The age-specific mating incidence and mating behaviour of an aphidophagous ladybird beetle Coelophora saucia Mulsant were studied. Males started mating at the age of 4 days. Newly emerged females mated with older males albeit forcibly. The incidence of mating was 100% at the age of 10 days. Courtship involved five steps, viz. approach, watch, examine, mount and attempt, and was male dominated under laboratory conditions. Results indicate that physical cues probably play a role in the initiation of courtship, while chemical signals are probably involved in the continuation of courtship, culminating in intromission. The mating duration, latent period and number of bouts gradually decreased with increase in the number of matings; however, the interval between bouts slightly increased. Pseudo-mating with dead mates was observed in C. saucia. The oviposition period, fecundity and % egg viability were highest in females mated multiple times, while lowest in those that mated once.

In West Africa, Callosobruchus maculatus Fabricius mainly develops on cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers) and sometimes on Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdcourt). A survey on the development of a C. maculatus strain selected on cowpea was undertaken during eight generations on two local varieties of Bambara to determine their level of acceptability and suitability for the pest and its evolution over time and successive generations. When C. maculatus females were in contact with seeds from both Bambara varieties for the first time, they laid fewer eggs on these hosts in comparison with cowpea. However, females that have developed inside Bambara cv. Local Beige seeds deposited more eggs on their hosts of origin from the first generation onwards. The same result was obtained on Bambara cv. Local Striped seeds from the F4 generation onwards. Egg viability was not affected by host variability. On the contrary, the larval survival was significantly reduced on Bambara seeds. Larval survival and intrinsic rates of natural increase were improved on both Bambara varieties with successive generations in comparison to cowpea. Our results demonstrate that in a non-choice situation, C. maculatus is able to develop on both Bambara cv. and even increase its reproduction potential over successive generations, regardless of the climatic variations. The results help to better understand why C. maculatus is becoming a serious concern on Bambara in West Africa where the pest is frequently in contact with this occasional host.

The use of synthetic pesticides among vegetable producers in urban and peri-urban Cotonou, Benin, has been increasing to the extent that certain insect pests have developed resistance to the pesticides. This paper assesses the impact of the farmer field school approach in an integrated pest management (IPM) project that aimed to increase IPM knowledge, adaptation/adoption of IPM options, and appropriate application of pesticides and awareness of related health hazards among vegetable producers in Cotonou. A sample of 54 semi-structured interviews was conducted with the vegetable producers, and a double difference model was used to compare the knowledge and practices before and after the project. The project led to increased knowledge about IPM, which was to some extent adapted into the participants' production systems, although no significant difference was noted for the type of synthetic pesticides used. The producers do adapt their practices when new technologies and practices emerge, but not always in ways that are environmentally sound or healthy.

The biology of the African rice gall midge Orseolia oryzivora Harris and Gagné was investigated in screenhouse and laboratory studies, and its incidence on cultivated wet-season rice was studied in farmers' fields during the 2006 and 2007 rice-growing seasons at two localities in Nigeria. This insect is nocturnal, and mating takes place immediately after emergence. Both mated and unmated females lay eggs, with mated females laying on average 389 eggs each, and unmated females laying about 87 sterile eggs. The egg stage takes on average 2.5 days. Larval development takes 3.6, 3.3 and 3.0 days for the first, second and third instars, respectively, while the pre-pupal and pupal stages take 2.8 and 6.1 days, respectively. Adult females live for 48–78 h, while males live for 24–30 h. The life cycle of O. oryzivora is completed within 21–24 days under screenhouse conditions. The adult male is slender and about 3 mm long, while the female is more rounded with a 4 mm long body and a bright red abdomen. The insect produces unisexual progeny. Field incidence is low at the beginning of the rainy season, peaking with the peak in rainfall and humidity that concurs with the vegetative stage of the crop. The population of the midge declines as temperatures rise. In conclusion, prediction models may be developed based on weather parameters, to aid in forecasting the field incidence of O. oryzivora and its management strategies. Furthermore, it may be possible to reduce the damage caused by O. oryzivora to rice crops by altering planting period and taking into account environmental factors.

In Cameroon, the demand for hive products is growing. Honey and pollen yields are low in this country, partly because of the poor knowledge of the apicultural value of the flora. To determine the apicultural value of Combretum nigricans Lepr. ex Guill. & Perr., Erythrina sigmoidea Hua, Lannea kerstingii Engl. & K. Krause and Vernonia amygdalina Delile, Apis mellifera adansonii Latreille activity was observed on the flowers of these plants in Ngaoundéré from December 2001 to May 2002 and from December 2002 to May 2003. The flowers of each plant species were prospected for at least 4 days per month, between 07.00 and 18.00 h, for recording the nectar and/or pollen foraging behaviour of A. m. adansonii workers. Results show that A. m. adansonii harvested the nectar of each plant species. In addition, L. kerstingii and V. amygdalina were visited for pollen. The greatest number of workers foraging simultaneously on a plant varied from 26 (E. sigmoidea) to 4200 (V. amygdalina). Apis mellifera adansonii workers that visited flowers of a given plant species once generally remained with these nectar and/or pollen sources throughout the observation period. Thus C. nigricans, E. sigmoidea, L. kerstingii and V. amygdalina could be cultivated and protected to increase honey production; L. kerstingii and V. amygdalina could enable beekeepers to increase their pollen production as a hive product. During foraging, A. m. adansonii workers increased the pollination possibilities of each plant species.

In the present study, immediate and trans-generational effects of parental diets (i.e. abundant and scarce) were investigated in a ladybird beetle Anegleis cardoni (Weise). Prey scarcity prolonged pre-oviposition period and reduced fecundity and egg viability. Reduced survival and developmental rate of progeny was recorded under prey-scarce conditions. The progeny of parents reared under prey-scarce conditions developed more slowly than that of those reared under prey-abundant conditions, regardless of the progeny diets. This study indicates the existence of parental diet effects on progeny survival and developmental attributes.

During 2007, phytophagous thrips on soybean (Glycine max Merr.) were collected, and differentiated according to sex, genus and species. Scouting for thrips was carried out on leaves and flowers in two consecutive plantings in Adjuntas, Isabela and Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico. A total of nine genera were found, of which eight species were identified. These included Frankliniella cephalica, Frankliniella gossypiana, Frankliniella insularis, Frankliniella schultzei, Caliothrips phaseoli, Neohydatothrips inversus, Rhamphothrips sp., Scirtothrips dorsalis and Thrips palmi. The last species was the most common in the three locations. However, F. schultzei was the most abundant species in Juana Diaz.