Insect In Korea Research Articles

Discovery of Three New Mucor Species Associated with Cricket Insects in Korea.

Species in the genus Mucor have a worldwide distribution and are isolated from various substrata and hosts, including soil, dung, freshwater, and fruits. However, their diversity from insects is still much too little explored. The aim of this study was to characterize three new species of Mucor: Mucor grylli sp. nov., M. hyangburmii sp. nov., and M. kunryangriensis sp. nov., discovered in Kunryang-ri, Cheongyang in the Chungnam Province of Korea, during an investigation of Mucorales from cricket insects. The new species are described using morphological characters and molecular data including ITS and LSU rDNA regions. Mucor grylli is characterized by the highly variable shape of its columellae, which are subglobose to oblong, obovoid, strawberry-shaped, and sometimes slightly or strongly constricted in the center. Mucor hyangburmii is characterized by the production of azygospores and growth at 40 °C. Mucor kunryangriensis is characterized by the variable shape of its columellae, which are elongated-conical, obovoid, cylindrical ellipsoid, cylindrical, and production of abundant yeast-like cells on PDA, MEA, and SMA media. Based on the sequence analysis of two genetic markers, our phylogenic assessment strongly supported M. grylli, M. hyangburmii, and M. kunryangriensis as new species. Detailed descriptions, illustrations, and phylogenetic trees are provided.

Historical Uses and Breeding Technologies of Protaetia brevitarsis surensis (Larvae for Food) for the Edible Insect Industry in South Korea

We aim to review Protaetia brevitarsis surensis (PBS) with a specific focus on its historical uses and characteristics, making it one of the most viable food sources or medicinal materials. Ordinary PBS and food insects are characterized by low-emission, especially greenhouse gas, insect farming technologies in Republic of Korea. In addition, PBS is considered essentially acceptable for alternative insect food for human and effective environmental conservation in the near future.
 Generally, PBS larvae have long been studied the most widely as edible and medicinal insects in Korea compared to the other countries. Almost one thousands farmers are breeding the PBS and the productivity range are very variable from 0.3 to 5.0 tons/person·per year.

Brachymna tenuis Stål, 1861 (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), a new invasive bamboo pest in Korea with notes on insects associated with bamboos

BackgroundWe report first observations of the invasive bamboo pest, Brachymna tenuis Stål, 1861 in Korea as the first species of Brachymna Stål, 1861 (Pentatomidae) reported from the country.New informationComments on its pest status and distribution are provided. General information on this bamboo-feeding insect in Korea is analysed and provided for the first time.

Predicting potential current distribution of Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae) using MaxEnt model in South Korea

Abstract Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae) is an invasive insect in Korea which causes plant damages by sucking and sooty molds. Lycorma delicatula was first detected in South Korea in 2004, where its introduction and spreading possibly were affected by human activity-related factors. Here, we used MaxEnt to describe current distribution of L. delicatula in Korea and tried to find out the impact of human influences on distribution. We used 143 sites of occurrence data, 19 bioclimatic variables, duration of temperature below −11 °C, average daily minimum temperature in January, cumulative thermal unit variable, the distribution of grape orchard variable and human footprint to create models. These models were estimated by two sets of 24 candidates with feature combinations and regularization multipliers. In addition, these two sets were created as models with and without footprint to assess human influence on distribution. Model selection for optimal model was performed by selecting a model with a lowest sum of each rank in small sample-size corrected Akaike’s information criterion and difference between training and test AUC. Model of LQ10 parameter combinations was selected as optimal models for both model sets. Consequently, both of distribution maps from these models showed similar patterns of presence probability for L. delicatula. Both models expected that low altitude regions were relatively more suitable for L. delicatula than mountain areas in Korea. Footprint might be limited for the distribution and L. delicatula might already occupy most of available habitats. Human-related factors might contribute to spread of L. delicatula to uninfected areas.

Temperature-dependent development and oviposition models of Ramulus irregulariterdentatus (Phasmida: Phasmatidae)

Abstract Public interest in Ramulus irregulariterdentatus as a pet insect in Korea is increasing, although it is also considered as a potential forest insect pest. The objective of this study was to construct development and oviposition models of R. irregulariterdentatus. Development rates were fitted with a nonlinear Briere model which estimated optimal temperatures to be 24.5 and 26.2 °C with upper development thresholds of 29.3 and 31.4 °C for egg and nymph, respectively. In a linear model, lower development thresholds were 7.6 and 5.2 °C for egg and nymph, respectively. Survivorship was the highest at 21.0 and 22.2 °C for egg and nymph, respectively. Mean fecundity ranged from 14.4 eggs at 17.5 °C to 32.0 eggs at 23.5 °C. It was fitted to an extreme value function. Adult survival and cumulative oviposition rate of R. irregulariterdentatus were fitted to a sigmoid function and a two-parameter Weibull function, respectively. These models can be used to forecast phenology and population dynamics of R. irregulariterdentatus in the fields and optimize environmental conditions for rearing R. irregulariterdentatus.

식용곤충 사육 선도농가 실태 조사

Insects and their extract have been traditionally used as medicinal resources in Asia. Recently, Gryllus bimaculatus and the larva of Tenebrio molitor, Protaetia brevitarsis, and Allomyrina dichotoma were enlisted as general food ingredients by Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. As the interest in these insects is growing, the detailed investigation is needed for the standardization of suitable and safe rearing techniques. This survey was conducted via personal interviews about edible insect rearing farms in Korea. The basic feed is fermented oak sawdust for P. brevitarsis and A. dichotoma and wheat bran for T. molitor. The various feed additives are blended with each farm’s own recipes. The overall growth condition, including sawdust fermentation method, feeding period, and rearing density, varies among the investigated farms. It seems that weight of last instar larva was correlated with the rearing density and duration of the larval period. The heavy metal contents were analyzed after 48 hour starvation and they were very small amount or not detected in investigated insects. We believe that the present data will contribute to develop and standardize the safe rearing techniques of edible insects in Korea.

Effects of different diets and temperatures on larval growth of the white-spotted flower chafer, Protaetia brevitarsis (Kolbe) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)

The white-spotted chafer, Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), is an economically important insect in Korea. Traditionally, it has been regarded as a medicine for preventing liver-related diseases and suppressing liver cancer. Recently, this beetle was enlisted as a temporal food ingredient by Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Therefore, this beetle is focused as a one of the important insects that are commercially reared and sold in Korea. As the economic importance of this beetle is growing, the suitable rearing conditions are needed for more detailed investigation. In this study, we compared three temperature conditions and two food additives, rice chaff and soybean cake, for its effects on the body weight change of third instar larvae of P. brevitarsis. Temperature is a major environmental factor that has tremendous effects on rearing insects. In additions, rice chaff and soybean cake are byproducts of other agricultural activities. Therefore, it is easy to get, and the price is comparatively low. However, they still have meaningful amount of nutrients. With four different kinds of feed and three temperature conditions on the third instar larvae of beetles, the body weight change was tracked for 14 wk. We concluded that 27.5℃ is the optimal temperature to rear the third instar larvae among three temperatures (25, 27.5, and 30℃). Among four different feeds, conventional fermented oak saw dust with rice chaff and soybean cake was the best feed for larval weight gain during 14 wk. However, feed with soybean cake at 30 ℃ was the best condition for rearing P. brevitarsis larvae when temperatures and feeds were compared at the same time.

Transcriptome Characterization for Non-Model Endangered Lycaenids, Protantigius superans and Spindasis takanosis, Using Illumina HiSeq 2500 Sequencing.

The Lycaenidae butterflies, Protantigius superans and Spindasis takanosis, are endangered insects in Korea known for their symbiotic association with ants. However, necessary genomic and transcriptomics data are lacking in these species, limiting conservation efforts. In this study, the P. superans and S. takanosis transcriptomes were deciphered using Illumina HiSeq 2500 sequencing. The P. superans and S. takanosis transcriptome data included a total of 254,340,693 and 245,110,582 clean reads assembled into 159,074 and 170,449 contigs and 107,950 and 121,140 unigenes, respectively. BLASTX hits (E-value of 1.0 × 10−5) against the known protein databases annotated a total of 46,754 and 51,908 transcripts for P. superans and S. takanosis. Approximately 41.25% and 38.68% of the unigenes for P. superans and S. takanosis found homologous sequences in Protostome DB (PANM-DB). BLAST2GO analysis confirmed 18,611 unigenes representing Gene Ontology (GO) terms and a total of 5259 unigenes assigned to 116 pathways for P. superans. For S. takanosis, a total of 6697 unigenes were assigned to 119 pathways using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway database. Additionally, 382,164 and 390,516 Simple Sequence Repeats (SSRs) were compiled from the unigenes of P. superans and S. takanosis, respectively. This is the first report to record new genes and their utilization for conservation of lycaenid species population and as a reference information for closely related species.

An Analysis of Likability of Insects in Korea

An Analysis of Likability of Insects in Korea

The Effect of Several Paper Bags on Fruit Skin Coloration of Red Skin European Pear ‘Kalle’

This study was conducted to elucidate the relationship between light and coloring and to obtain basic results for promoting redness expression in 'Kalle' (Pyrus communis L.) pear skin. It was investigated in location of anthocyanin layer by microscopic observation and differences in skin color expression of 'Kalle' bagged with paper bag which has different light transmittance rate and inside temperature. However, there was no anthocyanin layer in the brown skin and golden yellow color, anthocyanin layer was distributed in epidermins or hyperdermis of red skin pear and apple. Dark red colored 'Kalle' had more anthocyanin content, FW than light red colored apple 'Hongro'. Light transmittance rate of physical characteristics used paper bags was the highest in white paper bag, 42.2% and it also had more light quantity, than any other tested paper bags in specific wave length 650-655 nm. The maximum temperature of inner bag was higher about in yellow paper bag. The red coloration and anthocyanin contents in no bagged fruits were higher than in any other bagged fruit. However, red color expression among the bagged fruits was higher in white paper bag than in double layered black paper bag and yellow paper bag. Also, chromaticity value seemd to be a good index to explain variation of fruit skin color, because anthocyanin content and chromaticity value were higher. Based on these results, it is desirable to cultivate 'Kalle' without bag for stable redness expression but bagging is essential for decreasing damage by insect in Korea. Further examination to find suitable time of removing paperbag for redness expression and decreasing insect damage. In addition, it is required to develop paperbag whose transmittance rate is high in specific light wavelength or temperature of inner bags is low. Additional key words: anthocyanin, bagging, chromaticity value, light transmittance, Pyrus communis L.

Survey of Awareness and Concept of Insects in Korea

To investigate the degree of individuals’ concept and awareness of insects, a survey study was conducted with students and adults living in Korea. The misconception rate for insects was about 50% for both students and adults, but it was lower for students and people who had experienced insect-related events than for adults and those who had not. The highest misconception rate was obtained in answer to a question about the basic structure of an insect. Most people had a high awareness of insects. Significant differences and correlations for the awareness of insects were found between students and adults, men and women, people who had experienced insect-related events and those who had not. The experience of an insect-related event most influenced awareness of insects. These results suggest that increasing people's interest in insects and utilizing insects in treatment situations may be beneficial for the field of mental healthcare.

원격감지 성페로몬트랩을 이용한 멸강나방(Mythimna separata) 성충 예찰

비래해충인 멸강나방 성충의 발생을 실시간으로 예찰하기 위하여, 성페로몬 트랩에 원격감지장치를 설치한 트랩의 운용 효율성을 검정하였다. 원격감지트랩은 콘트랩 기반에 곤충의 유입을 광차단으로 감지하는 센서부, 신호전송부, 태양열기반의 전력공급부, 트랩 지지대, 웹페이지 기반의 자료수집부로 구성되었다. 연구과정에서 멸강나방 수컷 성충의 밤 시간대 포획의 일일주기성을 이용한 신호감지 시간대 축소, 신호발생 프로그램 조절, 1시간 간격의 전송간격, 신호전송 프로그램 변형 등을 통해 포획 나방수와 감지신호 발생 수의 격차를 줄여 최종적으로 신호 정확도를 92% 이상으로 개선하였다. 또한 실제 멸강나방 성충의 발생양상과 원격감지트랩에서의 신호 발생양상의 상관계수가 0.98이상으로 원격감지트랩에서의 신호 발생이 멸강나방 발생 양상을 정확하게 반영하는 것으로 나타났다. 2011~2012년 멸강나방은 연중 여러 번 발생되는 것이 관찰되었는데, 모두 짧은 기간 동안 발생되어 가파른 피크가 특징이었다. We desinged and evaluated a remote-sensing sex pheromone trap for real-time monitoring of Mythimna separata (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), a migratory insect in Korea. The system consisted of a modified cone-trap with a sex pheromone lure, a sensing module based on light interruption, a signal transmission module based on code division multiple access, a main electronic board for system control, a power supply based on a solar collector, a stainless steel-pole supporting the system, and a signal collection and display system based on an internet web page. The ratio (>92%) of the actual number of insects to the signal number in the remote-sensing trap was improved by sensing only within a limited period at night on the basis of the insect's circadian rhythm, control of signal sensitivity on the basis of sensing software programming, 1-h interval for signal transmission, and adjustment of the signal transmission program. The signal occurrence pattern in the remote-sensing trap was conclusively similar (correlation coefficient, >0.98) to the actual pattern of adult occurrence in the trap. The result indicated that the remote-sensing trap based on the attraction of the sex pheromone lure for M. separata has a promising potential for practical use. Occurrence of M. separata adults was observed several times in 2011 and 2012, and the peaks were sharp.

Three New Records of Penicillium Species Isolated from Insect Specimens in Korea

Three Penicillium species have been isolated from insect specimens in Korea; Penicillium sp., P. steckii, and P. polonicum. Penicillium sp. (KNU12-3-2) was isolated from Lixus imperessiventris, while P. polonicum (KNU12-1-8) and Penicillium steckii (KNU12-2-9) were isolated from Muljarus japonicas and Meloe proscarabaeus, respectively. The identification was based on the morphological characteristics of the fungi and in internal transcribed spacer analysis. This is the first report on the isolation of these three species of Penicillium from insects in Korea.

Genetic diversity of the dung beetle, Copris tripartitus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), that is endangered in Korea

AbstractThe dung beetle, Copris tripartitus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), is an endangered insect in Korea. In order to establish a conservation strategy, a preliminary investigation on the genetic diversity of Korean populations was performed using mitochondrial COI (658 bp), CytB (433 bp), and nuclear ITS2 (411 nucleotide positions). Sequencing of 69 individuals collected from five localities showed substantially higher variability (5.02% for COI, 4.62% for CytB, and 8.03% for ITS2). The resulting networks for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes exhibited two star‐like phylogenies, which might indicate that Korean populations have recently expended from two small populations. The ITS2 network, which was presented in the form of a star‐like phylogeny, confirmed that a recent population expansion occurred. Considering the high genetic diversity and gene flow in C. tripartitus populations, one issue regarding conservation seems to be the recovery of previous habitats.

Review of the description pattern of newly recorded insect species from 1999 to 2009 in Korea

The characteristics of insect communities in specific localities reflect climatic and environmental status and change. We investigated the description pattern of new insect species by reviewing announcements of new or newly recorded insects in Korea published in five systematic journals between 1999 and 2009: Entomological Research (1999–2009), Insecta Koreana (1999–2003), Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology (1999–2009), Korean Journal of Applied Entomology (1999–2009), and Korean Journal of Systematic Zoology (1999–2009). A total of 757 new species were reported in 299 research papers. More than 85% of the newly described or reported species belonged to four orders: Coleoptera (225 species), Lepidoptera (202 species), Hymenoptera (141 species), and Diptera (82 species). The number of new species fluctuated from year to year, and a few major authors described most species. The graph of the cumulative number of species described in Korea was not asymptotic. We also examined the decadal trends in the proportion of species according to their biogeographical origin. The numbers of northern (Palearctic and Nearctic) and southern (Oriental) species recorded in Korea between 1999 and 2009 were increasing mainly due to the recent taxonomic research environment. It is also possible that recent climatic change induces new migrants to Korea from more southern parts of Oriental region, but more information is needed to confirm this hypothesis.

Status of weed biological control utilizing insects in Korea

AbstractIt has been only recently that the biological control of weeds by insects was practiced in Korea. Since the diverse crop farming practices in relatively small farms, it has been underestimated by the chemical control practice. The need to find alternative methods from the presence of herbicide‐resistant weeds and growing ecological concern requires immediate action to be followed. The Integrated Weed Management Laboratory at the National Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology at the Rural Development Administration was set up to initiate weed biological control research. Since then, four research projects on weed biological control by insects were carried out. The target weed species were as follows: Rumex obtusifolius, Ambrosia trifida, Acalypha australis, and Monochoria vaginalis. In this review, some of the findings both published and unpublished were presented to show the status of the weed biological control by insects in Korea.