In this study, we analysed the applicability of DNA barcodes for delimitation of 79 specimens of 13 species of nonbiting midges in the subfamily Tanypodinae (Diptera: Chironomidae) from São Paulo State, Brazil. Our results support DNA barcoding as an excellent tool for species identification and for solving taxonomic conflicts in genus Labrundinia. Molecular analysis of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene sequences yielded taxon identification trees, supporting 13 cohesive species clusters, of which three similar groups were subsequently linked to morphological variation at the larval and pupal stage. Additionally, another cluster previously described by means of morphology was linked to molecular markers. We found a distinct barcode gap, and in some species substantial interspecific pairwise divergences (up to 19.3%) were observed, which permitted identification of all analysed species. The results also indicated that barcodes can be used to associate life stages of chironomids since COI was easily amplified and sequenced from different life stages with universal barcode primers.

Alloxysta Förster, 1869 (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) type material of 19 nominal species deposited in the Canadian National Collection of Insects (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) and the United States National Museum of Natural History (Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America) were studied. Nine species are treated as valid: A. australiae (Ashmead, 1900), A. commensuratus Andrews, 1978, A. japonicus (Ashmead, 1904), A. lachni (Ashmead, 1885), A. longiventris Baker, 1896, A. minuscula Andrews, 1978, A. nothofagi Andrews, 1976, A. vandenboschi Andrews, 1978, and A. xanthopsis (Ashmead, 1896). The following synonymies are established: A. affinis (Baker, 1896) and A. quebeci Andrews, 1978 junior synonyms of A. castanea (Hartig, 1841); A. alaskensis Ashmead, 1902 and A. coniferensis Andrews, 1978 junior synonyms of A. macrophadna (Hartig, 1841); A. bicolor (Baker, 1896) and A. anthracina Andrews, 1978 junior synonyms of A. obscurata (Hartig, 1840); A. dicksoni Andrews, 1978 junior synonym of A. pilipennis (Hartig, 1840); and A. leguminosa (Weld, 1920), A. megourae (Ashmead, 1887), and A. rauchi Andrews, 1978 junior synonyms of A. brevis (Thomson, 1862). The type material of A. schlingeri Andrews, 1978 and A. halli Andrews, 1978 could not be found and we consider them as nomina dubia. Alloxysta vandenboschi Andrews is removed from synonymy with A. obscurata and considered a valid species. Comments on the type material are given. Complete redescriptions and images are presented for the valid species.

Apalus bimaculatus (Linnaeus) (Coleoptera: Meloidae) is a beetle currently managed for conservation in Sweden. The species inhabits at-risk ephemeral and patchily distributed sandy habitats. However, little is known about its ecology and the factors important for its distribution. We censused 158 discrete sand patches within 31 potential sites for A. bimaculatus and examined which environmental variables predicted the probability of finding the beetle. Apalus bimaculatus was found at 17 sites, its presence at sand-patch scale was positively correlated with sand-patch area, sand temperature, and medium-sized sand grains. Although the beetle is assumed to be a parasite on the solitary bee, Colletes cunicularius (Linnaeus) (Hymenoptera: Colletidae), presence of the bee was a very weak predictor for A. bimaculatus, while other sand-living Hymenoptera were a strong predictor. At site-level scale, the beetle was positively correlated with total amount of sandy habitat and presence of sand-living Hymenoptera. Our study suggests that management strategies for this species should not consider sandy habitats equally. Rather, management efforts should focus on maintaining sites with larger total sandy areas, creating larger sand patches with medium-grained sand and a high degree of sun exposure. We also highlight that biotic interactions between the beetle and sand-living Hymenoptera are still poorly understood but potentially important for successful A. bimaculatus management.

Preference-performance hypothesis in host selection by herbivorous insects predicts selective oviposition on plant on which the offspring maximise fitness. The seed parasitoid wasp, Macrodasyceras hirsutum Kamijo (Hymenoptera: Torymidae) selectively lays the eggs into the fertilised seeds of Ilex integra Thunberg (Aquifoliaceae). Only one larva develops in a seed. Therefore, the hypothesis predicts a uniform distribution pattern of wasp eggs among fertilised seeds. Dissection of 531 berries showed that M. hirsutum deposited one to five eggs into a fertilised seed. Iwao's patchiness regression suggested a uniform distribution pattern of M. hirsutum eggs among fertilised seeds at the scales of tree and berry and their random distribution pattern among berries at the tree scale. Destroying the connection of seeds within berries revealed that female wasps randomly selected berries for oviposition in most trees. Generalised linear mixed models showed that the number of fertilised seeds in a berry could not explain the number of eggs in a seed but could explain the number of eggs in a berry. Therefore, this study shows that the wasp females do not distinguish between berries with different numbers of fertilised seeds but distinguish between seeds harbouring different numbers of eggs, which supports the hypothesis.

Surveys of dung beetles establish the dominance of exotic taxa associated with cattle dung on native grasslands in southern Alberta, Canada. Of the 12 species recovered, eight were of European origin and comprised 92.2% of the total catch of 187 963 beetles. Most common were Chilothorax distinctus (Müller), Onthophagus nuchicornis (Linnaeus), and Colobopterus erraticus (Linnaeus) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). The abundance of C. distinctus has been known in the region since the 1920s, whereas that of O. nuchicornis only was first reported in the 1990s. The abundance of C. erraticus has not previously been observed in the region and identifies the species as the newest addition to the endemic fauna. The diversity of native species on pastures in southern Canada and adjacent states is depauperate, such that the establishment of European taxa has appreciably increased levels of bioturbation in pasture ecosystems. The success of these exotic species on northern pastures may reflect a level of cold-tolerance greater than that of most native species.

To investigate how bee (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) communities repopulate habitat following severe disturbances, we compared assemblages in new, regenerating landfill sites planted in 2003, recent landfill sites planted in 2000, and control meadows relatively undisturbed for >40 years. All sites were identically sampled using pan traps and sweep netting, from early May to late September 2003, equalising collection effort among sites. In addition, we carried out five-minute aerial net samplings wherever sites contained large patches of wildflowers. We predicted that abundance and diversity of bees would be highest in recent sites and lowest in new sites. This prediction was partially supported: bees were most abundant in recent sites followed by control, then new sites, but species richness was highest (82 species) in recent sites, followed by new sites (67 species), then control (66 species). A randomisation analysis showed that there were more species than expected in new sites and fewer than expected in control sites. Differences in blossom availability likely explain differences in bee abundance and diversity among habitat regeneration levels. Overall, our results suggest that the bee community recolonised newly available sites immediately in the first year and that bee diversity and abundance increased for at least three years, subsequently declining between three and 40 years.

House sparrows (Passer domesticus (Linnaeus), Aves: Passeridae) were introduced into eastern North America in the mid 1800s and have been expanding their range since then. We collected sparrows from two sites in Alberta, Canada (Edmonton: 58 birds; Onefour: 13 birds), and compared symbiont richness and prevalence between them and between Alberta and two states in the United States of America. We found 17 species of symbionts: 13 mites, three insects, and one trematode. Richness of symbionts in Alberta was very similar to that in the United States of America sites. The most striking difference was absence of the feather mite Proctophyllodes troncatus Robin (Acari: Proctophyllodidae) on sampled hosts in Alberta.

Stormwater catch basins form part of artificial drainage systems in urban areas and can provide larval habitat for mosquito vector species of West Nile virus (WNv), such as Culex pipiens Linnaeus (Diptera: Culicidae). We evaluated the impact of management techniques and targeted applications of larvicide on larval populations of this potential WNv mosquito vector species in catch basins from the Lower Mainland of Vancouver and on Vancouver Island of British Columbia, Canada. A mixed effects logistic regression model described the relationship between larval presence and larvicide treatment while controlling for other parameters. Parameter estimates showed that larvicide treatment reduced the odds of larvae presence by a factor of ∼7.23. The model also revealed relationships between larval presence and water temperature and adjacent land use but larvicide treatment consistently reduced the presence of larvae regardless of these other factors. This knowledge can now be used to prioritise and target control efforts to most efficiently reduce WNv mosquito vector populations, and most effectively reduce the risk of WNv transmission to humans. A similar research strategy could be applied to emerging threats from other potential mosquito vectors of disease around the world, to help lower the incidence of mosquito-borne disease.