Nineteen species of Pectinoidea (16 Propeamussiidae, 3 Pectinidae) are herein listed. All species from the Solomon Islands (9 species), and New Caledonia (Norfolk Ridge [7], main island of New Caledonia [1], Grand Passage [1], Coral Sea [1]) are new records. Two Propeamussiidae species are new to science: Parvamussium orbiculatum n. sp. (Solomon Islands and Coral Sea) and Parvamussium perspicuum n. sp. (Vanuatu). One pectinid species from Vanuatu (Juxtamusium sp.) will be described later, when more material becomes available.

The genus Neoheligmonella Durette-Desset, 1971 (Nippostrongylinae) is revised and split into three genera, one of them with two subgenera. The new genera can be discriminated mainly by characters of the synlophe which had been not considered previously at the supraspecific level. These characters include the presence of a careen, the size of the right ridge relative to the left ridge, and the presence of gradients in the ridge size. The genus Neoheligmonella sensu stricto is proposed to include species with a careen, and it is divided into two subgenera: Neoheligmonella (Neoheligmonella) characterized by a right ridge measuring more than 45% of the ventral ridge of the careen, and Neoheligmonella (Duplantierus) n. subgen. with a right ridge measuring less than 45% of the ventral ridge of the careen. Dioufnema n. gen. includes one species with neither a careen nor hypertrophied ridges and having a bursa of type 1-3-1. Taranchonema n. gen. includes species without a careen, with the left ridge and the right ridge hypertrophied, and without a dorsal gradient in ridge size. A dichotomous key to the new genera and subgenera is provided. Five species of unknown synlophe, originally placed in the former genus Neoheligmonella and validated by other characters, are considered as Nippostrongylinae incertae sedis.

We reexamine the species of Eneopterinae Saussure, 1874 crickets from Costa Rica and conclude that only two species of this clade are present in this country: Ponca venosa Hebard, 1928 and the widely distributed species Eneoptera surinamensis (De Geer, 1873). The two species described by Otte (2006) under Eneoptera Brumeister, 1838 do neither belong to this genus nor to Eneopterinae.

The collection of deep-sea blind lobsters (Polychelidae), comprising eight species in three genera: Pentacheles Spence Bate, 1878, Polycheles Heller, 1862, and Stereomastis Spence Bate, 1888, is significant for although these species had been recorded in adjacent regions, prior to the BIOPAPUA expedition they have not been recorded from the Bismarck and western Solomon seas. The feasibility of seabed ore mining adds a sense of urgency to the exploration and analysis of the benthic biodiversity of a unique, barely explored region up for destructive exploitation.

The extreme south of Madagascar is noted for the endemism of its marine biota, notably molluscs. Six new species of Muricidae Rafinesque, 1815 are described in the present paper; three in the subfamily Muricinae Rafinesque, 1815: Chicoreus (Triplex) kantori n. sp., Naquetia manwaii n. sp. and Dermomurex (Dermomurex) charlesi n. sp.; two in the subfamily Muricopsinae Radwin & D'Attilio, 1971: Favartia (Favartia) tantelyi n. sp. and Favartia (Pygmaepterys) fournierae n. sp.; and one in the subfamily Rapaninae Gray, 1853: Semiricinula bozzettii n. sp. Similar species from Madagascar and from other regions are compared and illustrated. The radula of Naquetia manwaii n. sp. and of Semiricinula bozzettii n. sp. are illustrated.

Three new cicada genera and species, Mosaica irregularis n. gen., n. sp., Masamia huweii n. gen., n. sp., and Manna tenuis n. gen., n. sp., are described from India and Tibet. Six subtribes, Puranina Lee, n. subtr., Leptopsaltriina Moulton, 1923, Mosaicina Lee, n. subtr. which include the three new genera, Gudabina Lee, n. subtr., Euterpnosiina Lee, n. subtr., and Leptosemiina Lee, n. subtr., are placed in Leptopsaltriini Moulton, 1923 of the subfamily Cicadinae Latreille, 1802.

Augosoma centaurus Fabricius, 1775 (Melolonthidae: Dynastinae), one of the largest Scarabaeoid beetles of the Ethiopian Region, is classified in the tribe Dynastini MacLeay, 1819, principally on the basis of morphological characters of the male: large frontal and pronotal horns, and enlargement of fore legs. With the exception of A. centaurus, the 62 species of this tribe belong to ten genera grouped in Oriental plus Australasian and Neotropical regions. We performed cytogenetic studies of A. centaurus and several Asian and Neotropical species of Dynastini, in addition to species belonging to other sub-families of Melolonthidae Leach, 1819 and various tribes of Dynastinae MacLeay, 1819: Oryctini Mulsant, 1842, Phileurini Burmeister, 1842, Pentodontini Mulsant, 1842 and Cyclocephalini Laporte de Castelnau, 1840. The karyotypes of most species were fairly alike, composed of 20 chromosomes, including 18 meta- or sub-metacentric autosomes, one acrocentric or sub-metacentric X-chromosome, and one punctiform Y-chromosome, as that of their presumed common ancestor. Among the Dynastinae we studied, the karyotypes of the two species of Oryctes Illiger, 1798 and A. centaurus deeply differ from others: they look alike and are composed of 18 chromosomes only, many acrocentric autosomes and neo-sex chromosomes resulting from an X-Y-autosome translocation. The reassessment of their morphologies, in particular of female specimens, exhibits many shared characters. The genetic proximity of Augosoma and Oryctes is confirmed by the comparison of DNA sequence data separately found in the literature. Thus, the genera Augosoma and Oryctes should be grouped together, and not split into two different tribes. These results challenge the separation of the tribes Dynastini and Oryctini and the traditional use male exaggerated characters for establishing a systematic classification.

The species Congocepheus involutus Mahunka, 1997 is redescribed, and two new species are described, Congocepheus gabonensis n. sp. and Congocepheus ektactesi n. sp., using optical and scanning electron microscopy.