نشریه نامه انجمن حشره شناسی ایران
سال سی و چهارم شماره 2 (پیاپی 57، تابستان 1393)

In the course of the faunistic survey of oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida) in Shend-Abad region of Iranian province of East Azarbaijan -2008 to 2009- two species of the family Quadroppiidae, Quadroppia (Quadroppia) quadricarinata (Michael) and Quadroppia (Coronoquadroppia) nasalis Gordeeva, were collected and identified. Both species are newly recorded from Iran.

We collected moth specimens from rice fields in the vicinity of the city of Lahijan in Caspian province of Guilan between 2011 and 2012. The light traps in the rice fields of the village of Pahmadan (37°16'12" N, 50°03'00" E) captured a number of specimens of Scirpophaga innotata (Walker), commonly known as white stem borer. The white stem borer is a major pest of rice in the south and southeast of Asia and Australia. This species is recorded from Iran for the first time.

A study on the arthropods associated with Agaricales macrofungi in the western Iranian province of Kermanshah during 2010-2011 led to the discovery of two black fungus gnat species of Corynoptera perpusilla Winnertz and Bradysia ocellaris (Comstock). Both sciarid species are here reported for the first time from Iran.

During a faunistic study of the family Carabidae in Guilan province in summer 2011, beetle specimens were collected directly or by using pitfall traps and light traps. A species of ground beetles was identified and later confirmed by Dr. R. Felix (Berkel Enschot, The Netherlands) as Parophonus dia (Reitter). This species is recorded from Iran for the first time.

We studied the pest and parasitoid fauna of cauliflower fields in southern Tehran in 2011. In the course of our research the Ichneumonid wasp Barichneumon derogator (Wesmael) of the subfamily Ichneumoninae was collected and identified. This parasitoid attacks the larval stages of lepidopteran pests. The species B. derogator is newly recorded from Iran.

The ladybird fauna of the croplands in the vicinity of Mashhad in the northeastern province of Khorasan-Razavi was studied from 2011 through 2012. The species Pharoscymnus brunneosignatus Mader and Scymnus schmidti Fürsch, were collected and identified which are newly recorded for the Iranian beetle fauna.

In the spring and summer of 2012, a survey was conducted to study the biological control agents of field bindweed (Convolvolus arvensis L.) in the city of Mashhad and its suburban areas. Lepidopteran larvae were observed feeding on the leaves of field bindweed. The larvae were collected and reared in an insectarium and later sent to Dr H. Alipanah (Iranian Research Institute of Plant Protection, Tehran, Iran). The species was identified as Bedellia somnulentella (Zeller) of the family Bedelliidae. This species is newly reported from Iran.

The family Eurytomidae includes economically important wasps, which feed on the seeds of various agricultural, horticultural and rangeland plants. This report is part of a survey conducted during 2009-2012 to identify the seed-eating pests of non-legume rangeland plants in the Fars province of Iran. The eurytomid species Systole eremodauci Zerova, 1994 was collected on ammoniacum plant, Dorema ammoniacum (D. Don.), and is first recorded from Iran.

The occurrence of the hymenopterous parasitoid of the sugarcane whitefly, Neomaskellia andropogonis Corbett (Hem.: Aleyrodidae), in Iran is newly reported. The aphelinid species, Eretmocerus delhiensis Mani, which was reared from nymphs of the sugarcane whitefly, belongs to the subfamily Aphelininae and tribe Eretmocerini.

In the course of our faunistic survey on leafhoppers (Hem.: Cicadellidae) in northwestern Iran, 46 species were collected and identified of which the species Macrosteles chobauti Ribaut, 1952 is newly recorded from Iran. Drs. Hani Abdul-Nour (Lebanese University, Lebanon) and Paul Freytag (University of Kentucky, USA) confirmed the identification of the species.

The thrips fauna of the orchards of the cities of Yasuj and Sisakht (Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province) was studied during 2012-2013. The species Thrips italicus (Bagnall), which was collected on red apple trees in Sisakht, is reported for the first time in Iran.

The population fluctuations of the Asian citrus psyllid nymphs, Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, was studied in Persian lime orchards on the outskirts of Sarbaz, Rask and Polan towns in southeastern Iranian Baluchestan between 2007 and 2008. The species D. citri was observed feeding on its host plant throughout the year leading to overlapping generations. The highest density (126 ± 11 and 157.63 ± 68) occurred in Sarbaz in August and March. We reported the highest density for Rask and Polan in “September and March” and November respectively.

In the course of our survey on oribatid mite fauna of the orchards of the city of Arak (Markazi Province), in 2005-2006, we identified the species Tectoribates ornatus (Schuster). This species belongs to the family Tegoribatidae and is a new record for the Iranian mite fauna.

The faunistic survey of oribatid mites, between 2008 and 2010, on the outskirts of the city of Shiraz led to the discovery of the species Banksinoma exobothridialis Bayartogtokh of the family Thyrisomidae. Both the species and the family are new to the Iranian fauna.

In 2013, we launched a project to collect and identify the insects, which were associated with the pistachio gall aphid species Forda hirsuta Mordv. and Slavum mordvilovi Kreutz in Tang-Shekan region of the city of Arsanjan in the province of Fars. We collected the ichneumonid wasp Aneuclis melanaria (Holmgren) of the subfamily Tersilochinae on the aphid populations of S. mordvilovi. This parasitoid wasp is a new record for the fauna of Iran.