This work was set up to characterize the incidence of Ectomyelois ceratoniae and Virachola livia, to link infestation with pomegranates maturity and insects’ densities and to identify potential resistant/tolerant varieties. Three Tunisian pomegranate cultivars (Tounsi, Gebsi,Gares) grown under oasian conditions were employed. Fruit and juice chemical compositions were determined from green fruit to maturity. Moreover, fruit infestation rates were assessed at each stage. Results indicated that infestation increased as fruits ripened. Results pointed out that pomegranate infestation was related to changes in fruit composition mainly titrable acidity, total soluble solids and total phenolics and flavonoids contents.

The oak lace bug Corythucha arcuata was first discovered in Russia in Krasnodar in 2015.The first severe oak trees damage was revealed in the Krasnodar Krai in 2016.Since then, the spread of the C. arcuata has led to the fact that its population outbreaks have been observed in forests and landscaping with the participation of oak throughout from the Black coast to the coast of the Caspian Sea. Annually, the total area of damaged forests in Russia is about 1 million hectares. Chestnut-leaved oak Q. castaneifolia and pedunculate oak Q. robur are most severely damaged by C. arcuata, but the level of influence of such damage on the state of forests remains unknown.

Erionota torus AUTHORITY? was first recorded in Kerala in 2014. Since then the pest has spread throughout the state. The larvae feed on all varieties of bananas, reducing fruit yields and preventing the traditional use of leaves for other purposes. The larva is a foliage feeder of banana which reduces the leaf area and bunch size of banana. In the present study for the first time, egg parasitism of E. torus by Ooencyrtus pallidipes (Ashmead), and larval parasitoid Elasmus brevicornis (Gahan) are reported from Malabar region of Kerala. The natural percent parasitism of egg parasitoid Oenocyrtus was 75+_7.5% and the percentage of parasitism of larval parasitoid E. brevicornis was 0.6 % in the banana field located at Payyannur, Kannur district, Kerala. Both parasitoids significantly influences the field population of E. torus. Since these two parasitoids have served as an effective biological control agent for E. torus in other previously reported countries, there is the possibility that they can also establish as a potential biological control agent in Kerala, india .

This work aims to develop and evaluate an attractant based on the combination of DAP and Eucalyptus essential oils. Essential oils were isolated by steam distillation from Eucalyptus species and analyzed by GC-MS. About 12 and 22 constituents were identified with 1.8 was the major compounds in crude essential oil and formulations. The adsorption efficacy depends on the abundance of each compound in crude essential oils and the polarity of terpenic components. Results indicated the attractant potential of both essential oils (class III) and that DAP/essential oils formulations accomplished better attractant performance (class IV). Formulations were toxic against medfly adults.

With 400+ species described, Cheilosia Meigen, 1822 is one of the largest genera of Syrphidae worldwide, and the largest in the Palaearctic Region. These hoverflies, due to their high species diversity and abundance in ecosystems, are supposed important pollinators. There are 56 species of Cheilosia reported from Spain, but they have not been revised yet in the framework of recent taxonomic advances in this genus. There are several species groups of Cheilosia recognised in literature, one of which is that of Cheilosia longula (Zetterstedt, 1838). This group consists of six species sharing bare eyes, connected antennal sockets, bare face, and tibiae pale at least basally and apically. The C. longula group is represented in the Iberian Peninsula by Cheilosia longula, Cheilosia scutellata (Fallén, 1817) and Cheilosia soror (Zetterstedt, 1843). The present study aims to better understand the distribution of the species of C. longula group in the Iberian Peninsula, as well as to assess the intraspecific variability observed in Cheilosia soror. Both collection and recently caught specimens of Cheilosia were examined. Financial support was provided by the Fauna Iberica project (PGC2018-095851-A-C65) and Vicerrectorado de Investigación y Transferencia de Conocimiento, University of Alicante (UATAL05).

DEctomyelois ceratoniae (Pyralidae) is the main insect pest attacking dates in field and storage in Tunisia. Postharvest protection is relied on fumigants. This work investigates fumigant toxicity of 2-hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) loading Rosmarinus officinalis essential oil and its major constituents (1,8-cineole, α-pinene, camphor, borneol) against E. ceratoniae larvae and adults. Results revealed that mortalities reached 56.86; 60.71; 64.28; 50 and 75% respectively for the crude essential oil, α-pinene, camphor, borneol and 1,8-cineole after 30 storage days at the concentration 90 µl/l air. Also, results indicated that 1,8-cineole, camphor and α-pinene showed the strongest inhibitory effects of adults emergence.

Synthetic insecticides used for aphid control continue to be a threat to humans and the environment. Therefore, in order to reduce these problems, it is important to use less harmful, environmentally friendly agricultural practices. It is with this objective in mind that the choice behaviour of the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris (Hemiptera: Aphididae) towards basil odors (Ocimum basilicum L. and Ocimum gratissimum L. (Lamiaceae)) and the broad bean (Vicia faba (Fabaceae)) was studied using a Y-tube olfactometer. Pea aphid negatively responded to basil plants and spent less time there. The repellent activity and the possibility to use basil as an aphid-repellent plant are discussed in relation to kinds of crops and local conditions.

The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is a widespread pest of stored products. While the direct effects of several pesticides have been evaluated on this notorious species, little is known on their indirect effects in terms of progeny fitness. In this study, we investigated the cost of different exposure intervals of T. castaneum females to spinosad by calculating the life table parameters of the progeny. For this purpose, females of T. castaneum were exposed for 5, 10 and 20 min to spinosad and progeny birth or death rates were estimated, while water was used as a control treatment. The mean values of the net reproductive rate, the intrinsic rate of increase, the finite rate of increase, the mean generation time and the doubling time of the control treatment were 6.3 females/female, 0.029 females/female/day, 1.029, 63.6 days and 24.1 days, respectively, which are indicative of the potential population increase of T. castaneum. When female parental time exposure to spinosad was 5, 10 and 20 min, the corresponding values were 0.073, 0.135 and 0.097 females/female; -0.045, -0.031 and -0.048 females/female/day; 0.956, 0.970 and 0.953; 60.6, 67.7; and 50.3 days; -15.9, -23.3 and -14.8 days, respectively, which indicate a population decrease. However, based on the 95% confidence intervals criterion, the different exposure intervals of T. castaneum females to spinosad did not affect the fitness of their progeny. These results may have bearing on the management of T. castaneum in storage facilities.

The efficient control of fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda depends on timely and reliable detection of its egg masses and early larval stages. A range of tools exist for field scouting of FAW among which the newly developed Farmer Interface App (FIA). The current experiments were conducted under the hypothesis that scouting pattern relevance determine the significance of FAW and parasitoids oviposition data collected. Seven scouting patterns were compared during intensive sampling of FAW and two parasitoid species in maize plots. The FIA - being the simplest model among them, and the one which can be easily implemented by low-literacy farmers – gave precision levels statistically comparable to those of more complex models. The pest oviposition data, the egg parasitoid Telenomus remus and the egg-larval parasitoid Chelonus sp. were modelled in this study.

Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) also known as the brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is an invasive insect pest new to Florida from the Southeast Asia. In Florida, detection, monitoring and management of the BMSB started in Leon and Gadsden Counties in early June of 2020. The 4-foot yellow pyramid traps embedded with pheromone and lures were installed in persimmon, chestnuts, blueberries, and muscadine grapes (Leon Co.) and olives (Gadsden Co.) to monitor BMSB and its natural enemies. Weekly survey data on the BMSB and its natural enemies is being collected. No BMSBs were collected in the Gadsden County. The presence of the BMSB is concerning for farmers because it feeds on numerous high value food crops. In this study, we detected and monitored the BMSBs successfully in open fields. Traps collected adults (both male and female) BMSBs (99%) and 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th instars (1%). We have recorded eggs (ca. 30%) of a parasitic tachinid fly, Trichopoda pennipes (Diptera: Tachinidae) on the body of the adult BMSBs. The fly oviposits on the dorsal and ventral side of the BMSB body. Other potential egg parasitoids include Trissolcus basalis(Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), Telenomus podisi (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) and Anastatus spp. (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae). Also, several predators including Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae), Geocoris spp. (Geocoridae), Podisus maculiventris (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) and Euthyrhynchus floridanus (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are being collected and observed. Integration of biological control agents with the possible IPM strategies suitable for Florida’s environmental conditions for the specialty crops will be discussed.