فون

Megaselia Rondani, 1856 is a megadiverse genus of scuttle flies, commonly found worldwide. This article reports on the recent discovery of 31 species of Megaselia newly recorded in Morocco, collected in various regions, including the Rif Mountain, the Atlantic Plain and the Atlas Mountains, covering numerous habitats, such as forests, grasslands, agricultural fields, riverbanks, springs, ponds, peat bogs, and lake with the purpose of assessing a wide variety of habitats and understanding the ecological preferences of Megaselia species. These new findings have increased the total of Moroccan phorid fauna to 45 species so far. Of these, 43 are Megaselia species.

The present list is based on all available published literatures on taxonomy and biodiversity of the thrips fauna of China (including Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau) up to July 2024. The known Chinese Thysanoptera fauna currently consists of 816 species in 206 genera, including 443 species in the suborder Terebrantia and 373 species in the suborder Tubulifera. In addition, the family Stenurothripidae Bagnall has been added to the fauna of China. In the past 10 years, many additional taxa have been newly recorded or described for China, that is includes about 12.6% of all species of thrips in the world. Amongst Chinese taxa, the family Thripidae is the most diverse, with 412 species, and within this family, the richest genera are Thrips, Stenchaetothrips, Mycterothrips and Trichromothrips, respectively. Totally, the most species have been recorded from Taiwan, with 292 records, followed by Yunnan, with 273 records, and Guangdong, with 237 records.

The discovery of the Holarctic tachinid genus Solieria Robineau-Desvoidy, 1849, in Iran led to the identification of a new species to science, which is described here as Solieria variabilis sp. nov. It can be separated from other related species by the absence of discal setae on abdominal tergites, lack of proclinate and latero-reclinate orbital setae in the male, the width of frons, and by colouration and microtrichosity of abdomen. The comparison of the morphological characters of S. variabilis sp. nov. with its close relatives S. fenestrata (Meigen, 1824) and S. pacifica (Meigen, 1824) is provided. Photographic images of the habitus and head as well as illustrations of terminalia are given.

This study was carried out to determine the fauna of oribatid mites (Oribatida) in Hormozgan province (southern Iran). Berlese funnel was used to obtain specimens from soil and leaf litter samples in various habitats in the province during the months of February to October 2021. Forty-three species belonging to 30 genera from 20 families of oribatid mites were collected from Bandar Abbas, Minab, Rudan and Hajiabad counties and identified. The species Javacarus (J.) porosus Hammer, 1979, Hoplophorella (H.) hamata (Ewing, 1909) and Lamellobates (L.) molecula molecula (Berlese, 1916) are recorded for the first time from Iran.

The present study is based on oribatid mite material collected from five locations in Eastern Guatemala. A list of 98species, belonging to 68 genera and 43 families, is presented; 70 species are recorded for the first time in Guatemalan fauna.A new species of genus Pergalumna,P. paraobsidianasp. nov.is described from rainforest litter.

The larvae of certain species in the Noctuidae family cause significant economic damage annually. Due to the importance of this group, specimens of the subfamily Noctuinae, specifically from the tribe Leucaniini, collected from the Fars, Ilam, Kerman and Khuzestan provinces were studied. As a result, among the nine identified and studied species from the genera Mythimna and Leucania, four species from Khuzestan province, three species from Ilam province and one species from Fars province were registered as new provincial records. Additionally, the distribution of Leucania (Leucania) herrichii Herrich-Schäffer, 1849 was confirmed for the first time in Iran. Further studies on this tribe in different parts of Iran are recommended.

One new species and three new records of Tomocerus have been reported for the first time from India. The new species Tomocerus sikkimensis sp. nov. discovered from Gangtok, Sikkim (India) has been illustrated and described here. The new species differs from others in dental spine number, arrangement and mucro teeth number. Tomocerus (Ocreatomurus) qinae Yu, Yan & Liu, 2016, Tomocerus (Tomocerus) minor (Lubbock, 1862) and Tomocerus (Ocreatomurus) paraspinulus Gong, Qin & Yu, 2018 are the first time reported from the Indian states Arunachal Pradesh and West Bengal respectively. A key to the Indian species of Tomocerus has also been provided.

Species of the subfamily Diplazontinae (Hym.: Ichneumonidae) were studied in West Azarbaijan province (Northwest of Iran). The specimens were collected using Malaise traps, during 2019–2020. Five species belonging to three genera were collected and identified. One species, Homotropus riedeli Johansson, 2020 was a new record for Iran as well as Asia. The distribution range of this species extends from Sweden to the north-west of Iran. A checklist is being compiled for 27 known Iranian species of this subfamily. In addition, a distribution map based on the recorded areas for each species within the Iranian provinces has been provided. We proposed a new direction for future biodiversity inventories of this subfamily in Iran.

Aphids constitute a significant cohort of herbivorous insects, primarily nourishing themselves by extracting plant sap, sometimes posing a notable threat to plant health. Here, we present a comprehensive investigation into the aphid fauna associated with Carthamus in Iran, unveiling 18 species across 11 genera within the Aphididae. Furthermore, 31 associations between aphid species and host plants were recognized, of which two are new for Iran. Our study expands upon prior knowledge by documenting three new occurrences, shedding light on previously unrecorded aphid species in Isfahan and Razavi Khorasan provinces. In addition, we describe the previously unknown male of Uroleucon carthami, offering insights into its life cycle and reproductive strategies. An identification key to the apterous viviparous female aphids living on Carthamus in Iran is provided.

In this paper, we provide additional data on the orb-weaver spider fauna (Araneae: Araneidae) of Kosovo. Three species are reported for the first time from this country: Araneus grossus (C.L. Koch, 1844), Argiope lobata (Pallas, 1772) and Cyclosa oculata (Walckenaer, 1802). In consideration of the findings and the updated checklist of Araneidae in this study, the documented number of spider species in Kosovo has now increased to 251. Given that the spider fauna of Kosovo is still not fully explored, our study emphasizes the necessity of ongoing exploration to better comprehend the diversity of spider species within the region.

One new species Aeolothrips kishensis sp. n. is described. Thrips diversity in Iran is briefly discussed and a list of 45 species and nine genera described and recorded during 2018 to 2024 is prepared. Diagnostic characters and illustrations for the new species are provided.

There are 33 aphid species reported so far on Lamiaceae plants in Iran. In this research, a total of 19 aphid species belonging to 12 genera were collected on 20 host plant species. Furthermore, 33 associations between aphid species and host plants were recognized, of which six are new for Iran. Among the examined specimens, an Ovatus species collected on Mentha longifolia showed a complete range of intermediate biometric data of O. mentharius (van der Goot, 1913) and O. archangelskajae Kadyrbekov, 2008. In view of the biometric data from samples of Iran, we conclude that O. archangelskajae is a geographical variant of O. mentharius, therefore we consider it as a synonym for O. mentharius and redescribe O. mentharius as its morphological entities are extended. In this paper, the distribution of the aphid species in different parts of Iran is also presented and six new occurrences are reported for Fars and Kerman provinces. An identification key to the apterous viviparous female aphids living on Lamiaceae in Iran is provided.

The present study is focused on the species belonging to the genus Maiestas Distant, 1917 (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae, Deltocephalini) in Iran, based on some specimens collected during 2016 to 2019 from Southeast Iran and species that have been previously reported: M. horvathi (Then, 1896), M. pruthii (Metcalf, 1967), M. schmidtgeni (Wagner, 1939), and M. trifasciata (Lindberg, 1954). M. pruthii, previously known from the Oriental region (India and Pakistan), is recorded for the first time in the Palaearctic region from Southeast Iran and M. horvathi is a new record for the fauna of Sistan and Baluchestan Province. An identification key and distribution maps for the Iranian Maiestas species are provided.

The order Hymenoptera comprises an important group of insects, with ecological and economic importance, and serving as ecological indicators. Investigating the diversity and distribution of fauna is considered a prerequisite for biodiversity conservation. In this research, the hymenopteran fauna in mangrove forests on the southern coast of Iran were studied during 2021–2022. The collection was made by sweeping net and light trap. The survey revealed the presence of ten species and nine genera belonging to six families. Of which, two species, Ampulex assimilis Kohl, 1893 (Hym.: Ampulicidae) and Paridris leda Kozlov & Kononova, 1985 (Hym.: Scelionidae) are recorded for the first time for the Iranian fauna. Diagnostic characters of the new records and geographical distribution of all species are provided.