New paper!

Driss L et al.: "First study of the diversity and relative importance of parasitoids of nymphs and adults of the hazelnut pest Palomena prasina (L.) (Hemiptera, Pentatomidae)".

Palomena prasina (L.) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), the Green Shield Bug, is an important pest of hazelnut crops in southern Europe. While biological control strategies against this pest have focused on using egg parasitoids, those targeting nymphs and adults have been neglected. In this study, we investigated the community of parasitoids of P. prasina nymphs and adults present in France by identifying the species and comparing the rates of overwintering and spring-summer parasitism. Palomena prasina individuals were sampled in overwintering sites, emergence traps during early spring, and hazelnut orchards and natural habitats during the active period. Parasitoids were collected by dissecting collected adults, and from cages where adults and nymphs were reared. The parasitoids were identified based on both morphology or the COI gene. Of the adults collected during the wintering and the active periods, 32.8% and 15.2%, respectively, were parasitised. The parasitoids belonged to the Braconidae and Tachinidae families. Braconidae were exclusively represented by Aridelus rufotestaceus Tobias, accounting for 100% of the parasitoids identified in the winter period and the vast majority of those present during the P. prasina active period. Tachinidae were represented by, based on molecular and morphological approaches, Ectophasia sp., Gymnosoma sp., Phasia aurigera (Egger) and, based on morphology only, Trichopoda pictipennis Bigot. Aridelus rufotestaceus and T. pictipennis are reported for the first time as parasitoids of P. prasina. Given A. rufotestaceus abundance and its impact on species of Pentatomidae closely related to P. prasina, we consider that this parasitoid shows great promise as a biological control agent.

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New paper!

Shestakov L.: "Variability of Different Courtship Song Elements of the Stink Bug Carpocoris purpureipennis".

We have discovered a new type of courtship song in the stink bug Carpocoris purpureipennis (De Geer, 1773). The signal has a complex structure and consists of phrases comprising series of pulses. Each series contains a bipartite architecture of two functionally distinct elements: a highly stereotyped Part A and a highly variable Part B. Behavioral assays confirmed that the stable Part A is essential for species recognition, as halving its duration reduced female search success to 0% compared to 30% in the control. Conversely, modifying the variable Part B by halving or doubling its duration did not affect female responsiveness (p = 1.0). Latency and search duration further confirmed that only signals with an intact Part A elicited complete search behavior. We conclude that the stable Part A functions as a species-specific recognition cue, while the variable Part B may convey information about male quality or individual identity.

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New paper!

Golub V.B. et al.: "Second species of the genus Paleocader (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Tingidae) from Rovno amber".

Eight species of the genus Paleocader Froeschner, 1996, are currently known from the late Eocene of Central Europe, seven from Baltic amber: P. quinquecarinatus (Germar & Berendt, 1856), P. avitus (Drake, 1950), P. strictus Golub & Popov, 1998, P. serafini Heiss, 2008, P. gusenleitnerorum Heiss, 2013, P. balticus Heiss & Golub, 2021 and P. pulchellus Heiss & Golub, 2021 and one from Rovno amber: P. rovnensis Heiss & Golub, 2021. Heiss & Golub (2021) provided a key to these. A nymph of Paleocader sp. is known from Baltic amber and its integument microstructure was described (Golub, 2004). Here, we describe and illustrate P. rasnitsyni sp. nov., the second adult Paleocader from Rovno amber.

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