Anopheles darlingi Root and Anopheles aquasalis Curry are the main vectors of malaria that occur in the State of Maranhão. Entomological surveys based on the behavior and infectivity of these vectors are important for the elaboration of disease control strategies. The objectives of this work were to study the behavioral patterns of mosquitoes, determining population and hematophagic peaks, dietary preferences, infectivity rate and characterization of breeding sites in two municipalities in the State of Maranhão: Buriticupu and São José of Ribamar. Larvae and pupae were collected in breeding sites and adult females in home environments. Mosquito behavior, their dietary preferences and Plasmodium spp infection rates were analyzed. The vegetation and physicochemical patterns in the breeding sites found are in agreement with those described for species from the Amazon region and the Brazilian Atlantic coast. Anopheles darlingi was the most prevalent mosquito in Buriticupu breeding and home environments. This species was found mainly fed on human blood and naturally infected with Plasmodium vivax Grassi & Feletti and Plasmodium falciparum Welch. Anopheles aquasalis was more frequent in breeding sites in São José de Ribamar, as well as in home environments, whose specimens were mainly fed with human and bird blood. The main peaks of mosquito occurrence in Buriticupu were between 6 pm to 9 pm and in São José de Ribamar we did not record a definite peak. In the first municipality A. darlingi showed dominance over Anopheles albitarsis Lynch Arribálzaga s.l., Anopheles oswaldoi Peryassú, Anopheles nuneztovari Gabaldón and Anopheles evansae Brèthes,, besides presenting a correlation with rainfall. In the second municipality, A. aquasalis was dominant over A. albitarsis s.l. and there was a correlation between these two species and the rainy season. We conclude that the collected data contribute to elucidate the dynamics of malaria transmission in the region and guide the control actions directed to the elimination of the disease in the country.

Social insects use different strategies to defend their colonies, including camouflage. In order to expand knowledge, regarding the strategy of camouflage in social wasps, information is presented on the camouflage pattern of the species: Parachartergus smithii (De Saussure), Parachartergus wagneri Du Buysson, Chartergellus communis Richards, Metapolybia cingulata (Fabricius) and Mischocyttarus anthracinus Richards.These species are uncommon in inventory studies in Brazil. Records occur in different Conservation Units, between 2011 and 2019, in the Minas Gerais State, Brazil Southeastern. Camouflage seems to be the main defense strategy for these species, due to the color and shape of their nests in line with the substrate, as well as their docile behavior. The exception is Metapolybia cingulata, which in addition to camouflage shows aggressive behavior in some situations, which suggests the use of different strategies in the colony defense.

The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) plant stands out for being a species cultivated throughout the national territory, being the most important vegetable in Brazil, from the socioeconomic point of view. However, it has been one of the crops most affected by phytosanitary problems. For example, there are the pest insects of the genus Epicauta (Coleoptera: Meloidae). Thus, the objective of this study was to record the occurrence of a pest insect (beetle) harming vegetative growth and productive performance in the fresh-market tomato crop and feeding on weeds. The tomato plants were found on “jurubeba” (Solanum paniculatum L.) rootstock, spaced 1.0 m x 0.5 m, grown in the municipality of Rolim de Moura, Rondônia state. The insect-pest (beetle) was identified as Epicauta vittata (Fabricius). It was observed that the damages caused by the larvae occurred in the main stem of the tomato, only above the grafting site, causing boring, however no damage was observed in the rootstock (“jurubeba”). Adult insects caused defoliation in both tomato plant and joyweed (Alternanthera tenella Colla), slender amaranth (Amaranthus viridis L.), “trapoeraba” (Commelina benghalensis L.) and morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea [L.]). High population of E. vittata causes severe damages to tomato, damaging the vegetative growth and productive performance of the crop, however does not affect the root system when grafted with “jurubeba” (S. paniculatu). Epicauta vittata in the adult phase is fed alternately of weeds.

The aim of this paper was to determine the species diversity and frequency of foraging performed by bees in fragment of degraded forest in a Cerrado-Atlantic Forest ecotone area, also considering the nesting habit of each species. The foraging frequency of each bee species in the main floral sources was recorded for 12 consecutive months. The nesting site was used to sort the bees into guilds: above-ground nesting bees, ground-nesting bees, and both below and above-ground nesting bees. The guild of ground-nesting bees had 24 species and accounted for 17.48 % of the foraging rate, while above-ground nesting bees were represented by 12 species which made 8.89 % of the foraging rate, and both below and above-ground nesting bees comprised five species which made 0.43 % of the foraging rate. Africanized honeybee performed 73.20 % of the foraging flight, and presented a broad food niche. Therefore, in the forest fragment studied, two types of impacts which make difficult the survival and maintenance of the native bee fauna were observed: the dominance over floral resources by the exotic species the Africanized honeybees; the small number of large trees.

Aedes aegypti L. (Diptera: Culicidae) is a vector of arboviruses associated with dengue, chikungunya, zika and yellow fever. Based on empirical knowledge, plants belonging to genus Crotalaria (Fabaceae) attract dragonflies, which are the main natural predator to A. aegypti and help controlling populations of this mosquito. The aim of the present study is to investigate (i) whether Crotalaria is a food source for A. aegypti and (ii) whether Crotalaria attracts predators to this mosquito, mainly dragonflies. The study was carried out from January to March 2018 in two Crotalaria spectabilis Roth (Fabaceae) cultivation fields, which covered 100 m2 (each) in Missal County, Paraná State, Brazil. Samples of all arthropods foraging on C. spectabilis were collected. Observations in situ were carried out to investigate whether A. aegypti individuals visit C. spectabilis flowers. In total, 14,967 arthropods were recorded foraging on C. spectabilis (288 in cultivation field 1 and 14,679 in cultivation field 2). Dragonflies and damselflies were recorded foraging on C. spectabilis crops, but no A. aegypti individual was recorded in active collections and observations in situ. These results indicate that C. spectabilis works as food source and/or place used by several arthropods to find preys. The incidence of dragonflies and damselflies flying in C. spectabilis monocultures indicates that these plants attract dragonflies, as well as that Crotalaria can help indirectly controlling A. aegypti populations.

Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) is an important pest worldwide. Methods of monitoring and control using baited traps are not yet established in coffee plantations in the Brazilian Amazon. The objective of this work was to record, for the first time, results of the use of baited traps in coffee plantation located in Rondônia, in favor of the control and pest monitoring. Two areas were delineated: i) with use of the traps baited with  ethanol/methanol (1:1), treatment; ii) without use of traps (control). For comparison of results, two factors were considered: damaged fruits (damage by H. hampei) and infested (H. hampei inside of fruits). It was observed higher levels of damaged fruits per plants in the control area compared to the area where traps were used. The density of the pest population per plants found on infested fruits was also higher in the control area compared to the trapping area. These results suggest that traps baited with ethanol/methanol (1:1) are an effective alternative for population control of pest also in the coffee plantations in Rondônia, where there is no such management with this tool. Use of the baited traps to monitor the insect accurately revealed that the flight stimulus of the colonizing females is influenced by values of the environmental variables. According to the results, colonizing females are more active in the afternoon. Therefore, in order to achieve more efficient control of H. hampei, the best time to apply control agents is between 2:00 pm and 6:00 pm.

Resumo. Em investigações criminais, a entomologia forense torna-se uma importante ferramenta em uma das suas principais aplicações que são os cálculos de estimativa de intervalo pós-morte (IPM), onde os dípteros da família Calliphoridae constituem uma das principais famílias de interesse forense. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo verificar a ocorrência das espécies desta família durante o processo de decomposição de carcaças suínas exposta durante as quatro estações do ano em um fragmento de Mata Atlântica na cidade do Salvador, Bahia, Brasil. Durante o experimento, os insetos adultos foram capturados em armadilhas específicas, e os imaturos coletados sobre a carcaça e criados para identificação pós-emergência. Além disso, verificamos a correlação entre as espécies que visitam a carcaça com aquelas que se desenvolvem na mesma, relacionando-a as fases da decomposição. Foram coletados 29136 adultos e do total de imaturos coletados apenas 1278 emergiram no laboratório. Os adultos capturados pertenciam às seguintes espécies: Cochliomyia macellaria (Fabricius), Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius), Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann), Chrysomya putoria (Wiedemann), Lucilia eximia (Wiedemann), Mesembrinella bellardiana (Aldrich), Hemilucilia segmentaria (Fabricius) e Chloroprocta idiodea (Robineau-Desvoidy). Os imaturos coletados e criados no laboratório, após a emergência, foram identificados como: C. macellaria, C. megacephala, C. albiceps, C. putoria, H. segmentaria e L. eximia. Constatou-se que há diferenças na abundância entre as espécies durante o experimento, sendo a espécie C. albiceps a mais prevalente. Esse trabalho contribuiu com informações essenciais para a implementação deste tipo de perícia na rotina do Laboratório de Entomologia Forense do DPT-BA. Temporal analysis of Calliphoridae (Diptera: Cyclorrhapha) in the process of decomposition in carcasses of swine (Sus scrofa Linnaeus) in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil Abstract. In criminal investigations, Forensic Entomology becomes an important tool for main applications, which are estimates of postmortem interval (IPM), where Diptera of the Calliphoridae family constitute one of the main families of forensic interest. The present work had as objective to verify the occurrence of the species of this family during the decomposition process of swine carcasses exposed during the four seasons of the year in a fragment of Atlantic Forest in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. During the experiment, adult insects were captured in specific traps, and immature stages collected on the carcass created until the adult emergency for identification. In addition, we verified the correlation between the species that visit the carcass with those that develop in the same, related to the phases of the decomposition. A total of 29136 adults were collected and of the total number of immatures collected, only 1278 emerged in the laboratory. The captured adults belonged to the following species: Cochliomyia macellaria (Fabricius), Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius), Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann), Chrysomya putoria (Wiedemann), Lucilia eximia (Wiedemann), Mesembrinella bellardiana (Aldrich), Hemilucilia segmentaria (Fabricius) and Chloroprocta idiodea (Robineau-Desvoidy) (Robineau-Desvoidy). The immatures collected and created in the laboratory after the emergency were identified as: C. macellaria, C. megacephala, C. albiceps, C. putoria, H. segmentaria and L. eximia. It was verified that there are differences in the abundance between the species during the experiment, being the species C. albiceps the most prevalent. This work contributed with essential information for the implementation of this type of expertise in the routine of the Forensic Entomology Laboratory, DPT-BA.

Resumo. Aetalion reticulatum (L.) (Hemiptera: Aetalionidae), uma cigarrinha altamente polífaga e reconhecidamente praga de várias culturas agrícolas e florestais, é relatada pela primeira vez infestando plantas de noni, Morinda citrifolia L. (Gentianales: Rubiaceae), em Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brasil. Esse novo registro aumenta a lista de hospedeiras do inseto, reforçando a necessidade de estudos mais aprofundados sobre essa cigarrinha e o seu controle. First report of Aetalion reticulatum (L.) (Hemiptera: Aetalionidae) infesting plants of noni [Morinda citrifolia L. (Rubiaceae)] Abstract. Aetalion reticulatum (L.) (Hemiptera: Aetalionidae), a highly polyphagous leafhooper and known to be pest of various agricultural and forestry crops, is reported for the first-time infesting noni plants, Morinda citrifolia L. (Gentianales: Rubiaceae), in Brasília, Federal District, Brazil. This new record increases the host’s list of this insect, reinforcing the necessity for more in-depth studies of this leafhooper and its control.

Abstract. This scientific note refers to the first record of a larvae of mite of genus Leptus (Acari: Erythraeidae) found parasitizing a specimen of horsefly (Diptera: Tabanidae) on Marambaia Island, Mangaratiba, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Primeiro registro de Leptus sp. (Latreille) (Acari: Erythraeidae) parasitando mutuca (Diptera: Tabanidae) da Ilha da Marambaia, Mangaratiba, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil Resumo. Esta nota científica se refere ao primeiro registro de uma larva de ácaro do gênero Leptus (Acari: Erythraeidae) encontrada parasitando um espécime de mutuca(Diptera: Tabanidae) na Ilha de Marambaia, Mangaratiba, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.