Pesticides and reduced‐risk insecticides,native bees and pantropical stingless bees: pitfalls and perspectives

Although invertebrates generally have a low public profile, the honey bee, Apis mellifera L., is a flagship species whose popularity likely derives from the products it provides and its perceived ecological services. Therefore, the raging debate regarding honey bee decline has surpassed the realm of beekeepers, academia, industry and regulatory agencies and now also encompasses non‐governmental agencies, media, fiction writers and the general public. The early interest and concern about honey bee colony collapse disorder (CCD) soon shifted to the bigger issue of pollinator decline, with a focus on the potential involvement of pesticides in such a phenomenon. Pesticides were previously recognised as the potential culprits of the reported declines, particularly the neonicotinoid insecticides owing to their widespread and peculiar use in agriculture. However, the evidence for the potential pivotal role of these neonicotinoids in honey bee decline remains a matter of debate, with an increased recognition of the multifactorial nature of the problem and the lack of a direct association between the noted decline and neonicotinoid use. The focus on the decline of honey bee populations subsequently spread to other species, and bumblebees became another matter of concern, particularly in Europe and the United States. Other bee species, ones that are particularly important in other regions of the world, remain the object of little concern (unjustifiably so). Furthermore, the continuous focus on neonicotinoids is also in need of revision, as the current evidence suggests that a broad spectrum of compounds deserve attention. Here we address both shortcomings. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry     

Managing leaf‐cutting ants: peculiarities,trends and challenges

Leaf‐cutting ants are generally recognized as important pest species in Neotropical America. They are eusocial insects that exhibit social organization, foraging, fungus‐cultivation, hygiene and a complex nest structure, which render their management notoriously difficult. A lack of economic thresholds and sampling plans focused on the main pest species preclude the management of leaf‐cutting ants; such management would facilitate their control and lessen insecticide overuse, particularly the use of insecticidal baits. Recent restrictions on the use of synthetic compounds for such purposes impose additional challenges for the management of leaf‐cutting ants. Considerable effort has been exerted regarding these challenges, which are addressed herein, but which also remain challenges that are yet to be conquered. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry     

Laparoscopic-assisted incisional colopexy by two portals access in a domestic cat with recurrent rectal prolapse

A 2-year-old female mixed-breed cat weighing 2.7 kg presented with recurrent rectal prolapse. The following report describes its treatment by laparoscopic-assisted incisional colopexy using two portals. The procedure was effective and without trans- or postoperative complications. Recurrent prolapses did not recur in the 2 months of postoperative observation.     

Larval cannibalism and fitness in the stored grain weevils <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sitophilus granarius</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sitophilus zeamais</Emphasis>

Resource limitation is an important determinant of life history and behavior while mediating competition and reproduction among organisms. Discreet and closed systems such as grain kernels and seeds impose drastic restrictions to grain beetles that spend their immature stages within a single kernel selected by their mother. This is the case of internally feeding stored grain beetles, such as the grain weevils. Female egg-laying decisions and larval competition largely determine resource limitation for such insects where clustered egg distribution and contest competition with larval interference and cannibalism take place. As the clustered eggs within a grain lead to larval competition and conspecific weevil larvae face each other off during development allowing the emergence of one or two larvae per kernel, we hypothesized that such competition and consequent cannibalism will have fitness consequences for the competing individuals and their offspring. Thus, larvae of the granary weevil (Sitophilus granarius L.) and the maize weevil (Sitophilus zeamais Motsch.) were subjected to larval competition with cannibalism, and lack of it, to assess the potential fitness consequence of cannibalism on these non-carnivorous pest species of stored grains. Larval cannibalism reduced developmental time of maize weevil, but not of granary weevil. However, such condition led to heavier adult weevils of both species exhibiting higher reproductive output generating more and better quality progeny than non-cannibal weevils. These findings indicate direct nutritional benefits of cannibalism to grain weevils favoring their status of key pest species of stored cereal grains.