Hemipterans and ants are frequently recorded in trophobiotic associations, generally mutualism. Nests of the fire-ant Solenopsis virulens (Smith) found at the base of trees in the Atlantic Forest biome, Brazil, were investigated for their commensal fauna. The present study provides new information about the mutualism between the fire-ant with hemipterans Membracidae and Monophlebidae found in their nests, this report is the first mention of this kind of relationships in South America. Such associations are very common between ants and treehoppers but have seldom been reported with the family Monophlebidae.

In this article we present the historical records of the Brazilian hawkmoths deposited in the Entomological Collection of the Museu de História Natural da Bahia (MHNBA-UFBA), including the historical Lepidoptera collection donated by Dr. Pedro de Araújo to the MHNBA-UFBA. The Sphingidae collection is composed of 243 specimens and represents 24 genera and 66 species. The historical collection consists of specimens captured between the years 1924 and 1934, and we also included to the collection specimens that were captured more recently, between 1982 and 2014. The subfamily Macroglossinae presented the greatest species richness and Smerinthinae the presented the least species richness. Of all of specimens in the collection, 151 came from São Paulo State (Brazil), 41 from Santa Catarina State, 50 from Bahia State and only one from Pernambuco State. Three topotypes were identified in the collection, namely: Eumorpha translineatus (Rothschild, 1895), Xylophanes crenulata Vaglia & Haxaire, 2009 and Xylophanes alineae Haxaire & Mielke, 2018.

A new species of Euplocania belonging in the Marginata species group, collected in an area of the Atlantic Rainforest in Brazilian states of Bahia is described and illustrated. It differs from all the other species in the Marginata species group in details of the hypandrium and phallosome. This is the first record of a species in the Marginata species group for the Atlantic Rainforest biome and the first record of a Euplocania species for Brazilian states of Bahia.

We characterize the population dynamics of pests and beneficial organisms in strawberries to assess the impact of two meteorological factors (temperature and precipitation) and define the most appropriate method for monitoring insects in strawberries crop. Population dynamics were monitored weekly using the plant beat method and Möericke traps in Albion strawberries. Measurements were taken in organic strawberry farms over two growing seasons, from March 26, 2010 to August 23, 2010 (first season - 2009/2010) and from October 4, 2010 to March 21, 2011 (second season - 2009/2010) in the municipality of Pinhais, Paraná state, southern Brazil (25º25'S; 49º08'W). We collected a total of 7,971 pests and 1,987 beneficial organisms. The most abundant pests were Chaetosiphon fragaefolii (Cockerell) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in the first growing season and Tetranychus urticae (Koch) (Acari: Tetranychidae) in the second. Beneficial organisms from Acari, Araneae, and Hymenoptera parasitoids predominated in both seasons. Temperature and precipitation were the the primary climatic factor associated with the population variation of aphids. Populations of C. fragaefolii grew when the temperature was between 16°C and 25ºC. We found that plant beat was the fastest and most suitable method for strawberry pests monitoring since it captured insects that were effectively colonizing the plants. This study contributes to a better understanding of the entomofauna associated with cultivation of organic strawberry.

Brazil is one of the most diverse countries in the world, hosting more than 250 known species of mantids (Mantodea). Studying natural history collections is crucial to identify, describe new taxa and solve taxonomic issues, improving the knowledge about the biodiversity. Here we document the transference of the mantids collection from the Entomological Collection of Instituto Butantan (São Paulo, Brazil) to the Museu Nacional (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and provide a morphological assessment on the 33 transferred mantids. We recognized 13 genera and 12 species, with diversified distribution in Brazil, although 6 specimens from 4 genera could not be identified at a specific level. The transference of this collection starts a new phase of restructuration and recognition of the Medical Entomology scope of the donor collection, aside from helping the rebuilt of the Entomological Collection of the Museu Nacional, lost in the 2018 fire, and allowing further researches within the group.

The knowledge of Blattodea from Oman is still incipient. One species of cockroaches are reported from Oman so far and this indicates the large blank in our knowledge in this order when compared to recorded species from other neighboring countries in the Arabian Peninsula.  Blattodea have been collected at various localities in Sultanate of Oman with different sampling artifacts. The present communication records five species of cockroaches from Oman, namely Blattella biligata (Walker, 1868), Heterogamisca Bey-Bienko, 1950, Pycnoscelus surinamensis (Linnaeus, 1758), Tivia fusca Bohn, 2008 from northern Oman and Neostylopyga rhombifolia (Stoll, 1813) from southern Oman.

A new species of Aididae is described and illustrated based on adults (male and female) and immature (last instar larvae). The larvae were found infesting leaves of Inga edulis Martius (Fabaceae) in the municipality of Autazes, State of Amazonas, representing the first record of Aididae in the northern region of Brazil. The new species is further compared with its closest species, Aidos amanda (Stoll, 1782).

The butterfly inventories carried out in urban landscapes in Bahia are still scarce. Urban areas with remnants of native vegetation in association with ornamental plants can provide several resources that are favorable for the development and shelter of various animal species, including insects, even with the high anthropization that occurs in these environments. In this work, we aim to investigate the urban fauna of butterflies at the Campus of the Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana (UEFS), an area of ​​Caatinga-Atlantic Forest ecotone located in the municipality of Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil. Monthly samplings were carried out with entomological net and standardized traps with different attractive baits, between May 2019 and January 2020, in addition to review of the material previously deposited at the Entomological Collection Prof. Johan Becker located at the Zoology Museum of the UEFS (MZFS). In total, 114 species of Papilionoidea were recorded, with Nymphalidae being the richest family (45 species), followed by Hesperiidae (32), Lycaenidae (21), Pieridae (10), Papilionidae (3) and Riodinidae (3). Thirteen species are new records for Bahia and eight species are new records for Northeast Brazil. The results demonstrate the extreme relevance of the conservation and preservation of urban green areas for the maintenance of butterflies species and, consequently, the associated insect fauna.

We report a case of erucism provoked by the Automeris egeus Cramer caterpillar and update the distribution of caterpillar poisoning in Brazil, showing the regions with the highest incidence rates. We also correlated the incidence rate with anthropic impact rates in all Brazilian municipalities, taking as a reference the Human Footprint Index. The victim presented erucism, burning pain, itching, and local hyperthermia. The highest incidence rates were in southern Brazil. We suggest including A. egeus in the Brazilian list of animals with medical importance, and that Brazilian Ministry of Health indicates the genus of the animals involved in envenomation events on its platform.

Khaya grandifoliola C. DC. (Meliaceae), known as African mahogany, is used in the establishment of commercial plantations for high-value timber production. This work aims to report the first occurrence of the genus Atta in a commercial plantation of this species. An ant nest mound with 105 m2 of loose soil and five active ant holes were observed. Leaves cut into crescent shaped sections and pieces of young branches were found near these holes, in addition to trees with the apical part of their crown partially defoliated. The collected specimens were identified as Atta laevigata Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Attini), locally known as the glass-head leaf-cutting ant.