Knowledge of the role of ants in many agroecosystems is relatively scarce, and in temperate regions the possibility to exploit ants as biocontrol agents for crop protection is still largely unexplored. Drawing inspiration from mutualistic ant-plant relationships mediated by extrafloral nectaries (EFNs), we tested the use of artificial nectaries (ANs) in order to increase ant activity on pear trees and to evaluate the effects on the arthropods, plant health and fruit production. While EFNs secrete a complex solution mainly composed of sugars and amino acids, ANs were filled with water and sucrose only. The results suggest that ANs can be used as manipulative instruments to increase ant activity over long periods of time. High ant activity was significantly linked to lower incidence of the pathogen fungus Venturia pyrina (pear scab) on pear leaves, and of the presence of Cydia pomonella (codling moth) caterpillars on pear fruit production. These results further encourage exploring underrated possibilities in the development of new tools for conservation biological control (CBC).

As a result of recent collecting efforts and older unpublished data of one of us (AA), 32 ant species (including 2 morphospecies) new to the island of Sicily (Italy) were discovered. Seven of these taxa represent unequivocally exotic entities, whose discovery marks a decisive increase of this component in the local fauna. Among these, two forms of Nylanderia EMERY, 1906 are treated as morphospecies because of the problematic taxonomy of the genus. Six taxa among the discovered species are entirely new to the myrmecofauna of Italy. Finally, Tetramorium indocile SANTSCHI, 1927 is reported for the first time as a host for the social parasite Strongylognathus testaceus (SCHENCK, 1852). The state of the art of the Sicilian myrmecofauna, now counting about 150 species, is commented on.

No abstract

Correctly identifying and mapping the distribution patterns of passively dispersing freshwater organisms is an important task to understand the mechanisms through which these organisms move across the world and to timely counteract the introduction of invasive alien species; moreover, in the light of the growing evidences of the pervasiveness of cryptic species and cryptic biological invasions among all animal groups, the use of molecular identification tools is strongly advisable.In this context, we present the first record of the freshwater jellyfish Craspedacusta sowerbii Lankester, 1880 in the Mediterranean island of Sicily, Italy. This invasive species native of China was found during a routine survey campaign aimed at assessing the freshwater species richness in the Sicilian region. Individuals were collected in November 2017 and identified to species-level through the sequencing of fragments of both mitochondrial and nuclear genes, and their comparison to the sequences available on public databases. The analysis of molecular data proved that the Sicilian population belongs to C. sowerbii s.s., i.e. one of the two major Craspedacusta lineages which have been discovered to have invaded Europe and which were until recently erroneously jointly reported under the binomen Craspedacusta sowerbii. In order to get a clearer frame of the history and patterns of freshwater jellyfish biological invasion worldwide, the need for a molecular 2 identification of all the non-native Craspedacusta populations currently reported as C. sowerbii and the opportunity of monitoring human-impacted ecosystems is stressed.

Abstract More than 100 years ago, the Italian myrmecologist Carlo Emery described two endemic Sicilian ants: Aphaenogaster sicula Emery, 1908, which he originally considered a subspecies of A. crocea André, 1881, and A. fiorii Emery, 1915 stat. nov., which he believed was a subspecies of A. gibbosa (Latreille, 1798). Males of the two species and the queen of A. fiorii were never described. The scarcity of information contained in the original description led to several misunderstandings by subsequent authors: for example, A. sicula was later elevated to species-rank on the basis of misidentified material of A. fiorii stat. nov. We redescribe the two species, adding the descriptions of their missing castes and designating their lectotypes. We also describe a third related species of the genus: A. trinacriae sp. nov. from Sicily. The ecology and distribution of the three are illustrated. Their relationship with the other congeneric species of the Mediterranean basin is discussed considering the morphology of all three castes, with attention to the often-overlooked males. Despite the fact that A. fiorii and A. sicula were lately believed to be close relatives of A. subterranea (Latreille, 1798), the morphological elements available suggest that they probably belong to a separate, hitherto unrecognized clade from the Maghreb (North-Western Africa), together with A. trinacriae sp. nov.