Opiine braconids include natural enemies of tephritid fruit flies, and interest in their greater utilisation for fruit fly control is growing. However, there is a lack of basic data on the prevalence and impact of these wasps for most regions of Australia. We sampled fruit fly host fruits from urbanised and peri‐urban locations of south‐east Queensland and reared out parasitoids and their host flies to determine the regional parasitoid community and how parasitism varied across time and habitat type. A total of 4969 fruits were collected from which 21 277 tephritid puparia were obtained. Of 12 601 fruit flies that emerged, the Queensland fruit fly, Bactrocera tryoni, was the dominant species. A total of 5736 parasitoids, representing four species, were recovered from both suburban and peri‐urban sites. For all samples combined, the average parasitism rate was 30%. The exotic, egg–larval–pupal parasitoid Fopius arisanus represented 81% of the parasitoids collected and was recovered from all of the 13 host fruit species sampled. The second most common species, the native larval–pupal parasitoid, Diachasmimorpha kraussii, represented 15% of recovered parasitoids and was collected from a smaller range of host fruit species. The remaining two parasitoids, Diachasmimorpha tryoni and Psyttalia fijiensis, were rare in samples. Parasitoid infestation was highly variable across samples, with higher rates of parasitism observed from October to May. A targeted field experiment to measure differences in parasitism by D. kraussii between urban and peri‐urban habitats detected no variation in the abundance of D. kraussii across habitats, a result consistent with the general survey. The data show that for south‐east Queensland, parasitoids are a significant fruit fly mortality factor in both peri‐urban and urban landscapes. Any manipulation of parasitoids for regional pest management should focus on conservation of F. arisanus.
We report the first detection of Fall Armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (Smith, 1797), in Bhutan. FAW feeds on more than 300 plant species and is a serious pest of many. It has been spreading through Africa since 2016 and Asia since 2018. In Bhutan, this species was first detected in maize fields in the western part of the country in September 2019 and subsequently found infesting maize crop in southern parts of the country in December 2019 and April 2020. Using morphological and molecular techniques the presence of the first invading populations of S. frugiperda in Bhutan is confirmed through this study. We present an updated reference DNA barcode data set for FAW comprising 374 sequences, which can be used to reliably identify this serious pest species, and discuss some of the reasons why such compiled reference data sets are necessary, despite the publicly availability of the underlying data. We also report on a second armyworm species, the Northern Armyworm, Mythimna separata (Walker, 1865), in rice, maize and other crops in eighteen districts of Bhutan.
Protein bait spray is a tool used widely in tephritid fruit fly pest (Diptera: Tephritidae) control and eradication programs. However, this technique might have a negative effect on non‐target, beneficial insects. Aphytis lingnanensis is a very successful parasitoid of the California red scale, Aonidiella aurantii, a worldwide pest of citrus. Though A. lingnanensis is widely used in augmentative release programs, the impact of protein bait‐insecticide mixtures on the parasitoid is not documented. In this study, we investigated the attraction of A. lingnanensis to Pinnacle® protein, a fruit fly protein bait commonly used in Australia. Following this, the contact toxicity of field weathered residues of protein bait mixed with the insecticides spinosad, fipronil, malathion and chlorpyrifos to A. lingnanensis were evaluated. Finally, the non‐lethal impact of these residues on the capacity of A. lingnanensis to parasitize its host was investigated. Food‐deprived parasitoids were not attracted to protein but were significantly attracted to honey. The lack of attraction of protein, however, increased when sugar was added to it. Relative to a control of only protein, protein bait‐insecticide mixtures applied on citrus leaves and weathered outdoors for 2 h, 3 days, 7 days and 12 days caused high mortality of A. lingnanensis. The residual toxicity of the four weathering periods, for all the protein bait‐insecticide mixtures, produced high mortality rates varying between 90% and 100%. In addition, the capacity of A. lingnanensis to parasitize its host after exposure to weathered residues containing an insecticide was severely affected. The results suggest that A. lingnanensis is highly susceptible to the insecticides evaluated here when used in fruit fly protein baits. Therefore, the use of these insecticides in protein bait sprays, as part of an area wide fruit fly management, should be carefully considered in areas where augmentative release and conservation of A. lingnanensis are also applied.
The Gaur, Bos gaurus Smith, plays an important role in the pyramidal food chain-being an important prey for large carnivores such as tiger, common leopard, and Asiatic wild dog. Presence of Gaur in an area indicates wild and healthy ecosystem. Reduction of global distribution of Gaur by over 80% in the past 100 years, scaling in the IUCN Red List of Vulnerable category shows the species is facing serious threats. The present study assessed the distribution, activity pattern, and abundance of Gaur in the Royal Manas National Park (RMNP) through a single season occupancy modeling. The study was conducted through camera trap survey for a period of three months. Gaur was the second most abundant species among targeted sympatric species (RAI = 6.35) and its distribution was restricted mostly in the southern subtropical forest belts. The highest elevation that Gaur was recorded was 2256 m asl. The mean detection probability of Gaur in RMNP was 33 % ± 0.04 (0.25-0.47) and naive occupancy rate was 51.5%. The estimated Gaur occupancy with inclusion of imperfect detection showed 62.4% ± 0.15 (0.296-0.864) of 659.6 km 2 of RMNP area occupied. Core zone in RMNP was observed as most preferred habitat as Gaur tended to avoid human disturbances. Distance to saltlick and settlement was the most significant habitat parameter for Gaur's existence. Evidences of poaching inside the park call for reinforcing Spatial Monitoring Assessment and Reporting Tool (SMART) in patrolling and management of Gaur conservation in RMNP.
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