Vol 98, No 3 (2018)

New data on the distribution and taxonomy of Agonopterix species in Russia are given. The following new synonymy is established: Agonopterix anticella (Erschoff, 1877) = A. abjectella (Christoph, 1882), syn. n., = A. japonica Saito, 1980, syn. n.; A. pullella Hannemann, 1971 = A. dubatolovi Lvovsky, 1995, syn. n. A new species A. volgensissp. n. is described from the Middle Volga Region. Two species are recorded from Russia for the first time, both represented by new subspecies: A. ivinskisi daghestanicasubsp. n. from Daghestan and Armenia, and A. kisojiana dilutasubsp. n. from the southern part of the Russian Far East.

Laboratory experiments demonstrate that the adult emergence rhythms of two Trichogramma species (T. telengai Sor. and T. principium Sug. et Sor.) significantly depend on photoperiod. The synchronicity of adult emergence is maximal at day lengths of 12–16 h. Under longer days (18–20 h) adult emergence is extended, whereas under very short days (4–8 h) a substantial proportion of adults emerge before light-on. The pattern of T. telengai emergence under day length of 4 h suggests the possibility of the existence of two fractions (the first that emerges in the dark and the second that waits for light-on) which results in two peaks of emergence. As a whole, these data agree well with the hypothesis of the periods of “potential readiness” and “obligate activity” forwarded by V.B. Chernyshev. The results of the study can be used for optimization of the methods for laboratory and mass rearing of Trichogramma species.

The results of an experimental study of ethanedinitrile toxicity to insects inside the larval tunnels are described. Timber fumigation with ethanedinitrile at a dosage of 50 g/m³ for 24 h resulted in complete elimination of the adults of Sitophilus granarius L. inside larval tunnels in wood up to 9 cm deep.

The bionomics of Leptochilus membranaceus (Morawitz) was studied in Crimea. The species is confined to herbaceous xerophytic habitats with sparse vegetation and has two generations per year. Adult feeding was recorded on flowers of 8 plant species of 6 families. A single nest was found in an old acridid egg pod in clayey soil. The inner cavity of the empty egg pod was 12 mm long and 3 mm wide. The nest contained one cell with a prepupa in the cocoon. The cell was sealed with a final plug 2 mm thick, made of gravel and mud. The cocoon consisted of three equal thin layers, the outer layer being firmly attached to the cell walls. Females of L. membranaceus do not visit water sources. The origin of the agent bonding the building material (soil) used by L. membranaceus and other congeneric species is discussed. In addition, nests of Ancistrocerus scoticus (Curtis) are also discussed; these nests occur in old acridid egg pods which were earlier misinterpreted as bottle-shaped cells built by the wasps themselves.

The results of long-term faunistic studies of the noctuoid moths in the Baikal region and the literature review are presented. An annotated check-list including 83 species of the families Notodontidae, Erebidae, Nolidae, and Noctuidae is given. Data on the previous records of the species from the study region are given. The Noctuoidea fauna of Irkutsk Province comprises 462 species, that of the Republic of Buryatia, 419 species, and that of the Baikal region as a whole, 510 species. The distribution limits are expanded for 17 species of the Noctuoidea complex: the new eastern range boundary is established for 11 species of Erebidae and Noctuidae, and the new western one is established for 5 representatives of Notodontidae, Erebidae and Noctuidae. Two species, Actebia confinis (Staudinger, 1881) and Actebia confusa (Alphéraky, 1882), are new to the Russian fauna. The trophic associations of Phidrimana amurensis (Staudinger, 1892) are established: the larvae of this Euro-Siberian species feed on the leaves of different species of elms (Ulmus japonica Rehder, Ulmus pumila L.). Three noctuid species, Calyptra lata (Butler, 1881), Bryophila granitalis (Butler, 1881) and Cosmia trapezinula (Filipjev, 1927), with large disjunctions of their ranges are reported; these moths are apparently relicts of the Atlantic Period of the Holocene.

Colasposoma dauricum (Mannerheim, 1849) is recorded for the first time from Altaiskii Territory of Russia and Southeastern Kazakhstan. A review of the distribution of this species with a dotted map is given.

A new species of the genus Placoblatta, P. minorsp. n., is described from Southern Vietnam. The similarity between representatives of the genus Placoblatta and larvae of the subfamily Epilamprinae is briefly discussed. It is suggested that the origin of the genus Placoblatta has a paedomorph nature.

The dynamics of development of the population of taiga ticks Ixodes persulcatus Schulze, 1930 from Eastern Siberia was studied under experimental conditions. Ticks were reared at 23–25°C, relative humidity of 80–90%, and a light: darkness ratio of 16: 8 h. The mean time of egg incubation was 35.2 days; the feeding of females, larvae, and nymphs took 6.4, 3.5, and 4.5 days, respectively. The existence of two subpopulations, differing in the time of development of engorged larvae into nymphs and nymphs into adults, was experimentally demonstrated. Most ticks had short periods of larval and nymphal development that lasted 25 ± 2 and 40 ± 4 days, respectively. However, some ticks exhibited prolonged development time of 75.5 ± 2 and 95 ± 9 days, respectively. The total duration of the life cycle was 121 days in the former group and 226 days in the latter group.

An elm flea-weevil Orchestes steppensis Korotyaev, 2016 was found on Ulmus pumila L. in the southeastern corner of Voronezh Province; formerly the westernmost records of this species in European Russia were those in Saratov Province and at the western boundary of Stavropol Territory. New data on the distribution of this and allied species in European Russia are reported.