Microctonus aethiops(Nees) auctt. andPerilitus rutilus(Nees) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), European Parasites ofSitonaWeevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Abstract

XCIIl THE CL4NADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST LOSS used primarily as an area sampIer, the results map be expressed in terms of volume by recording also the depth of the water and the debris. The cage may he reas~embled into a more compact unit for carrying by removing the sorting travs, rotating them laterally through 180 degrees and placing them over the enclosure as shown in Fig. 1, L. The trap braces (I) are fastened in altcrnate positions to hold the twvs onto the enclosure as a lid. When reassembled thus, the cage could also bk used as an emergence cage for mosquitoes and other aquatic Diptera simplv hy providing a sleeve on a reinforced olpening in a convenient side franie. A sponge rubber gasket (K) ensures a seal hemreen the nvo halves of the lid. Book ReviewsDer Kafer. Ein Wunder der Schiipfung. By Ewald Reitter. 206 pp., 3 figs. and 59 plates. 34 x 24 cm. Chr. Belser Verlag, Stuttgart, 1960. Price 80 DM. This book is a fine example of virtuositv in colour photography and printing applied to beetles. With one exception thk subjects are dead and pinned specimens, although this is rarely obtrusive, selected for the most part: for showiness and size. With this in mind it is not surprising that two thirds of the exampIes are from the Scarabaeidae or Cerambycidae; other groups represented include the Adephaga, Chrvsomelidae, Anthribidae, Brenthidae and Curculionidae. The insects appear to hive heen photographed against a background of ~vliite foamed plastic with lighting arranged to give a rather weak shadow wllich relieves some of the flatness usuallv seen in photographs from pinned specimens. T h e reproduction is above reproach. The onlv photograph from life, and perhaps the finest picture in the book, is of the larva of ,\4egnsoma gyas Hbst. which, at twice life size, occupies a full page. From one to ten specimens are reproduced on each right hand page. The Latin names with their meanings in German, German common names, size, sex, distribution and brief notes on the species are printed on each facing page.Despite the sub-title and introductory quotation from the Bible most of the text, although rather elementary, is quite modern in outlook, and covers such topics as structure, evolution from the primitive insect, development, sexual dimorphism and perhaps too generously, beneficial and harmful beetles. The classification used however is that of Handlirsch, 1923, and there is no precise systematic arrangement of the plates.The plates are followed by an appendix on the history of the study of beetles, articles on how to collect and prepare them, an index to common and Latin names and an index to authors and journals.B. HOCKINGThe Feeding Behavior of Hippodamia quinguesignata (Kirby) Larvae.

An investigation into the reproductive characteristics ofMicroctonus hyperodae (Hym.: braconidae), a parasitoid ofListronotus bonariensis (Col.: Curculionidae)

“…It is notable in this study that approximately 41% of M. hyperodae "s lifespan occurred after cessation of oviposition under the laboratory conditions. Moreover, the pattern whereby most oviposition occurred early in the M. hyperodae life-span is similar to that observed in M. aethiopoides (Loan & Holdaway, 1961). Fusco and Hower (1974) found that at 23 ~ this species laid 41.7 % of its eggs in the first two days after mating.…”

“…The mean egg volume was found to increase from 3.0 x 10 -4 + 0.4 x 10 -4 i x3 to 4.6 x 10 -2 --t-_ 0.8 • 10 -2 ~t 3 between oviposition and the hatching of the first instar from the egg. This observed 205 times increase in egg volume was relatively low compared to the 1,473 times found for M. aethiopoides (Loan & Holdaway, 1961) and 1,190 times for M. vittatae (Smith, 1952) but greater than the 68 times increase in M. sitonae egg volume (Loan, 1963). The o6cytes of M. hyperodae are thus probably hydropic (Flanders, 1942) in view of the increase in egg volume and the relatively low protein (as opposed to water and carbohydrate) requirement of the parasitoid for maximum fecundity (Hodgson et al, 1993).…”

A New Weevil Tribe, Mekorhamphini Trib. Nov. (Coleoptera, Ithyceridae) With Two New Genera in Burmese Amber

“…The emerging pre-pupae of Syrrhizus species spin white cocoons. Microctonus species also emerge as pre-pupae from their adult weevil hosts and spin yellowish-white cocoons (Loan & Holdaway, 1961). The wasp was determined to be a braconid of the subfamily Euphorinae (Poinar & Shaw, 2016).…”

Host specificity testing and suitability of the parasitoidMicroctonus hyperodae (Hym.: Braconidae, Euphorinae) as a biological control agent ofListronotus bonariensis (Col.: Curculionidae) in New Zealand

“…Simmonds (1944) showed that parasitoids sometimes attacked hosts on which they never developed in the field, but were very suitable for mass rearing in the laboratory. Loan & Holdaway (1961) reported that Sitona cylindricollis Fahraeus was a suitable host of the oligophage Microctonus aethiops (Nees) (= aethiopoides Loan) when caged in laboratory experiments. However, there are no known records of M. aethiopoides reared from European or North American field populations of S. cylindicollis.…”

“…In this study, the most readily recognised immune response was encapsulation of the parasitoid larva (e.g. Loan & Holdaway, 1961 ;Fisher, 1971). Larvae observed under the microscope during dissection were scored as either healthy, emaciated or encapsulated according to their appearance.…”