The methods of Bailey and of Jolly and Seber were used to provide maximum likelihood estimates of population parameters for Jackson’s classical mark–recapture experiments on males of the tsetse fly Glossina m. morsitans Westwood. These were compared with Jolly-Seber (J-S) estimates for the same fly from more recent work on Antelope Island, Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe. The Bailey estimates of birth and death rates and total population size had markedly lower variances than Jackson’s originals. Both sets of estimates provided moving averages over 6-week periods, whereas the Jolly-Seber analysis provided independent weekly estimates and their variance is consequently higher. Saturation deficit and maximum temperature (Tmax) accounted for 11 and 16% respectively of the variance in independent 4-week means of the weekly J-S survival probabilities. Analysis of covariance, carried out on a joint data set of smoothed J-S estimates of the survival probability in Tanzania and Zimbabwe, showed a significant effect of Tmax on survival. When this effect was removed, the survival probability in the Tanzania studies was found to be 8% lower than on Antelope Island. The two effects accounted for 50% of the variance in the joint data. When saturation deficit was substituted for Tmax, regression only accounted for 35% of the variance. If saturation deficit is important in determining tsetse survival, it must act on stages other than the post-teneral adult. Given the continuous increase in mortality, even at moderate temperatures, it is hard to envisage a direct effect of Tmax. There may be an indirect effect, however, via the number of hunger-related deaths resulting from the increase in the feeding rate with increasing temperature.

An Hha 1 based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay developed for the detection of Brugia malayi, the causative agent of Brugian lymphatic filariasis, was evaluated for its sensitivity in the laboratory and for its usefulness in measuring changes in transmission of the disease in the field. Laboratory studies showed that the new assay was highly sensitive in comparison with the standard dissection and microscopy technique. The assay can detect as little as 4 pg of parasite DNA or a single microfilaria in pools of up to 100 mosquitoes. The optimum pool size for convenience was found to be 50 mosquitoes per pool. The efficacy of PCR assay was evaluated in filariasis control programmes in operation in endemic areas of Kerala State, South India. The infection rates obtained by the Hha I PCR assay and the conventional dissection and microscopy technique were 1.2% and 1.7% respectively in operational areas and 8.3% and 4.4% respectively, in check areas, which were not significantly different (P < 0.05). Thus, the Hha I PCR assay was found to be as sensitive as the conventional technique and hence it can be used as a new epidemiological tool for assessing parasite infection in field-collected mosquitoes.

Between October 1999 and April 2000, nearly 4000 ha of nymphal bands and adult swarms of Chortoicetes terminifera (Walker) were aerially treated using a ULV oil formulation of strain FI-985 of Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum. During the mild weather (maxima 22–30°C) of spring (October), there was little change in nymphal bands during the first week but at all doses between 25–100 g (1–4 × 1012 conidia) ha−1, the bands rapidly declined 9–12 days after treatment reaching > 90%mortality by 14 days. Metarhizium persisted for some time as there was 50% mortality of locusts fed vegetation collected from the treated blocks seven days after treatment. Persistence was confirmed by the high mortality of bands that invaded from untreated areas and of nymphs that hatched on the plot five to seven days after treatment, though mortality was then delayed until early in the third week. During summer (January), temperatures were high (maxima 36–42°C), and at all doses between 25 and 125 g (1–5 × 1012 conidia) ha−1, there was a rapid decline seven to ten days after treatment. By 12–14 days, there was a > 90% decline in numbers in most blocks which was confirmed by helicopter surveys two weeks after treatment that found very few adults within or near treated areas. Mortality was delayed in the high dose where there were blockages of spray equipment during treatment. The clear demonstration that Metarhiziumcan suppress small local populations of C. terminifera led to the limited operational use of Metarhizium on an organic farm and in a National Park where nearly 2500 ha of bands and swarms were treated. Continued research is needed to develop a commercially viable product so that Metarhizium can form a significant part of a programme of integrated pest management of locusts in Australia.

Paraleyrodes pseudonaranjaesp. n. is here described, from material collected from invasive colonies affecting agriculture in Hong Kong, Hawaii and the USA (Florida). This species had previously been identified as P. naranjaeDozier, based on puparial characteristics, but comparison of adult males with male syntypes of P. naranjae has indicated that identification to be mistaken. An adult male has been selected as lectotype of P. naranjae, but the identity of the puparia of the original sample remains uncertain.

A novel type of emergence trap capable of capturing and separating ‘live’insect catches is described. The trap was shown to be 96% efficient at capturing newly emergent adult Hylobius abietis Linnaeus on bare ground and at least 82% efficient over stumps on a weedy Sitka spruce clearfell. The trap was more than 80% efficient at capturing Bracon hylobii Ratzeburg, the most commonly found parasite of H. abietis. It was also shown to be effective at capturing adult H. abietis of unknown age (98%), indicating that it could also be used to trap out H. abietis from known areas to estimate on-site overwintering densities. Fifty-four percent of newly emergent weevils were captured within 12 h of release on bare mineral soils. Forty-two percent of unknown age weevils and 52% of parasites were captured within 1 h of their release within the trap. The rapid rates of capture mean that when traps are checked frequently they can be used to reflect accurately temporal patterns of emergence. Its potential for use in control programmes and ecological studies is discussed.

Amplification of the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) of ribosomal DNA was used to compare seven samples of the Tetranychus kanzawai Kishida–T. hydrangeae Pritchard & Baker mite complex from five different countries: Australia, the Congo, Indonesia, Japan and the USA. No morphological differences were detected between these mites and their ITS2 sequences displayed strong similarity except for a small nucleotide divergence of 0.2% in specimens from Australia and Indonesia. Reciprocal crosses and backcrosses between mites assumed to be T. kanzawai and T. hydrangeae respectively showed reproductive compatibility. Fertile hybrid females were obtained in all cases, indicating conspecificity of the mites tested. It is concluded that T. hydrangeae is a synonym of T. kanzawai. The evidence suggests that T. kanzawai originated in South-east Asia and probably spread throughout the world on Hydrangea spp. cuttings.

Electrical penetration graphs (EPGs) were used to examine the probing behaviour of adult apterous Rhopalosiphum padi (Linnaeus) on barley seedlings grown under conditions of nitrogen or water stress. Aphids took significantly longer to reach and ingest from sieve elements of nitrogen-deficient seedlings than from nitrogen-sufficient seedlings but there were no such differences between water-stressed or well-watered seedlings. On both nitrogen and water-stressed seedlings the average length of each individual period of salivation into the sieve element was significantly greater compared with their respective unstressed controls.

Dung from calves treated with synthetic pyrethroids negatively influenced, in varying degrees, survival, reproduction and size of the common dung fly Neomyia cornicina(Fabricius). This was documented in assays where the coprophagous larvae and adults of N. cornicina were exposed to dung collected from calves dosed with topical preparations of deltamethrin, flumethrin, cyfluthrin, and α-cypermethrin. Larval mortality was significantly increased in dung collected up to at least seven days after treatment with deltamethrin, α-cypermethrin and cyfluthrin. Alpha-cypermethrin caused significant mortality of adults allowed to feed on moist dung. Nulliparous flies fed for six days on dung collected three days after treatment of calves with α-cypermethrin or deltamethrin showed little or no ovarian development. A tendency for a comparable effect with flumethrin was also observed. A connection between ovarian development and inhibition of feeding was indicated by the observation of significantly lowered excretion rates in flies exposed to residues of deltamethrin, α-cypermethrin and flumethrin. Larvae that survived exposure to dung from calves dosed with deltamethrin, α-cypermethrin, or cyfluthrin gave rise to smaller flies. The effect on adult fly size decreased when larvae were exposed to dung collected at longer times after treatment of the calves. Adult fly size was significantly reduced in dung collected up to 14 days (α-cypermethrin) or up to 28 days after treatment (deltamethrin and cyfluthrin). Fluctuating asymmetry of a wing vein character did not reflect the anticipated levels of exposure. The study strongly indicated that the use of synthetic pyrethroids affected the insect dung fauna and that such use may reduce dung decomposition.

The population structure of a tephritid pest species, the Queensland fruit fly Bactrocera tryoni (Froggatt), has been analysed over a five year period (1994–1998), using six microsatellites. Adult fly samples were collected to cover most regions of eastern and central Australia where the flies are regularly found. Tests for heterogeneity indicated that flies within geographically defined regions were homogeneous. The samples were allocated into five regions, including one very large region, Queensland, which encompasses that portion of the fly‘s range where breeding can occur year-round. With one exception, the collections from different regions were homogeneous between years, showing a fairly static distribution of the species. However, differences between regions were highly significant. The one case of a change in frequency between years indicated a gradual replacement of flies in a marginal region by flies from the main part of the range. The finding of stability in the distribution of a highly mobile insect is of interest, potentially also for other species which have expanded beyond their native range. It is argued that a contributing reason for this stability may be adaptation to different climatic regimes, and that strategies for control based on this hypothesis afford a reasonable chance of success.