Beetle Research Articles

The First Finding of a Skin Beetle (Coleoptera, Dermestidae) from Sakhalinian Amber

The First Finding of a Skin Beetle (Coleoptera, Dermestidae) from Sakhalinian Amber

New records of leaf-beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) from Tyumenskaya Oblast, Russia

New records of leaf-beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) from Tyumenskaya Oblast, Russia

Soil macrofauna in Brazil: a bibliometric review and state of the art

Macrofauna individuals' knowledge and their environmental functions is essential to seek more conservationist forest management practices. Understanding how the publications are being distributed in Brazil, and what knowledge need to be discussed to direct future research. The purpose of this review was to compile and analyze all publications on soil macrofauna in Brazil until 2019, conducting a bibliometric and state of the art review. 60 documents were evaluated, it was analyzing institutions and authors, citations networks and terms used, forest sciences areas that encompass the most explored biomes, crop systems or natural environmental and the most studied soil macrofauna individuals. Since 2002, every year, publications on the topic indexed in the Scopus database. The Atlantic Forest was the most studied biome and although the North region has the largest number of states that have not yet developed works on the subject, the Amazon forest is in second place in terms of publications, together with Savannah/Cerrado. The largest gap in studies and areas of natural fields is found in the Brazilian North. The macrofauna individuals studied, the highlights are from the orders Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Blattodea, Araneae and Hemiptera. Vegetation type was carried out predominantly in native forests, followed by pasture.

Eight new species and additional records of the Pselaphodes complex from Laos and Vietnam, with a key to known species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae)

The diversity of the Pselaphodes complex of genera (Pselaphinae: Tyrini) is insufficiently documented in Southeast Asia. In this paper eight new species are described and illustrated from Laos and Vietnam: Labomimus cavicornis sp. nov., Labomimus cucphuong sp. nov., Pselaphodes banphabat sp. nov., Pselaphodes dalatensis sp. nov., Pselaphodes jendeki sp. nov., Pselaphodes nongfa sp. nov., Pselaphodes olexai sp. nov., and Pselaphodes parapectinatus sp. nov. New country or provincial records are provided for ten known species: Labomimus bannaus Yin & Li, 2013, Labomimus maolan Zhang, Li & Yin, 2019, Labomimus shii (Yin & Li, 2012), comb. nov. (transferred from Pselaphodes Westwood, 1870), Linan fortunatus Yin & Li, 2013, Paralasinus gigas Hlaváč & Nomura, 2001, Pselaphodes hainanensis Yin & Li, 2013, Pselaphodes incisus Huang, Li & Yin, 2018, Pselaphodes linae Yin & Li, 2012, Pselaphodes paraculeus Huang, Li & Yin, 2018, and Taiwanophodes magnus Bekchiev, 2010. An identification key to the 26 species of the complex that occur in Laos and Vietnam is provided.

On the genus Sunius Stephens, 1829 of Turkey. V. A new micropterous species from central southern Anatolia, with additional records from the western Mediterranean region (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae)

A new species of the genus Sunius Stephens, 1829 is described from the Karaman province of central southern Anatolia: Sunius tauricus sp. n. Additional records of seven species and two subspecies of Sunius from the western Mediterranean region are reported. A total of 38 species are now known from Turkey, 34 of them are endemic.

Development of immature stages of Heteronychus arator rugifrons (Fairmaire, 1871) (Coleoptera: Dynastidae), a major crop pest in Madagascar

Adults (black beetles), and to a lesser extent, larvae (white grubs), of Heteronychus arator rugifrons (Fairmaire) are major crop pests of cereals—particularly upland rice—in the central highlands of the island of Madagascar. Since the biology of this endemic subspecies is far less well understood than that of the African black beetle Heteronychus arator F., we undertook laboratory studies to determine the developmental durations of its immature stages at two temperatures, with measurements taken (body length and weight of all stages/instars, head capsule width of all larval instars). The mean immature stage development period was significantly shorter at 25°C (160.8 ± 11.60 d) than at 18°C (251.4 ± 11.93 d), mainly due to shorter egg incubation, L1 instar and pupal periods. Some morphological traits of immature stages confirmed that H. arator rugifrons is a distinct subspecies from H. arator. In particular, head capsule width was homogenous among larval instars, irrespective of the rearing temperature, with no overlap across instars. Head capsule width range was 1.04–1.52 for L1, 1.72–2.36 for L2, and 2.40–3.48 for L3. This information should be helpful in studies of population dynamics and economic threshold calculations with a view to management of this pest.

Ophiocordyceps salganeicola, a parasite of social cockroaches in Japan and insights into the evolution of other closely-related Blattodea-associated lineages

The entomopathogenic genus Ophiocordyceps includes a highly diverse group of fungal species, predominantly parasitizing insects in the orders Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera. However, other insect orders are also parasitized by these fungi, for example the Blattodea (termites and cockroaches). Despite their ubiquity in nearly all environments insects occur, blattodeans are rarely found infected by filamentous fungi and thus, their ecology and evolutionary history remain obscure. In this study, we propose a new species of Ophiocordyceps infecting the social cockroaches Salganea esakii and S. taiwanensis, based on 16 years of collections and field observations in Japan, especially in the Ryukyu Archipelago. We found a high degree of genetic similarity between specimens from different islands, infecting these two Salganea species and that this relationship is ancient, likely not originating from a recent host jump. Furthermore, we found that Ophiocordyceps lineages infecting cockroaches evolved around the same time, at least twice, one from beetles and the other from termites. We have also investigated the evolutionary relationships between Ophiocordyceps and termites and present the phylogenetic placement of O. cf. blattae. Our analyses also show that O. sinensis could have originated from an ancestor infecting termite, instead of beetle larvae as previously proposed.

Diversidade de mesoinvertebrados associada ao tratamento aeróbio de resíduos sólidos orgânicos domiciliares

Os mesoinvertebrados provocam mudanças nas propriedades físicas e químicas da matéria orgânica durante o processo de compostagem. São excelentes recicladores de matéria orgânica. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar a densidade e a diversidade de mesoinvertebrados em sistema de tratamento aeróbio de resíduos sólidos orgânicos domiciliares. O trabalho realizado em Campina Grande, estado da Paraíba, Brasil, seguiu os princípios da pesquisa experimental. Foram coletados resíduos sólidos orgânicos em 46 residências, previamente segregados na fonte geradora. Por 15 semanas o sistema foi monitorado diariamente. Durante a compostagem foram coletados 1.258 indivíduos pertencentes à seis ordens: Diptera (88,5%), Mesostigmata (5,5%), Coleoptera (2,4%), Isopoda (2,4%), Araneae (0,6%) e Orthoptera (0,6%). No processo de compostagem foram observadas três fases distintas, nas quais as espécies foram diferenciadas. Constatou-se que no sistema de tratamento dos resíduos sólidos orgânicos domiciliares, há considerável participação de organismos que atuam nas diferentes fases do tratamento, correlacionando-se com as mudanças físico-químicas e influenciando no funcionamento de todo o sistema.

Biology and parasites of Pteronotus gymnonotus from the Caatinga shrublands of Ceará (Brazil)

Mormoopid bats are distributed from southern United States of America to Brazil and comprise the genera Mormoops and Pteronotus. Although forms of Mormoops in Bahia, Brazil were described for the Quaternary, only some of the extant species of Pteronotus occur in this country, including P. gymnonotus. The species distribution ranges from southeastern México to northeastern Bolivia and central Brazil. This work presents information about food preference, reproduction, and the ectoparasitological fauna of P. gymnonotus in the state of Ceará. Fieldwork took place over ten consecutive days in the rain and dry seasons, in 2000, 2012, 2013, and 2019, on trails within the Serra das Almas Private Natural Heritage Reserve. A total of 14 P. gymnonotus specimens were caught in the three main phytophysiognomies present in the region. They were inspected for ecto and endoparasites, and fecal material was collected and analyzed under a light microscope. Of the total collected females, four were pregnant and one was lactating in January, during the rain season. No food residues or evidence of endoparasites were observed in the gastric content of the animals. Regarding the fecal samples, fragments of insects were found and identified as belonging to the orders Coleoptera and Lepidoptera. Seven individuals were infested with ectoparasites of the subfamily Acari and newly described associations with Diptera genera are presented. Due to the scarcity of data about these bats in the Caatinga biome, data reported here help explain the ecological interactions of P. gymnonotus in this semiarid area in Brazil.

Female calling, life cycle, and microstructures of the parasitic beetle Ripidius quadriceps Abeille de Perrin.

The precopulatory behaviour of the larviform females of Ripidius quadriceps Abeille de Perrin, 1872 is described. The calling posture of virgin females is documented. The cephalic morphology and microstructures are visualised using scanning electron microscopy, in particular the secretory pores in the cuticle of inflatable maxillary palps. An exhaustive overview of relevant publications revealed that the location of secretory pores on the head of females is unique within the order Coleoptera. Compared to other beetles with sedentary calling females, the calling phase of the short-lived and non-feeding female of Ripidius is exceptionally short. For bioassays, various traps using virgin females of Ripidius were tested. It is likely that the sedentary behaviour of the short-lived female combined with a unique morphology and priority for investing in reproduction is compensated for by the actively flying males with remarkably flabellate antennae. The life cycle of this species, including some of the exceptions recorded at the individual level, is discussed. Perspectives for a biological and morphological survey of this rarely collected western Palaearctic species are outlined. In addition, the calling behaviour, secretory sites and location of pheromone glands in females of Coleoptera producing long range pheromones is reviewed.

New host and distribution records for Buprestidae (Coleoptera) from the state of Morelos, Mexico.

New state and host records are provided for 28 species of Buprestidae collected in Morelos, Mexico in the following genera: Acmaeodera Eschscholtz 1829, Actenodes Dejean 1833, Agrilus Curtis 1825, Brachys Dejean 1833, Chrysobothris Eschscholtz 1829, Leiopleura Deyrolle 1864, Lius Deyrolle 1864, Pachyschelus Solier 1833, and Tetragonoschema Thomson 1857.

A translation enhancer element from black beetle virus engages yeast eIF4G1 to drive cap-independent translation initiation

Cap-independent translation initiation plays crucial roles in fine-tuning gene expression under global translation shutdown conditions. Translation of uncapped or de-capped transcripts can be stimulated by Cap-independent translation enhancer (CITE) elements, but the mechanisms of CITE-mediated translation initiation remain understudied. Here, we characterized a short 5ʹ-UTR RNA sequence from black beetle virus, BBV-seq. Mutational analysis indicates that the entire BBV-seq is required for efficient translation initiation, but this sequence does not operate as an IRES-type module. In yeast cell-free translation extracts, BBV-seq promoted efficient initiation on cap-free mRNA using a scanning mechanism. Moreover, BBV-seq can increase translation efficiency resulting from conventional cap-dependent translation initiation. Using genetic approaches, we found that BBV-seq exploits RNA-binding properties of eIF4G1 to promote initiation. Thus, BBV-seq constitutes a previously uncharacterized short, linear CITE that influences eIF4G1 to initiate 5′ end-dependent, cap-independent translation. These findings bring new insights into CITE-mediated translational control of gene expression.

Freshwater insects CONUS: A database of freshwater insect occurrences and traits for the contiguous United States.

MotivationFreshwater insects comprise 60% of freshwater animal diversity; they are widely used to assess water quality, and they provide prey for numerous freshwater and terrestrial taxa. Our knowledge of the distribution of freshwater insect diversity in the USA is incomplete because we lack comprehensive, standardized data on their distributions and functional traits at the scale of the contiguous United States (CONUS). We fill this knowledge gap by presenting Freshwater insects CONUS: A database of freshwater insect occurrences and traits for the contiguous United States. This database includes 2.05 million occurrence records for 932 genera in the major freshwater insect orders, at 51,044 stream locations sampled between 2001 and 2018 by federal and state biological monitoring programmes. Compared with existing open‐access databases, we tripled the number of occurrence records and locations and added records for 118 genera. We also present life‐history, dispersal, morphological and ecological traits and trait affinities (analogous to fuzzy‐coded traits) for 1,007 stream insect genera, assembled from existing databases, reference books and the primary literature. We nearly doubled the number of traits for 11 trait groups and added traits for 180 genera that were not available from open‐access databases. Our database, Freshwater insects CONUS, facilitates the mapping of freshwater insect taxonomic and functional diversity and, when paired with environmental data, will provide a powerful resource for quantifying how the environment shapes stream insect diversity and taxon‐specific distributions.Main types of variables containedGeoreferenced occurrence records and traits for stream insects.Spatial location and grainContiguous United States at a grain of c. 1 m2.Time period and grainOccurrence records from January 2001 to December 2018, with 1‐day temporal resolution. Traits from January 1911 to December 2018.Major taxa and level of measurementGenera from the orders Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Megaloptera, Neuroptera, Odonata, Plecoptera and Trichoptera.Software format.csv.

Annotated Catalogue of the Superfamily Dascilloidea (Coleoptera: Elateriformia) of Iran

The fauna of Iranian Dascillidae and Rhipiceridae (Coleoptera: Dascilloidea) is summarized in this paper. In total, 6 species of Dascillidae from 2 genera, Dascillus Latreille, 1797 (1 species) and KarumiaEscalera, 1913 (5 species), and 2 species of Rhipiceridae from the genus Arrhaphipterus Schaum, 1862 are listed.The lectotype of K. estaphilinoidesEscalera, 1913 is to be considered the holotype.

Palaeoentomological study of the lacustrine oil-shales of the lower Miocene San Chils locality (Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin, Castellón province, Spain)

For the first time, the study of the fossil record present in laminated bituminous dolostones from the San Chils locality, lower Miocene in age (ca. 19 Ma), located at the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin, is addressed. The identification of 11 families and three genera belonging to six insect orders (Orthoptera, Thysanoptera, Hemiptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera) has been carried out. Furthermore, ephippia of ladoceran crustaceans, one bird feather, vertebrate coprolites and plant remains have been found. The San Chils palaeodiversity has been compared to that of La Rinconada, a similar outcrop in the same basin and depositional unit. Both localities correspond to lacustrine deposits and were mined during the past two centuries. This work has increased the palaeontological richness of the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin with new fi ndings such as specimens of the subfamily Corixinae (Hemiptera: Corixidae), some ant workers (Hymenoptera: ormicidae), a specimen assigned to the genus Exechia (Diptera: Mycetophilidae), ephippia of Daphnia (Ctenodapnia ) sp. (Branchiopoda: Cladocera), the possible first report of the genus Sciocoris (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) for the Neogene fossil record and the possible presence of the family Aeolothripidae (Thysanoptera). The current collection of fossil specimens from San Chils is small, but shows that it shared similar palaeoenvironmental conditions to that of La Rinconada, both in the lake waters and in the surroundings.

Genetic Manipulation of the Ergot Alkaloid Pathway in Epichloë festucae var. lolii and Its Effect on Black Beetle Feeding Deterrence.

Epichloë endophytes are filamentous fungi (family Clavicipitaceae) that live in symbiotic associations with grasses in the sub family Poöideae. In New Zealand, E. festucae var. lolii confers significant resistance to perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) against insect and animal herbivory and is an essential component of pastoral agriculture, where ryegrass is a major forage species. The fungus produces in planta a range of bioactive secondary metabolites, including ergovaline, which has demonstrated bioactivity against the important pasture pest black beetle, but can also cause mammalian toxicosis. We genetically modified E. festucae var. lolii strain AR5 to eliminate key enzymatic steps in the ergovaline pathway to determine if intermediate ergot alkaloid compounds can still provide insecticidal benefits in the absence of the toxic end product ergovaline. Four genes (dmaW, easG, cloA, and lpsB) spanning the pathway were deleted and each deletion mutant was inoculated into five different plant genotypes of perennial ryegrass, which were later harvested for a full chemical analysis of the ergot alkaloid compounds produced. These associations were also used in a black beetle feeding deterrence study. Deterrence was seen with just chanoclavine present, but was cumulative as more intermediate compounds in the pathway were made available. Ergovaline was not detected in any of the deletion associations, indicating that bioactivity towards black beetle can be obtained in the absence of this mammalian toxin.

Variation of soil arthropods abundance and diversity between two sites of the Punjab province in Pakistan

Soil Arthropods are a vitally important component of the ecosystem, as their diversity, abundance, and distribution pattern play a vital role in ecosystem sustainability. Their population is expected to vary according to geographical patterns and environmental variables such as temperature, and humidity. For this purpose, we collected soil arthropods from the two regions having different latitudinal patterns: FSD (Faisalabad) and MGRH (Muzaffargarh). The soil faunal samples were collected fortnightly from the mango orchards for two consecutive years, 2017 and 2018. During the whole research, a total of 8301 specimens of (16, 11) orders, (118, 57) species, and (5027, 3274) individuals were recorded from FSD and MGRH, respectively. Order Coleoptera found the maximum abundance in both regions among all orders. Our results showed that the FSD regions had a high abundance of arthropods compared to the MGRH region. In comparison, the different diversity factors and abundance revealed a strong correlation with the abiotic factors. They showed a high pattern of distribution and richness at the FSD region, as low temperature and high humidity were observed in the FSD region that influences the more diversity occurrence of fauna. Our results predicted that the habitat type and environmental factors such as humidity and temperature play a significant role in the distribution pattern of arthropods in any geographical region.

Effect of substrates of native and exotic plant species on the initial period of colonization of benthic macroinvertebrates in the Cerrado biome

The introduction of exotic species can generate changes in the composition of organic debris of alien origin in aquatic ecosystems close to the places of introduction. This new debris can cause impacts at the level of communities and ecosystems. Therefore, the present work aims to answer the following question: are the macroinvertebrate communities present in substrates formed by leaves of the exotic species Pinus caribaea Morelet (Pinaceae) and Eucalyptus grandis Hill ex Maiden (Myrtaceae) similar to those found in substrates composed by the mix of these two species and substrates composed by a mix of native species? For the collection of macroinvertebrates, sets of four types of artificial substrates were submerged in a stream inside the Ecological Station of Panga (Uberlândia—MG, Brazil). The treatments were: leaves of P. caribaea, leaves of E. grandis, leaves of both exotic species and leaves of two native species. In the 20 sample units, about 250 individuals were found, belonging to the orders Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, Heteroptera, Megaloptera, Odonata, Plecoptera and Trichoptera. The effects of the treatments were observed in the exponential decay of the substrate mass and in the structure of the benthic macroinvertebrates communities. The composition of these communities differed among treatments, with high dissimilarity observed between P. caribaea treatments and the mix of exotic species. Therefore, the results demonstrate the importance of substrate complexity for benthic macroinvertebrates, as well as the possible effects of biological invasion and co-invasion by species widely used in silviculture activities.

Short and Sweet: Viral 5`-UTR as a Canonical and Non-Canonical Translation Initiation Switch.

The replication of viruses requires host cell functions, specifically for protein synthesis, as viruses lack their own translational machinery. Failure to translate viral mRNAs and generate viral proteins would affect the propagation and evolution of a virus. Thus, independently of their size, complexity, and genomes, viruses evolved sophisticated molecular mechanisms to hijack the translational apparatus of a host in order to recruit ribosomes for efficient protein production. One of the prevalent mechanisms of translation regulation utilized by viruses is non-canonical translation initiation. It is often governed by the 5’-untranslated regions (5’-UTRs) present upstream of a protein-coding sequence in viral mRNAs, such as internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs) and capindependent translation enhancers (CITEs). Viruses can also utilize canonical translation initiation factors of a host in non-canonical ways. Understanding strategies and mechanisms used by viruses to generate proteins is an important task, as it might help develop new therapeutic interventions. We previously have demonstrated that mRNA from the genome of the black beetle virus (BBV) of the Nodaviridae family contains short and unstructured 5’-UTR, which governs translation initiation as a CITE and as a canonical translational enhancer. In this Commentary, we summarize cap-dependent and cap-independent translation initiation mechanisms and further elaborate on the unique ability of the BBV mRNA 5’-UTR to switch between these two modes of translation initiation in the context of the viral life cycle. Medical implications in treating the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection by targeting viral 5’-UTRs are also discussed.

Барсакелмес қорығы қаттықанаттыларының (Coleoptera) күзгі фаунасы

Coleoptera are the most diverse and species-rich order of insects. Biologically, coleoptera are very diverse. Beetle nutrition is also extremely diverse. Among them there are predators, phytophages, saprophages, necrophages. Predatory beetles prey on various small invertebrates, mainly other insects. Herbivorous beetles feed not only on the green parts of a wide variety of plants, but also on wood. Beetles are found everywhere (in water, on land, on plants, in soil) and are essential in the circulation of substances in nature. The research was carried out in October 2021 in the section of the Syrdarya River delta, up to the Koksarai dam, Amanatkol Lake, Shobankol Lake, Alakol Lake, Akshatau Lake, Shomishkol lake, okr. village. Shomishkol, Kolshykkan lake. Conventional entomological traditional methods were used in the conducted research. As a result of the field work, representatives from the Insect class (Insecta) of the order Coleoptera, or beetles (Coleoptera) were identified. A total of 24 species from 4 families are represented. The sem stands out for its species diversity. Tenebrionidae (12 species), Carabidae (3 species), in the other 2 families, only 1 species are noted. Studies in 2021 have shown a decrease in the number and faunal change of dominant species. Since the studies were conducted in October, many invertebrates have already gone to winter.