Entomologist's Monthly Magazine - Vol. 160, No. 2, 2024
Published: 4/26/2024
Article Details for this issue
EDITORIAL Selecting a title for your article
By: ANDREW WAKEHAM-DAWSON
Page: 79
Type: Editorial
BOOK REVIEW WASPS OF THE WORLD: A GUIDE TO EVERY FAMILY by Simon van Noort & Gavin Broad
By: ANDREW WAKEHAM-DAWSON
Page: 80
Type: Book Review
From small beginnings… population explosions of migrant Belenois aurota (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) in Türkiye, with rare observations in Syria and a first record for Cyprus
By: EDDIE JOHN, ONAT BASBAY, NIHAT KAYMAZ, EREN AKSOYLU, HASAN BAGLAR & MUDAR SALIMEH
Page: 81–100
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
Incursions of Belenois aurota (Fabricius, 1793), a vigorous, tropical migrant pierid, have
become more common in recent years in countries of the southern Levant, with rare appearances
in south-eastern Türkiye. Here, we report on the species presence in other Levant countries of the
eastern Mediterranean, including Mediterranean Syria and, for the first time, in Cyprus, on which
island B. aurota was discovered in 2023. We also report on experiences in south-eastern Türkiye,
where, during the same autumn period, extensive breeding resulted in at least three local broods
leading to significant population irruptions and dispersal. Likely migration routes via the Jordan
Rift Valley System into countries of the Levant are discussed, and we introduce an additional
migratory route east of the Lebanon, Anti-Lebanon and Silsilat al-Jibal as-Sa?iliyah (Latakia)
mountain ranges, not previously recognized to our knowledge. The value of the Tigris River as a
conduit for migrant butterflies from the Middle East into the provinces of south-eastern Türkiye
had previously been documented and is again well illustrated by numerous observations in southeastern
Türkiye along the river’s route south from its origins in the mountains of eastern Türkiye.
Although B. aurota is recognized as an obligate migrant, it is considered that 2023 weather
systems assisted the arrival of the species into the northern Levant and south-eastern Türkiye.
A larval enigma: Erotides cosnardi (Chevrolat) or Platycis minutus (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Lycidae)?
By: MARTIN L. LUFF & KEITH N.A. ALEXANDER
Page: 101–104
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
A specimen of a previously unknown lycid larva of either Erotides cosnardi (Chevrolat, 1831)
or Platycis minutes (Fabricius, 1787) is described and figured from British material, and is
compared with previously described larvae of each genus.
The Scarabaeoidea Latreille (Coleoptera) of the Madeiran Archipelago
By: ANTÓNIO FRANQUINHO AGUIAR, MIGUEL ANDRADE, DÉLIA CRAVO & YSABEL GONÇALVES
Page: 105–118
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
We present an updated checklist for Madeira Archipelago’s Scarabaeoidea Latreille, 1802,
fauna. Considerable change has been observed over the last 15 years: four alien Cetoniidae
(Cetonia aurataeformis, Protaetia cuprea brancoi, P. opaca and Oxythyrea funesta) have started
to breed successfully in Madeira and Porto Santo islands. The following species (based on only a
few specimens) are added as new records: Geotrupes spiniger (Geotrupidae) and Oryctes
nasicornis grypus (Dynastidae). Both these families are also recorded for the first time.
A new genus of halictine bees from Central America (Hymenoptera: Halictidae)
By: MICHAEL S. ENGEL
Page: 119–130
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
A new genus and species of halictine bees (Halictinae: Halictini: Mexalictina) is described and
figured from a mid-elevation forest in northwestern Costa Rica. Meliamelitta vulcanus gen. and sp.
n. is allied to Mexalictus Eickwort but differs in the structure of the labral basal elevation, the
obtuse epistomal sulcus, the elongate mandibles, the pectinate inner metatibial spur, the unique
pterostigma, and the sculpturing of the basal area of the propodeum, among other features. A key
is appended to the genera and subgenera of Mesoamerican, Central American, and Caribbean
Halictinae to facilitate the recognition of the genus.
The Dacnusini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) parasitoids of Agromyzidae (Diptera) feeding on Equisetum L. (Equisetaceae)
By: H. CHARLES J. GODFRAY & BARRY P. WARRINGTON
Page: 131–137
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
Several species of Liriomyza (Agromyzidae) feed in stems and leaves of Equisetum
(Equisetaceae) but only one, L. virgo (Zetterstedt), is known to be parasitised by Dacnusini wasps.
Chorebus glabriculus (Thomson), a species whose biology was hitherto unknown, was reared
from L. virgo in the north of England. This is the third apparently specialist Dacnusini to be reared
from this host and an illustrated key is provided to tell them apart with notes on non-Dacnusini
parasitoids of Equisetum-feeding agromyzids.
BOOK REVIEW HONEY BEE BIOLOGY by B.R. Johnson
By: MICHAEL S. ENGEL
Page: 138–140
Type: Book Review
Satyrium nikiforovi Weidenhoffer (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) newly recorded from Tajikistan
By: ABDULAZIZ M. DAVLATOV
Page: 141–143
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
A first record of Satyrium nikiforovi Weidenhoffer, 2004, is made for the Rangontau Ridge
south of Dushanbe in Tajikistan. The species was previously known only from its type locality in
Uzbekistan; the current record represents the second finding of this taxon and extends its known
range.
Solenopsis abdita Thompson (Formicidae: Myrmicinae) new to Britain
By: MATTHEW T. HAMER & CLIVE R. TURNER
Page: 144–150
Type: Paper
Synopsis:
The ant genus Solenopsis Westwood, 1840, includes over 200 currently recognised species and
subspecies. About 20 larger predatory species are called ‘fire ants’, while the rest are mostly
small, inconspicuous species commonly known as ‘thief ants’. Several fire ant species have
established populations outside their native Solenopsis ranges, where they can be a major pest,
e.g., the Red imported fire ant (S. invicta Buren, 1972). In contrast, few thief ants have been
recorded outside their native ranges and none are known as significant pests. Here, we report a
New World (Florida) thief ant, Solenopsis abdita Thompson, 1989, with an established population
in the artificially-heated greenhouse at The Eden Project, Cornwall, England. This is the earliest
known record of S. abdita in Europe. We provide a suite of measurements, high-resolution
images, and diagnostic morphological characters useful to help others identify this species.
Dr R.R. Askew awarded Distinguished Research Medal for his work with Hymenoptera, October 2023
By: MALCOLM JENNINGS
Page: 151–152
Type: Editorial