In nature, competing species often achieve coexistence through niche differentiation. We examined this phenomenon for Pachycrepoideus vindemmiae and Spalangia endius (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), two species of pupal parasitoids that are considered biological control agents of house fly, Musca domestica (Diptera: Muscidae). We examined the ability of each species, alone and in combination, to locate host pupae buried at different depths (0, 1, 2, 4, and 6 cm) in three types of substrate (sand, dry wheat bran, and spent fly diet). We then evaluated the competitiveness of each species by allowing first one species, then the other species, to parasitise host individuals within time periods ranging from less than 2 hours to 96 hours of each other. Spalangia endius exhibited greater ability than did P. vindemmiae to locate host pupae buried at depths below one centimetre. Conversely, P. vindemmiae exhibited a greater competitive ability, being more likely to emerge from pupae co-parasitised by S. endius, regardless of oviposition interval or sequence. Our findings suggest that these two parasitoid species coexist through niche differentiation. Our findings also indicate that to increase the effectiveness of biological control, the environmental conditions and risk of interspecific competition should be considered when selecting parasitoid species for release.

Mating and receiving ejaculate can alter female insect physiology and postcopulatory behaviour. During mating, females receive both internal and external stimuli and different components in the ejaculate. In insects, these components consist mostly of sperm and male accessory gland secretions. Some of the most important changes associated with receiving male accessory gland secretions are a reduction in female sexual receptivity and an increase in oviposition. However, a clear function for these molecules has not been found in the Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae). Here, we tested how the stimulus of mating, receiving a full ejaculate, or only receiving accessory gland secretions can influence ovarian development and oviposition. Our results indicate that the stimulus of mating per se is enough to induce oviposition and increase egg laying in females even if ejaculate is not received, whereas receiving only accessory gland secretions does not increase ovarian development and is not enough to induce oviposition or increase egg production. Further research on the internal and external copulatory courtship of A. ludens will increase our understanding of the role of these secretions in stimulating oviposition independent of ejaculate effects. A biological function for male accessory gland secretions on female behaviour for A. ludens still needs to be found.

Seven species of Turdidae (Aves: Passeriformes) in Manitoba, Canada were examined for chewing lice (Phthiraptera) in 1993–2019: Turdus migratorius (N = 570), Catharus ustulatus (N = 135), Catharus guttatus (N = 49), Catharus minimus (N = 12), Catharus fuscescens (N = 1), Sialia sialis (N = 4), and Sialia currucoides (N = 3). Five species of lice on T. migratorius had a prevalence of 24.0% and a mean intensity of 16.7. Overall prevalence for lice on C. ustulatus, C. guttatus, and C. minimus was 25.0%–59.2%; mean intensity was 7.0–23.3. On S. sialis, the prevalence was 50.0%; mean intensity was 10.0. No lice infested C. fuscescens or S. currucoides. Infestation parameters for each louse–host combination are provided. Louse infestations were highly aggregated. Female lice were more prevalent than males, especially for Ricinus elongatus (Phthiraptera: Amblycera: Ricinidae) infesting T. migratorius (eight males; 81 females), or there was no significant deviation from 50:50. Infestation parameters were higher for adult T. migratorius than for juveniles or feathered chicks but not significantly so. Mean intensity was greater in spring than in fall. Louse abundance was lower than on hosts of similar size in Manitoba and lower than on thrushes in other studies.

The daylily gall midge, Contarinia quinquenotata (Loew) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), is an ornamental pest of daylilies, Hemerocallis spp. Linneas (Asphodelaceae). Originally native to Asia, this pest was accidentally introduced to western North America, and it is believed to occur throughout other parts of North America even though its presence has not been confirmed. Using an online survey of gardeners across Canada’s “Maritimes” (the region that includes the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island), we determined that symptoms of the pest occurred at multiple sites across Nova Scotia, but we received no reports from Prince Edward Island or New Brunswick. Sequencing the cytochrome c oxidase 1 gene of the samples submitted by community scientists, we confirmed the daylily gall midge occurs at multiple sites across Nova Scotia. A common garden study that included 517 daylily varieties found that yellow-flowering varieties were almost twice as likely to be affected as nonyellow varieties. Early-flowering varieties were more likely to be attacked than later-flowering varieties. For each day that the date at first flowering was delayed, the likelihood of gall midge attack decreased by 16%. To avoid or mitigate damage where the daylily gall midge occurs, selecting late-flowering varieties with nonyellow flowers can be a useful complement to destructing infested flower buds.

The role of insects as pollinators within plant communities is well established, yet our knowledge of insect biodiversity in many habitats is lacking. Given the growing concern that insect biodiversity is declining, it is increasingly important to document insect assemblages from a wide range of geographic locations and habitats. Pan trapping is a common means of sampling local insect diversity. Many studies have found different insects associated with different-coloured pan traps. Here, eight different-coloured pan traps were used to sample local insect diversity in habitats supporting Platanthera (bog and rein) orchids on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. A total of 16 sites supporting seven orchid species resulted in 435 insects from 53 families being caught over 64.9 hours of pan trapping. Both Shannon and Simpson diversity index values were low despite sampling in markedly different habitats. Yellow traps caught higher numbers of insects, but no statistical difference was found among colours overall. No activity indicating pollination was recorded from a total of 254 insect observations over 21.5 hours. Our results contribute important baseline data on the diversity and behaviour of insect communities in orchid habitats of Vancouver Island and on the use of pan traps to characterise insect communities.

We report the strawberry blossom weevil, Anthonomus rubi (Herbst, 1795) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a species native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, as established in British Columbia, Canada. This is the first report of A. rubi in North America. We provide a diagnosis of the species and compare it with other species of the genus Anthonomus Germar in Canada. This species is a pest of plants in Rosaceae Jussieu, including economically important berries such as strawberries (Fragaria Linnaeus) and raspberries (Rubus idaeus Linnaeus), and of native berries of importance to Indigenous peoples in Canada. Female weevils oviposit eggs inside developing flower buds and sever flower stalks, facilitating larval development inside damaged buds and thus reducing fruit yields. Surveys to confirm the presence of A. rubi conducted in 2020 found the weevil to be well established in cultivated and wild hosts throughout the Greater Vancouver area and Fraser Valley, British Columbia. At least one species of parasitoid wasp in the genus Pteromalus Swederus (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) has been found in association with A. rubi in the province. Future investigations are required to understand the biology of A. rubi in its new range, assess its impact on berries, and develop management strategies.

Transporting firewood can spread plant pests such as the emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), which was discovered in Lower Michigan, United States of America in 2002. In 2005, Michigan banned the transport of hardwood firewood northwards across the Mackinac Bridge, which connects Lower and Upper Michigan. In 2005–2011, 479 drivers of 11 commercial vehicles and 468 private vehicles were interviewed. Firewood was collected in every month of the year, with most firewood collected in June–September. Of the 468 private vehicles surveyed, 400 carried firewood originating from Michigan, 64 carried it from 19 other American states, and four carried it from three Canadian provinces. Most vehicles (93%) were bound for Upper Michigan, 4% were bound for eight other American states, and 3% were bound for four Canadian provinces. Drivers transported 1–275 pieces of firewood, with 33% of drivers having 1–10 pieces and 87% having up to 50 pieces. Surrendered firewood represented 19 tree genera – 18 hardwood genera and one conifer. Of 59 vehicles carrying ash (Fraxinus) firewood, 15 had firewood with A. planipennis signs. Firewood was transported mainly for camping (76%), for weight (15%), and to be used at cottages (5%).

The greenhouse cucumber pests, Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), Frankliniella occidentalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), and Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae), are major threats to the production of greenhouse cucumbers (Cucurbitaceae) in Lebanon. The development of insecticide resistance by these pests has prompted the use of alternative and sustainable pest management strategies. In this study, we used integrated pest management strategies, including the release of the biological control agents, Amblyseius swirskii Athias-Henriot (Mesostigmata: Phytoseiidae) and Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot (Mesostigmata: Phytoseiidae), to control whitefly, thrips, and two-spotted spider mite populations on greenhouse cucumber plants in two commercial production sites (sites A and B). We also compared the efficacy of pest population suppression using the integrated pest management strategy with that of chemical pest control. Our results show that biological control effectively maintains the cucumber pest populations below the economic threshold when coupled with additional integrated pest management measures. In addition, we show that biological control agents were equally or more effective in pest population suppression compared to eight and 12 insecticidal and acaricidal sprays performed in the control greenhouses at sites A and B, respectively. Altogether, our results show the efficacy of adopting integrated pest management and biological control for pest population suppression in greenhouse cucumber production under Mediterranean environmental conditions.

The banana stem weevil, Odoiporus longicollis Olivier (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an important economic insect pest of bananas throughout the world. In this study, several important volatile substances were analysed to develop a semiochemical-based trapping technique for the control of O. longicollis. Electroantennogram responses of both sexes were associated with electroantennogram-active compounds (1-hexanol, 1-heptanol, cis-3-Nonen-1-ol, methyl jasmonate, and terpenoids such as (–)-linalool, (+)-(1R)-α-pinene, (–)-(1S)-α-pinene, and 1,8-cineole) and then were analysed using a Y-tube olfactometer. The results revealed that only methyl jasmonate and 1-hexanol elicited strong behavioural responses in O. longicollis. These two semiochemicals and the host plant extract were evaluated individually and in a mixture for their efficiencies in attracting O. longicollis in order to develop a semiochemical-based trapping technique. The methyl jasmonate + host plant extract and 1-hexanol + host plant extract mixtures captured more weevils (> 3.5 times) than the host plant extract alone did in both high- and low-altitude regions. The captured weevils were female-dominated, with a mean sex ratio of 1:1.29 (males:females). This is the first report on the use of methyl jasmonate or 1-hexanol and the host plant extract as a potential attractant in mass trapping and managing O. longicollis.

Root feeding by the larvae of multiple Delia species can lead to economic loss in many agricultural crops. Field vegetables are subject to infestations by a species complex composed of Delia radicum (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Anthomyiidae), a pest in brassica crops (Brassicaceae), Delia antiqua (Meigen), believed to cause the majority of crop damage in onions, and the generalists Delia florilega (Zetterstedt), Delia platura (Meigen), and Botanophila fugax (Meigen) (Diptera: Anthomyiidae). Correct species identification is necessary to implement field management strategies, but these species are challenging to identify morphologically. We propose a polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism method as a molecular tool to distinguish between five species of Delia and between two genetic lines of D. platura. The mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 barcode fragment is targeted, then the polymerase chain reaction product digested with four different restriction enzymes (AccI, BsrI, MlyI, and StyI). The BsrI enzyme distinguishes the two genetic lines of D. platura and D. florilega. The MlyI enzyme identifies B. fugax from the Delia species. Combining BsrI, StyI, AccI, and MlyI into double digestion reactions allows for rapid diagnostics among the species tested. Our method was validated using DNA from specimens collected in eastern Canada. This method provides tools in ecological and environmental studies where these species are of interest.

Adelges tsugae Annand (Hemiptera: Adelgidae), a nonindigenous insect pest of hemlock (Tsuga spp.) (Pinaceae) in eastern North America, spends most of its life cycle within an ovisac, which resembles a woolly white mass on twigs. We evaluated the probability of detecting adelgid wool with Velcro®-covered balls when taking an increasing number of samples per tree (field sampling) and number of trees per simulated stand. We examined the relationship between the detection of adelgid wool using this technique and the incidence of A. tsugae-infested twigs by sampling lower-crown branch tips of the same trees. We found that the probability of detecting wool with ball sampling increased with number of ball samples per tree, with number of trees per simulated stand, and with increasing incidence of ovisacs in the lower crown. When sampling an individual tree, we found that 20 ball samples per tree achieved a targeted precision level of 0.75, but when sampling a stand, we found that 10 ball samples per tree took the least time for the range of simulated A. tsugae infestations we tested. These sample sizes are recommended for detection of A. tsugae infestations on an individual tree and in a hemlock stand.