The egg parasitoid Cleruchoides noackae Lin & Huber, 2007 (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) is originated from Australia and the main biological control agent of Thaumastocoris peregrinus Carpenter & Dellapé, 2006 (Hemiptera: Thaumastocoridae) on Eucalyptus L'Hér (Myrtaceae). Companies that grow Eucalyptus are in need of a mass rearing protocol to increase the number of individuals produced and improve the quality of this parasitoid. The aim of this study was to define a protocol for mass rearing C. noackae in T. peregrinus eggs, based in the evaluations of the key biological attributes of this parasitoid in the parental and F1 generations, after the cold storage of the parasitised host eggs. Two methods were tested as C. noackae rearing protocols. In the first, parasitised eggs of T. peregrinus by C. noackae were cold stored for 7 days after being left in a climatic chamber at 24 ± 2°C, 60 ± 10% RH and a photoperiod of 12:12 (light:dark) h (standard environmental conditions) for 3, 6, 9 or 12 days. In the second, T. peregrinus eggs parasitised by C. noackae were maintained in a climatic chamber under standard environmental conditions for 6 days, after which these eggs were cold-stored for 0 (control), 7, 14 or 21 days. Parasitism (%), and the development period (parasitism to adult) and female proportion (%) of C. noackae were evaluated. Based on the results (parental generation: parasitism, around 45%; F1 generation: parasitism, around 55%; development period, around 16 days; female proportion, around 60%), eggs should be stored at 5°C on the sixth day after parasitism by C. noackae and maintained at this temperature for 7 days. The cold storage of T. peregrinus eggs, after parasitism, can be included in the mass rearing protocols of the parasitoid C. noackae.

Laboratory experiments carried out in Jamaica in 1963 showed that the number of eggs matured by blood-fed females of Leptoconops becquaerti (Kieff.) was only slightly increased when they were allowed access to a source of dilute honey during the subsequent period of egg maturation. A majority of the females imbibed some honey, and over half took large amounts; survival was better in groups given honey than in those not. The amount of fluid in the crop of field-collected females indicated that more than half had fed on nectar. In the laboratory, field-collected females took on average more than their own weight of blood.

Flight activity characteristics of Chortoicetes terminifera (Wlk.) were recorded in adults suspended on a simple flight balance in a wind tunnel. Ninety-one per cent, of flights by post-teneral (>5-day-old) insects lasted less than 60 s, and only 11% of adults flew for a full 20-min test period at 30°C. The flight capacity ranged from a few or many short flights to continuous flights. Females flew for a greater proportion of the time than males. Flight activity increased with food-deprivation, and only fully hardened (>9-day-old) insects flew continuously throughout a 45-min test period at 26–41°C. Gravid females also made long flights. The frequencies of flight durations by laboratory-reared insects were strikingly similar to the day flight of milling field populations in eastern Australia. Flight performance observations indicated that lift declines with time in flight, wing-beat frequency initially being 33·2 Hz in males and 30·0 Hz in females. The results are discussed in relation to field studies.

Au mois de mars de l'année 1933 j'ai accepté l'invitation de Monsieur E. Guest, Officier inspecteur de l'Agriculture en Iraq et en même temps Botaniste, de visiter l'Iraq pour lui aider dans quelques travaux qu'il voulait poursuivre, et le 30 mars j'ai quitté Jérusalem, accompagné par Monsieur Guest et par Monsieur M. Zohary, mon assistantet collaborateur. Arrivant à Baghdad les premiers jours d'avril, j'ai été invité par Monsieur le Ministre des Economies et des Communications et par le Directeur Général de l'Agriculture de faire cette visite au compte du Gouvernement Iraquien et de m'intéresser pendant mon tour spécialement aux problèmes de la botanique appliquée et particulièrement au problème des sauterelles et du reboisement et de l'afforestation. J'ai accepté volontiers cette invitation. Il me fallait prolonger le séjour en Iraq de dix jours de plus qu'il a été projeté d'abord. Ces dix jours étaient presque entièrement consacrés à l'étude de la végétation des champs de ponte des sauterelles.

♂ (Type). Antennae somewhat longer than the head and pronotum together. Frontal ridge flat, punctured, gradually narrowed to the apex, its margins obtuse. Fastigium of the vertex slightly concave, oval, with rounded apex and almost smoothed lateral carinulae. Occiput with a scarcely distinguishable median carinula.

The persistence, as assessed by biological and chemical methods, of field deposits on apples from two spray programmes, each of DDT, carbaryl or azinphos-methyl, was compared throughout eight weeks following the first application in an orchard in south-eastern England. Newly emerged larvae of the codling moth, Cydia pomonella (L.), were used to assess, in the laboratory, the biological activity of the deposits. The spray programmes studied were (1) two applications of conventional concentrations (i.e., 0·1 per cent, for DDT and for carbaryl, 0·04 per cent, for azinphos-methyl) three weeks apart and (2) three applications of half these concentrations at two-weekly intervals. DDT wettable powder, carbaryl and azinphos-methyl were compared in 1961, DDT emulsion, DDT wettable powder and carbaryl in 1963. Results of biological and chemical assessment of the deposits are presented graphically. Over-all, the performance of the three-application programmes was as satisfactory as that of the two-application programmes, although a smaller amount of chemical was used. The serious reduction in deposit caused by heavy rain shortly after the first application of DDT wettable powder and of carbaryl in 1961 is noted. In the absence of heavy rain, carbaryl was biologically the most persistent, but the best performances of the other chemicals were almost as good as that of carbaryl.

LD50 values of fresh deposits obtained by field spraying were shown to be similar to those obtained by laboratory dipping.

Comparison of the toxicity of fresh and weathered field deposits of similar magnitude indicated that the biologically available proportion of a DDT deposit from either formulation decreases as a result of weathering. This phenomenon was not found to occur with carbaryl and either not at all or to a much lesser extent with azinphos-methyl.

The deposits obtained in the comparison of the spray programmes were separated into their fresh and aged components, so that differences in the contribution to the final deposit provided by each application could be seen. With the very persistent DDT emulsion, only about half of the six-week deposits was composed of chemical from the final application, but, with the much less persistent carbaryl and azinphos methyl, the six-week deposits were almost entirely derived from the final application. By substitution in an equation to obtain the rates of decay of the deposits from the three-application programmes of all chemicals, it is shown that deposits from the second and third applications were, in all cases, more persistent than those from the first. Possible reasons for this difference are discussed.

The significance, in terms of field control, of the results for the larvicidal activity of the deposits from the different spray programmes is indicated. It is concluded that data on the LD90 of insecticidal deposits on apples, together with measurement of their persistence in the field, can be used to assess the probable field performance of codling-moth insecticides and to determine the most efficient means of employing them, although the deposit level that ensures 90 per cent, larval mortality in the field is higher than the LD90 determined in the laboratory.

Exitianus curvipenis (representing a new sixth species-group) from rice-field grasses in Nigeria, and E. upenis (okahandia-group) from open grassland in Abyssinia are described as new.

Vast populations of Meligethes heteropus Gerstaecker have recently been found on millet in Nigeria. The damage they cause is described and the previously unknown male is described and figured. The validity of characters previously used in the diagnosis of Meligethes is discussed.

The inheritance of white eye in Lucilia cuprina (Wied.) was investigated by means of a series of back-crosses repeated through ten generations. Since an approximate 1:1 ratio of white-eyed: red-eyed flies was observed throughout, it is concluded that white eye is due to a single recessive gene (w). Earlier work establishing that w is on an autosome is discussed.

A test for the existence of a linkage group containing genes for white eye and dieldrin-susceptibility was then made. The exposure of back-cross progeny to discriminating levels of insecticide, and the pattern of mortality observed with scalar concentrations of dieldrin, indicated that genes for white eye (w) and dieldrin-susceptibility (rdi) are on different chromosomes.

Experiments have been carried out on the insecticidal action of p-, m- and o-iodo-nitrobenzene and their dichlorides. The real toxicity of these substances was estimated with the micro-injection method of Dresden, the contact action with the petri-dish method of Krijgsman & Berger. The real toxicity of the p- compounds appeared to be somewhat higher than that of their isomers. The dichlorides showed a somewhat higher toxicity than the other compounds. The contact action of the p- compounds is much higher than that of their isomers. This is caused by considerable differences in permeation velocity. The position of the iodine atom affects the permeation velocity very considerably but has much less influence on the real toxicity. It is suggested that the enhanced effect of the p- position on the permeation velocity is a general rule.

P-iodo-nitrobenzenedichloride shows such a high permeation velocity that it must be considered as a promising contact insecticide despite the fact that its real toxicity is low as compared with several other modern insecticides.

The insecticidal Potencies of DDT, dieldrin, isobenzan, malathion, diazinon and arprocarb were assessed both by topical application of oil solutions to test insects any by exposing the latter to residues on glass, using young male and non-pregnant female adults of Glossina morsitans submorsitans Newst., G. austebi Newst., and Chrysomya putoria (Wied.).

By topical application, dieldrin and isobenzan were 10–23 times as potent as DDT, but their residues were on ly 2.2–6.3 times as effective; arprocarb was likewise more effective by topical application than as a residue, being, respectively, 9 and 3.5 times as effective as DDT. In contrast, diazinon, and, especially, malathion tended to be more efficient, relative to DDT, as residues than might be expected from application tests.

It is presumed that the difference between the ralative potency of an insecticide as a reesidue and as applied topically reflects the physical factors affecting contamination and penetration of the insect, but these matters have nor been stuided with tsetse flies.

The adults of the weevil, Euthyrrhinus meditabundus, Fabr., were frequently taken in the forest country to the south of Darwin, Northern Territory, and on several occasions they were bred from the branches of two species of indigenous trees and from custard apples, Poincianas and two unidentified species of introduced ornamental trees growing in the Darwin Botanic Gardens. As a rule the infestation of these trees was not heavy, although Poincianas occasionally showed considerable injury. Mango trees, which were frequently badly damaged and sometimes destroyed by termites (Mastotermes darwinensis), appeared to be immune from attack by Euthyrrhinus, even when growing in close proximity to infested trees of other kinds.

Male.—General coloration fuscous, with the vertex of the head, pectus, underside of abdomen, anal region, legs and base of antennal shaft mouse-grey. Fore-wings, above, covered with mouse-grey scales, amongst which are scattered irregular patches of fuscous-black scales, these predominating but forming no definite pattern; beneath, covered more uniformly with fuscous-black scales, except in the region between the first anal vein and the inner margin, which is covered with narrow elongate oval mouse-grey scales. Hind-wings above and beneath covered with fuscous scales, the inner margin furnished with long fuscous hairs. Cilia of both wings fuscous-black.

It is known that, in solutions of some organic solvents such as pyridine, chloroform, ethylene dichloride and acetone, rotenone changes by oxidation to various derivatives, giving the solution a characteristic yellow colour (Jones & Haller, 1931). There is an accompanying loss in toxicity. Now that various intermediate solvents for rotenone in oils are being studied, it becomes of interest to know the stability of rotenone in these solutions.

Investigations undertaken by the writer involved the determining and sexing of a large number of fleas daily, and it became clear that this would be a laborious process unless an apparatus could be designed which would facilitate separation and examination of the insects by making the process as automatic as possible. The technique finally used, though designed primarily for handling fleas, could be adapted for use with other insects of comparable size where examination under magnification is necessary.

Pomello and lemon seedlings kept for different time periods in various nutrient solutions were examined for their degree of infestation with Aceria sheldoni (Ewing), the citrus bud mite. Chemical analyses indicated that seedling leaves and buds had a higher nitrogen content in a potassium-free solution, and a lower nitrogen content in a nitrogen-free solution, when compared with their respective contents in a standard solution; in buds these differences were also shown by certain amino acids. Infested seedlings kept in a potassium-free solution had significantly more mites than those kept in a nitrogen-free solution, and the latter had significantly fewer mites than those kept in a standard solution. No increase in mite populations was noted on seedlings kept in high-nitrogen solutions. The relationship between the levels of potassium, nitrogen, magnesium and manganese and the mite population is discussed. No effect on mite reproduction was noted when sodium or calcium was used as a substitute for potassium.

The two isomers demeton-O and demeton-S which occur as a mixture called demeton in the commercial insecticide Systox act on Aphis fabae Scop. as contact and systemic insecticides and as fumigants.

When applied as a contact insecticide or systemically via the roots from solution or from soil, demeton-S was about ten times as toxic to Aphis fabae on broad beans as demeton-O. Using demeton-S containing 32P it was shown that, when applied to the roots, radioactive material passed to all parts of the plants and that the concentration in the aerial parts was higher than in the roots. Leaf samples were more active than stem samples. By radioassay and by the cut tap-root technique it appeared that the lethal dose of demeton-S was equivalent to about 1·0 mg./kg. of fresh plant tissue. The lethal dose of demeton-O by the cut tap-root technique was 3·0 mg./kg. From solutions, the plants first absorbed demeton-S preferentially, then water preferentially. Demeton-S was more rapidly absorbed from sand than from soil.

Both isomers were translocated from older to younger leaves of broad beans usually in sufficient quantities to kill Aphids but the results were more consistent with demeton-S. The quantity translocated downwards was small. A low light intensity before and after treatment reduced the quantity of demeton-S translocated. There was also a reduction in the quantity translocated when the plants were only shaded before treatment. One day of shading was sufficient to cause the maximum reduction.

Solutions of the two isomers gave off toxic vapours and plants treated via the roots gave off toxic vapours from the foliage.

Medical Officers and others interested in tropical sanitation often find great difficulty in rapidly identifying adult mosquitos. Four Anophelines have been found in the Zanzibar Protectorate, two of these being well-known malaria carriers. The identification of the two latter with the aid of a pocket lens is quite simple.