A new species of Lissodoryctes Marsh 2002 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Doryctinae) is described from Brazil. This species is morphologically similar to L. zurquiensis Marsh, but differs by having the eyes blackish, fore and middle legs honey yellow, fore trochanter black, hind coxa reddish black; wings with stigma yellow, tegula black; frons smooth; malar space about 0.3 the eye height; and the first and second metasomal terga rugose. The discovery of this new species substantially extends the known distribution of this genus in the Neotropical Region.

Forests with single tree species are hypothesized to be more susceptible to pest outbreaks than mixed forests. Population densities of two insect species, Ips subelongatus Motschulsky and Lymantria dispar L., with different dietary spectra were investigated in pure and mixed stands using window and light traps in Aershan forestry bureau, northeastern China in 2009. I. subelongatus is a monophagous pest of Larix gmelinii (Rupr.) Rupr. in the study area, while L. dispar is a highly polyphagous pest species feeding on both coniferous and deciduous tree species. The individual number and dominance index of the two indicator species were investigated and analyzed in 21 forest stands in a thinning-caused gradient of larch-birch mixture ranging from pure larch stands to pure birch stands (seven types in the present study). The results showed that the number of individuals of I. subelongatus was significantly related to the proportion of larch trees, i.e. the number of individuals decreased with the rising birch ratio in the canopy layer. Similar decrease was observed in the dominance index of I. subelongatus. However, no significantly obvious effects of canopy mixture on the individual number or dominance index were observed in L. dispar.

Very few publications have documented the effects of climatic conditions on population fluctuation of Bactrocera oleae in the northeast part of the Mediterranean Basin. A field study (2005-2009) was carried out to analyze the population dynamics of B. oleae in the northern Balkans and to determine the potential correlation of population fluctuations of S. oleae and fruit infestation with abiotic parameters. The results of this study showed that despite the fact that climatic conditions had little direct influence on the population dynamics of adult males of B. oleae, minimum temperatures and precipitation have a significant effect on fruit infestation by B. oleae in the northern Balkans. The results further indicate that the annual population dynamic of the B. oleae in the northern Balkans is triple-peaked and is different from those observed in the southern Balkans. Better knowledge of seasonal population fluctuations of B. oleae in the northern Balkans could optimize the timing of insecticide applications in integrated control and thus reduce control costs and the risk of non-target effects and environmental contamination.

Bombus morawitzianus (Popov) has been reported for the first time from Gurez valley (Jammu and Kashmir) India. The genus is now represented by forty-eight valid species from India. Reported here are detailed taxonomic descriptions, synonymy, host plants, ecology and distribution pattern and illustration. Twelve food plants of this species have been put on record for the first time from the study area.

The first fossil representative of Melanoplus differentialis (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Melanoplinae) is documented from Late Pleistocene asphalt deposits of the McKittrick tar pits in southern California, USA. The specimen, an incomplete but well preserved adult male, is identified as M. differentialis based on the structure of the terminalia and in particular the form of the cercus.

Details of the first Paraguayan record of this little known Saturniid are presented.

A louse fly (Diptera: Hippoboscidae), Olfersia sordida Bigot, was collected in a dry ice-baited light trap on Key Largo, Florida.

Paranemastoma kalischevskyi (Roewer, 1951) is recorded in Turkey for the first time. The morphological characteristic features, exact locality and general distribution are provided for this species.

Impact of crowding during the larval period was studied using a population of Philosamia ricini Hutt (Lepidoptera: Saturnidae), commonly known as Eri Silkworm. Eri silkworm is an economically important species, as its fiber is used in the textile industry and the pupae serve as a delicacy. This study showed that crowding affected the growth of larvae because as the densities increased the growth rate decreased and the duration of larval development was lengthened. The larval weight decreased and the size of the cocoons was also affected, showing a positive correlation with the other parameters. The emerged moths were smaller in the denser lot than in the less dense lots. The emergence of the moths was delayed in the denser regime. As the density increased the fecundity decreased. Fiber quality was studied by Instron Tensile Tester and it was found that the larvae reared in small numbers showed high tensile properties. This study suggests that during rearing of Eri, silkworm crowding should be avoided by providing an optimum condition as it affects the silkworm ecologically and economically.

During the post-rainy season (October-March) 2009–10, mealybugs were found on young apical parts and undersides of mature leaves of Withania sommfera (L.) Dunal (Ashwagandha) in the Amritsar region of Punjab Province. They appeared waxy and cottony-white either in clusters or solitary, and moved very little. Host leaves were sometimes deformed and shed prematurely. The mealybugs were identified as Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley (Tinsley, 1898), (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae). Ants were associated with the mealybug infestation. This is apparently the first record of P. solenopsis infesting Ashwagandha in India.

Some species in the tree genus Macaranga (Euphorbiaceae) in the Southeast Asian tropics are myrmecophytic; they have highly species-specific mutualisms with symbiotic ants (plant-ants), which defend them from herbivores. However, larvae of some Arhopala (Lycaenidae, Lycaeninae) species can elude the ants. Here we demonstrated that Arhopala zylda larvae showed myrmecoxeny on their myrmecophytic Macaranga host plants; they had no stable association with the plant-ants. Despite the presence of many plant-ants, A. zylda larvae were rarely attended or attacked by ants on their host plants. The plant-ants of three other myrmecophytic Macaranga species (non-hosts to A. zylda) also paid little attention to experimentally introduced A. zylda larvae. The myrmecoxeny seen in A. zylda is notable among lycaenid larvae that feed on myrmecophytes, because almost all are obligate intimate myrmecophiles.

Collections of Drosophila and their relatives were performed using bait traps on the campus of Saint Joseph's University, in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania, between July and December 2011 and continuing in March of 2012. In the 2011 collection season, more than 200 specimens of Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura), or spotted wing Drosophila, were collected. In 2012, specimens started to appear in June and were collected until December. The appearance of D. suzukii in the Philadelphia and surrounding area has severe, negative implications for local agriculture. D. suzukii, unlike most other Drosophila species, is an agricultural pest that lays its eggs in soft-skinned, unspoiled fruits like cherries, grapes, and berries (Bolda et al., 2009).

When the above-titled paper was published in the previous issue of Entomological News (volume 122, pages 469–476), Table 1 was inadvertently omitted from the final copy and did not appear in the publication. The complete table is printed on the page following.

We apologize for this oversight.