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This study aimed to explore the rate of decomposition of rabbit carcasses and the succession pattern of the associated dipteran flies outdoor, indoor, and on the roof of a 4-story building during the summer and winter. A total of 6,069 flies were recorded, with 30.91% reported as 2 waves outdoor and on the roof in the summer and 69.09% as 4 waves outdoor in the winter. The roof showed the most flies in the summer but the least in the winter, whereas the outdoor showed the most in the winter but the least in the summer. The ground and first floors showed the most indoor flies, while the second and third floors showed the least in both seasons. Indoor carcasses decomposed slower than those outdoor, and those on the second and third floors decomposed slower than those on the ground and first floors. Ten fly species from 8 families were identified in the winter, compared to 6 from 5 families in the summer. The most abundant species was Musca domesticaLinnaeus (Muscidae) on the roof in the summer, while it was Chrysomya albiceps(Wiedemannn) (Calliphoridae) outdoor in the winter. The rare species (singletons) were Musca sp.(Muscidae) and Megaselia scalaris(Loew) (Phoridae) on the first floor in both seasons, Scaptomyza pallida(Zetterstedt) (Drosophilidae) on the ground floor in the summer, and Atherigona orientalisSchiner (Muscidae) outdoor in the winter. These data highlight the variance in carcass decomposition and fly composition across outdoor, indoor, and the roof of human dwellings, which could be of forensic importance.

The current study was carried out in the seaward coastal beach environment of Al-Jubail City, Saudi Arabia, to analyze the rabbit carcass decomposition process, the succession pattern of associated ants, and their potential utility in forensic investigation. Experiments were conducted over a 4-season course (from autumn 2018 to summer 2019). A total of 9 species belonging to the 2 subfamilies, Myrmicinae and Formicinae, were recorded. The myrmicine species were Crematogaster aegyptiacaMayr, 1862; Messor ebeninusSantschi, 1927; Messor foreliSantschi, 1923; and Monomorium abeilleiAndre, 1881. The formicine species were Camponotus xerxesForel, 1904; Cataglyphis albicans(Roger, 1859); Cataglyphis hologerseniCollingwood & Agosti, 1996; Cataglyphis viaticoides(André, 1881); and Nylanderia jaegerskioeldi(Mayr, 1904). M. abeilleiwas the only species recorded in all 4 seasons, while M. abeilleiand C. albicanswere the dominant species in summer and C. aegyptiacaand C. albicansin spring. Diversity was lowest in the autumn, with only 4 species recorded. The COIgene sequences of 5 species have been successfully deposited in the GenBank database for the first time. In total, 4 carcass decomposition stages were observed, with the longest duration in winter (13 days), the shortest in summer (11 days), and in between for both autumn and spring. Most ant species were present during both decay and dry stages, while M. abeillei, C. aegyptiaca, M. ebeninus, and C. albicanswere observed in all decomposition stages. These data may indicate that ants on this coastal beach showed seasonal and geographical succession patterns that could be taken into consideration in forensic investigations.

A new species, Cardiocondyla hashemisp. n.is described and illustrated using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) based on the worker caste. Cardiocondyla hashemiis a member of the C. batesiispecies-group with a resemblance to C. tenuifronsSeifert, 2003 from Jordan. Cardiocondyla hashemican be readily distinguished by the uniform yellow body, the rare or distinctly scattered foveolae on the posterior third of cephalic surface, the broadly medially concave anterior clypeal margin, the sculptured mesosomal dorsum except for the mesonotum which is shallowly sculptured with faint longitudinal rugae, and petiolar node distinctly densely microreticulate. Ecological and biological remarks on the type locality are given. A key to the Saudi fauna of the genus Cardiocondylais presented.http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:1DB79558-0CE0-413B-A6EB-9E0ABB884882

Background: The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda(J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is an aggressive pest species that causes severe economic losses in outbreak regions. Use of FAW natural enemies, particularly native parasitoids, has been suggested as a promising control strategy. Campoletis chlorideaeUchida (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) is a solitary ichneumonid larval endoparasitoid with a broad host range that includes S. frugiperda. However, its parasitism rate, developmental stages, and population dynamics during parasitization of S. frugiperdaremain unclear. A field survey was conducted to determine the emergence rate and sex ratio of C. chlorideae, evaluated the biological control performance, and investigated the production potential of it on the individually reared and group-reared S. frugiperdathrough age-stage, two-sex life tables, respectively. Results: The results showed that C. chlorideaeparasitizing individually reared FAW resulted for the parasitoid in a lifetime total fecundity (F) of 301.5 ± 16.4 eggs/female, a net reproduction rate (R0) of 62.03 ± 9.07 adult females/female, an overall life span of females of 28.3 ± 0.52 days, and an intrinsic rate of increase (r) of 0.1946 ± 0.0076 day−1. In contrast, the parameters of F, R0, overall life span of females, and rwere 87.71 ± 6.32 pupae/female, 6.02 ± 1.61 adult females/female, 25.21 ± 0.79 days, and 0.0918 ± 0.0148 day−1in group-reared S. frugiperda. Conclusions: This study suggests that C. chlorideaehas a promising biological control potential against S. frugiperda. Future research should focus on developing methods to increase the production of C. chlorideae.

Background: The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture in Saudi Arabia has begun funding some projects to set up some agricultural pest control programs. Therefore, it is very important to enumerate all the predacious or parasitic insects that live on or in other agricultural insect pests and have the potential to become biological control agents against these pests. Results: In the present study, nine fly species of potential importance in biological pest control are recorded for the first time from Saudi Arabia, namely, Spogostylum ventraleBezzi, 1924, Prothaplocnemis anthracina(Becker, 1902) [family Bombyliidae], Alloxytropus anomalusBezzi, 1925, Scenopinus minusculus(Séguy, 1934) [family Scenopinidae], Actorthia frontataKröber, 1912, Hoplosathe brevistylaLyneborg & Zaitzev, 1980 [family Therevidae], Hilarasp. [family Empididae], Tomosvaryella demeyeriKuznetzov, 1993 [family Pipunculidae] and Orchisia costata(Meigen, 1826) [family Muscidae]. In addition, this is the first time to record the four genera ProthaplocnemisBezzi, AlloxytropusBezzi, HilaraMeigen and OrchisiaRondani from Saudi Arabia. World and local distributions, diagnoses, feeding behaviors and some colored photographs of recorded species are provided. Conclusion: In the present study, nine species of predacious and parasitic flies belonging to nine genera and six families are recorded for the first time in Saudi Arabia.

Leptogenys polaszekisp. n. is described from the Asir Mountains, Saudi Arabia, based on the worker caste. The new species is a member of the L. sulcinoda-group and appears closest to L. belliiEmery, 1901, originally described from Ethiopia. The likely male caste of L. polaszekisp. n. is described based on a single specimen collected by a pitfall trap in the type locality.http://www.zoobank.org/urn:urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5D3BF3AF-5308–48E8–8416–902278909AD5

Background: The Conopidae are an interesting family of small- to large-sized endoparasitic flies, commonly known as thick-headed flies. These flies have been proposed as potential biological control agents of invasive social wasps (subfamilies: Polistinae and Vespinae, family: Vespidae). Results: All known Algerian thick-headed flies (family Conopidae) are listed in the present study. Four subfamilies, nine genera and 23 species were treated. Three of these species are recorded herein from Algeria for the first time, namely Myopa pellucida(Robineau-Desvoidy), M. pictaPanzer and Thecophora fulvipes(Robineau-Desvoidy). As far as they are known, Algerian localities and collection dates are provided, which comprise some new locality records. The data for this study were compiled from both available literature and material collected from some Algerian localities. Conclusion: The family Conopidae (thick-headed flies) is hitherto represented in Algeria by four subfamilies, nine genera and 23 species. Three of these species are recorded herein for the first time.

Background: Bombyliidae (bee flies) are one of the largest dipterous families in Saudi Arabia with 116 hitherto recorded species. Larvae of these flies are predators or parasitoids of different stages of other insects in the orders Orthoptera, Neuroptera, Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera, in addition to spiders (order Araneae, class Arachnida), so they have potential use as biological control agents for pests belonging to these orders. Results: In the present study, the list of Saudi Arabian fauna of bee flies (family Bombyliidae) is supplemented with seven new records in five genera and four subfamilies. The newly recorded species are Parageron lutescens(Bezzi, 1925) [Usiinae], Phthiria salmayensisEfflatoun, 1945 [Phthiriinae], Heterotropus bisglaucusBezzi, 1925, Heterotropus maculiventrisBezzi, 1925, Heterotropus xanthothoraxEfflatoun, 1945 [Heterotropinae], Anthrax greatheadiEl-Hawagry, 1999, and Desmatoneura brevipennis(Bezzi, 1924) [Anthracinae]. World and local distributions of recorded species, diagnoses, remarks on feeding behaviors and some colored photographs were provided. Conclusion: The present study supplements the bee fly fauna (family Bombyliidae) in Saudi Arabia with seven new records. This brings the total number of bee fly species in the country into 123 species classified in 40 genera, 12 tribes and 10 subfamilies.

Background: The Nemestrinidae are a widespread group of moderate to large-sized rather stout flies. All known larvae of these flies are internal parasitoids of nymphs and adults of grasshoppers and larvae of scarabaeid beetles and have the potential to be used as biocontrol agents. Results: All known Egyptian and Saudi Arabian nemestrinid taxa are systematically catalogued in the present study. A total number of 13 species classified in only 2 genera, Nemestrinus(subfamily Nemestrininae) and Trichopsidea(subfamily Falleniinae), were investigated. Twelve of these species are represented in Egypt, out of which 5 species are represented in Saudi Arabia as well. Two of the treated species, Nemestrinus ater(Olivier) and N. rufipes(Olivier), are newly recorded herein from Saudi Arabia. Only one species, Trichopsidea costata(Loew), was recorded exclusively from Saudi Arabia. An updated classification, taxonomic data, world and local distributions with collection dates and coloured photographs of some species were provided. Hope that the results of this study will provide the basis for systematic studies and fauna analyses of future works on Nemestrinidae. It seems likely that further species will be discovered with more research involving a variety of collecting methods. Conclusion: Thirteen nemestrinid species belonging to 2 genera and 2 subfamilies were represented in both Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Two of these species are newly recorded herein from Saudi Arabia.

Examination of specimens of Elateridae revealed new generic and species records for Saudi Arabia. Zorochros amalec(Peyerimhoff) is recorded from Al Majardah, and Zorochros yosraesp. n. is described as a new species from Thalouth Almanazar.http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:E4B9EB99-BE55-4884-B220-BF9928926312

Cneocnemis arabicasp. n. is described from western Saudi Arabia. The type locality lies disjunct from the large conjunct area of the Asian congeners, probably due to the lack of suitable habitats (?trees) in central and eastern Arabia. C. angustula(Fairmaire, 1893) comb. n. from Indochina is transferred from Ulomato Cneocnemis.Additionally, the first records of Cenoscelis pulla(Erichson, 1843) from Saudi Arabia are listed. The species of Cenoscelisseem at least not to be restricted to arboreal habitats.

Coprophagous beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) play an important ecological role in the management of grazing and cycling of nutrients within different ecosystems. Seasonal abundance, species richness, and alpha diversity of the dung beetles were investigated in Rawdhat Khorim Nature Preserve in the central Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Adult beetles were trapped using UV light traps biweekly from November 2011 to October 2012 (for a total of 24 nocturnal trap samples). A total of 2,982 dung beetles were caught, representing 22 species in nine genera belonging to the subfamilies of Aphodiinae and Scarabaeinae. The total catch was dominated (58%) by Aphodius pruinosus Reitter and Aphodius wollastoni iranicus Balthasar, with the Aphodiinae constituting 94% of the total beetle richness. Most of the dung beetle species were dwellers (20 species). Aphodius luridus (F.) and Granulopsammodius plicatulus (Fairmaire) are new records for KSA. Abundance, richness, and alpha diversity of dung beetles peaked during spring. Alpha diversity increased with higher average air temperatures. Dung beetle abundance was positively correlated with the normalized difference vegetation index. Two clusters of species phenology were apparent, a summer-active group and those not active during the summer months. Our findings may enhance the understanding of dung beetle ecology in the rawdhat network within hyper-arid ecosystems of Arabian Peninsula and sustainable management of dung beetles for nutrient reincorporation through the consumption and storage of dung in the soil.