosophilidae and Heleomyzidae, which were most active at lower humidities. The activity of the flies of the most frequently recorded families was displaced towards either lower (Heleomyzidae and Limoniidae) or higher temperatures (Trichoceridae, Mycetophilidae). In contrast to other families, the supranivean activity of Phoridae was strictly associated with thin snow cover.

The instar preference and parasitization (expressed as mummification rate) of Aphis gossypii Glover and Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) by the parasitoid Aphidius colemani Viereck (Hymenoptera: Aphidiidae) were studied at 25±0.5°C, 65±5% r.h. and a 16L : 8D photoperiod. The female parasitoids were 24-36 h old and were left to forage for 1 h on an eggplant leaf on which 10 nymphs of each instar of A. gossypii or M. persicae were placed. The percentage of A. gossypii nymphs mummified was higher than that of M. persicae (43.2 and 25.2%, respectively). The parasitoid parasitized nymphs of all instars of both aphid species, but it showed a preference for 1^st and 2^nd instars of A. gossypii and 1^st instar of M. persicae. Nymphs of both aphid species parasitized in the 1^st and 2^nd instars were mummified when reached the 4^th instar or adult stage, whereas those parasitized in the 3^rd and 4^th instars were mummified in the adult stage. The importance of these results in the effectiveness of A. colemani in biological control of A. gossypii and M. persicae is discussed.

Photoperiodic control of diapause termination was systematically investigated in Pseudopidorus fasciata. In 24 h light-dark cycles, the rate of diapause termination in this species depended on photoperiod. The critical night length (CNL) for diapause termination was 10 h, 0.5 h shorter than that for diapause induction. Night-interruption experiments with T = 24 showed that diapause was effectively terminated when the scotophases separated by light pulse were shorter than the critical night length (10 h); no developing individuals were found if the duration of the pre-interruption scotophase or the post-interruption scotophase exceeded the CNL. A 15-min light pulse was sufficient to reverse the effect of long night when it was placed 8 h after lights-off. Resonance experiments with a constant photophase of 12 h or 16 h and various scotophases of 4-80 h showed an hourglass-type photoperiodic response, where no rhythmicity was found. In another resonance experiment with constant scotophase of 8 h and various photophases of 4-72 h, all individuals developed into cocoons. In the Bünsow experiment, the response curve showed two apparent peaks for diapause termination, one being 8 h after lights-off, and another 8 h before lights-on. However, there was no periodic rhythmicity, which again indicates an hourglass principle. The results lead to the conclusion that the same photoperiodic clock mechanism (a long-night measuring hourglass) is involved in both diapause induction and termination.

The suctorial proboscis of adult Lepidoptera represents a key morphological innovation that enabled these insects to gain access to new food sources. In the ancestral condition of the lepidopteran proboscis only extrinsic galeal muscles are present in the basal joint region. The presence of additional muscles (i.e., the intrinsic galeal muscles) is regarded as a morphological novelty of the Myoglossata that evolved after the galeae were modified to form suctorial mouthparts. The present comparative investigation of the galeal anatomy in representatives of all major taxa revealed that the intrinsic galeal muscles are derived from the basal galeal musculature. In the examined Neopseustoidea, Exoporia, Nepticuloidea, Incurvarioidea, and Tischerioidea all galeal muscles have their origin in the stipes-galea joint and/or in the proximal region of the galea. Two muscle units form the basal galeal musculature of the joint region and one to three longitudinal muscles extend into the galea lumen. Multiple intrinsic galeal muscles, of which both the origin and attachment sites are markedly distal from the basal joint region are regarded as a groundplan autapomorphy of the Ditrysia. Some slightly oblique muscles may occur along the lateral wall; these were lost in species with extremely slender galeae. In most investigated Obtectomera two series of intrinsic galeal muscles occur; these are the (1) oblique lateral intrinsic galeal muscles, which are arranged one upon the other along the lateral proboscis wall and (2) the median intrinsic galeal muscles, which run more or less longitudinally along the ventral wall. Oblique muscle arrangement probably evolved in concert with the functional demands of a long lepidopteran proboscis. A likely evolutionary pathway to account for the serial arrangement of galeal muscles is proposed.

First instar larvae of Polystoechotidae sp., and first and older instar larvae of Ithone fusca Newman and Oliarces clara Banks are described; those of the latter species for the first time. The family Ithonidae is unique in Neuroptera in having grub-like C-shaped older instar larvae. Potential morphological synapomorphies of mature larvae of Ithonidae and Polystoechotidae are the mandibles with exceptionally broad base and markedly thickened apical part; antennal curvature is fixed and rather characteristic in shape; ocular area reduced or absent; cardo and stipes are markedly enlarged with stipes much larger than the cardo; presence of gula (Polystoechotes) or some traces of gular sclerotisation (Ithone, Oliarces). Larvae of Ithone have numerous larval autapomorphies such as C-shaped first instar larva with reduced abdominal segments IX and X; fused tibia and tarsus on all legs and dorsally directed maxillae. Larvae of Ithonidae and Polystoechotidae have some similarities with those of the family Dilaridae, such as no or one pair of stemmata; body not flattened dorso-laterally; mesothoracic spiracle located on fold between prothorax and mesothorax; short and stout mandibles widened at base and tapered apically; robust and elongated fore legs; tarsi on all legs markedly shortened; more than three larval instars. Older instar larvae of Ithonidae are markedly similar to those of the beetle superfamily Scarabaeoidea in having a C-shaped body, at least in older instars; body round in cross-section; sclerites on thorax and abdomen reduced and body surface membranous; each thoracic and abdominal segment subdivided dorsally into two or three fleshy lobes; ventral surface of abdominal apex bears a field of short and stout setae. Chaetotaxy pattern in first instar Ithonidae and Polystoechotidae larvae suggests that it is possible to homologise the sensilla in different genera and provide a system of sensilla designation for Neuroptera larvae. This study is illustrated with 36 morphological drawings.

Pensoft Series Faunistica No. 28. Pensoft Publishers, Sofia-Moscow wt Goecke & Evers, Keltern, 2003, 460 pp. ISSN 1312-0174. Hardcover. Price USD 67.00

Studies on nocturnal Lepidoptera were carried out on the Laukėnai raised bog and the adjacent wet forest in 2001. Species composition and abundance were evaluated and compared. The species richness was much higher in the forest than at the bog. The core of each lepidopteran community was composed of 22 species with an abundance of higher than 1.0% of the total catch. Tyrphophilous Hypenodes humidalis (22.0% of all individuals) and Nola aerugula (13.0%) were the dominant species in the raised bog community, while tyrphoneutral Pelosia muscerda (13.6%) and Eilema griseola (8.3%) were the most abundant species at the forest site. Five tyrphobiotic and nine tyrphophilous species made up 43.4% of the total catch on the bog, and three and seven species, respectively, at the forest site, where they made up 9.2% of all individuals. 59% of lepidopteran species recorded on the bog and 36% at the forest site were represented by less than five individuals. The species compositions of these communities showed a weak similarity. Habitat preferences of the tyrphobiontic and tyrphophilous species and dispersal of some of the species between the habitats are discussed.

Palaearctic species of the genus Gymnophora are reviewed. Four new species, G. amurensis sp. n., G. gornostaevi sp. n., G. perpropinqua sp. n., and G. victoria sp. n., are described from the European Russia, Middle Asia, and Russian Far East. Females of two other species from the Far East are described under code letters. G. laciniata Michailovskaya, 1997 is synonymised under G. prescherweberae Disney, 1997. Lectotypes of G. arcuata (Meigen, 1839) and G. verrucata (Schmitz, 1929) are designated. The latter species is redescribed. Palaearctic females of G. nigripennis demonstrate wide variation of taxonomically important features and may, in fact, represent a group of closely related species. One female of G. nigripennis, which has been caught alive, is recorded to be infected with fungi.

Analysis of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region (CR) was used to examine the dispersal of females of a geometrid moth, Epirrita autumnata, in Fennoscandia. A 542-bp-portion of the CR of 200 individuals from four northern and four southern localities was sequenced. The mtDNA CR of E. autumnata contains a substantial amount of variation as a total of 108 mtDNA haplotypes were observed. Between the northern and the southern localities (~1100 km), there was a moderate level of genetic differentiation (F_ST = 0.128). The amount of variation in the mtDNA CR of E. autumnata was lower in the north than in the south. The reduction in genetic variability may result from a combination of historical bottlenecks that date back to the post-glacial recolonization of Fennoscandia and, present-day bottlenecks due to the northern E. autumnata populations experiencing repeated outbreaks followed by collapse in population size. On a small spatial scale (0.6-19 km), within the northern and southern areas, no genetic differentiation was detected suggesting ongoing gene flow due to the dispersal of E. autumnata females among the localities. This finding was contrary to our earlier expectation of poor flying ability of E. autumnata females.

Attraction of first instar larvae of Spodoptera litura to different colours was studied to determine those that could be used as effective visual attractants for trapping the larvae during dispersal. The larvae were presented with cones of coloured paper. Each cone was placed in the center of a 15-cm Petri dish around the edge of which the larvae were released. Percentage of larvae arriving at the cone was recorded at 5-min intervals over a 15-min period. Differences in the percentages reflected differences in larval attraction to the different colours. The larvae were highly attracted to Foliage Green, Green Bice and Cadmium Yellow. The larvae arrived at the Scarlet Red, Ultramarine Blue, Gray, Orange, White and Black cones in percentages that were almost equal, but lower than at the Foliage Green, Green Bice and Cadmium Yellow cones. Arrival of larvae at the coloured cones increased with time, but their relative preference for different colours remained the same. This study shows that green and yellow can be used as visual attractants in Spodoptera litura larval traps.

The aim of this study was to show that the kind of AKH-mobilized energy substrates in insects can be predicted on the basis of the results obtained with the application of heterologous, i.e. inter-species, AKHs. Four different AKHs, the Locmi-AKH-I inducing hyperlipaemia and hyperglycaemia in Locusta migratoria, Tenmo-HrTH inducing hyperglycaemia in Tenebrio molitor, and Pyrap-AKH and Peram-CAH-II inducing hyperlipaemia in Pyrrhocoris apterus were used, firstly in conspecific tests, secondly in all possible species-AKH combinations, and finally in individual applications on the test species, the cotton bug Dysdercus cingulatus. Since each of the AKHs induced hyperlipaemia in D. cingulatus adults, we predicted that lipids are the only energy substrates which are mobilized in this species by its native AKH. The accuracy of this prediction was subsequently confirmed by the structural identification of the native D. cingulatus AKH and conspecific application tests. The proposed methodical approach can serve as a suitable monitoring system for determination of the kind of energy substrates mobilized by native insect AKHs until the structure of the hormone is identified.

Survival under dry conditions was examined in males and females of Alphitobius diaperinus Panzer (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), a beetle of tropical origin. The range of individual responses and the effect of gender on water loss were also evaluated. Females exhibit significantly longer survival (Lt₅₀ and Lt₉₀) than males under desiccating conditions. Larger females beetles have a greater initial water mass and hence can tolerate greater water losses. Such beetles have longer survival under dry conditions. Males and females loose an average of 54.8 and 58.9% of their body water prior to death. The insects were inactive most of the time, when kept under dry conditions; the rate of decrease in body water was thus reduced. Beetles of both gender display a negative correlation between the rates of water loss under desiccating conditions and the duration of survival. We conclude that the difference in survival period between males and females is due to a combination of greater female tolerance to desiccation and larger body size.

Habitats of pre-hibernating gregarious larvae of the endangered Marsh Fritillary butterfly (Euphydryas aurinia) were studied in field in Western Bohemia, Czech Republic. The species inhabits moist seminatural meadows managed by light grazing and haymaking; the only local host plant is Succisa pratensis. The redundancy analyses of the vegetation composition (around 166 nest-bearing and 381 unoccupied host plants) showed that nest presence was positively associated with short cushion-forming grasses (esp. Nardus stricta). It was negatively associated with competitively superior tall grasses (e.g., Deschampsia caespitosa) and tall herbs. Comparison of Ellenberg's indicator values of vegetation in occupied vs. unoccupied plots revealed that the nests were more often found in drier, nitrogen-poorer and more acidic conditions than unoccupied plants. Multiple regressions of nest presence against architecture of the host plants (170 occupied, 1280 unoccupied) revealed that the nests were associated with densely clumped host plants, low to medium height of sward and mechanical disturbance. The patterns agree with our knowledge of the biology of the larvae: short sward (related to low nitrogen, humidity, and low pH) facilitates larval basking; high host density reduces the likelihood of starvation. Sod disturbance facilitates host plant germination. The conditions favourable for the nests were also favourable for the host plant, but the plants grew in broader range of conditions than that occupied by the nests. The abandoning of a site results into a situation when the conditions first become intolerable for the butterfly, and ultimately for the plant. Since grazing and mowing have a different impact on vegetation composition and architecture, we propose that the studied populations have persisted in a semi-dynamic state in the two modes of management. Conservation management should mimic the dynamics of traditional land use on the smaller scales of extant colonies.

Paleoripiphorus deploegi gen. n., sp. n. and Macrosiagon ebboi sp. n., described from two French Albo-Cenomanian ambers (mid Cretaceous), are the oldest definitely identified representatives of the Ripiphoridae: Ripiphorinae. They belong to or are closely related to extant genera of this coleopteran subfamily. Together with Myodites burmiticus Cockerell, 1917 from the Albian Burmese amber, they demonstrate that the group is distinctly older than suggested by the hitherto available fossil record. By inference after the biology of the extant Ripiphorinae, Macrosiagon ebboi may have been parasitic on wasps and Paleoripiphorus deploegi on bees, suggesting that Apoidea may have been present in the Lower Cretaceous.

The effect of constant temperatures (5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30°C) on several biological parameters of Noctua atlantica (Warren), a noctuid endemic to the Azores, was studied using an artificial diet as food. At 5 and 30°C no eggs hatched. Developmental time (egg, larval, pupal and egg-to-adult) differed significantly at each temperature. Pupal weight (males and females) was significantly higher at 10°C and lower at 25°C. Adult longevity and the pre-oviposition period were longer at 10 and 15°C and differed significantly from those observed at higher temperatures. The mean number of eggs laid per female (fecundity) was significantly higher at 15°C, and lower at 25°C. Pupal weight (males and females) was positively correlated with larval, pupal, egg-to-adult developmental times and with adult longevity. Female pupal weight was also positively correlated with the pre-oviposition period and with fecundity. Temperatures ranging from 10 to 20°C are the most suitable for the development of N. atlantica, suggesting that this species is well adapted to the climatic conditions found in their natural habitat. The number of day-degrees required for the development from egg to adult emergence was 1428.57 D°, and 117.79 D° for the pre-oviposition period. Thus, N. atlantica can have two generations per year at high altitudes (550 or 800 m) in the Azores.

A general model of the Dolichopoda cave cricket life cycle was produced using RAMAS/stage simulations based on the Beverton & Holt recruitment function. The model indicates the main population parameters responsible for life cycle adjustments to ecologically different cave habitats. The lack of a uniform rate of oviposition throughout adult life, combined with egg and nymphal diapause, results in regular population growth characterized by adults emerging every two years and cohorts overlapping every other year. This pattern is common in populations living in artificial caves where the scarcity of food is likely to favour individuals that synchronise their activity with the seasonal variations in the epigean habitat. In contrast, a uniform rate of oviposition throughout adult life and no egg or nymphal diapause results in a continuous reproductive activity, and the occurrence of adults all the year round. In this case, it was not possible to distinguish between cohorts. This pattern is well represented in populations inhabiting natural caves with stable food resources. The availability of data for a population that resulted from an experimental colonization allowed us to test this model.