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The carambola fruit fly, Bactrocera carambolae Drew & Hancock, is native to Southeast Asia, infests about 150 plant species, and is considered a quarantine pest insect in several regions of the world. Bactrocera carambolae has invaded Suriname, French Guyana, and northern Brazil. In Brazil, it was first recorded in 1996 and has been restricted to the states of Amapá and Roraima due to official control efforts of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Supply (Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária—MAPA). This is the first study to estimate the genetic structure and diversity of South American populations of B. carambolae. A total of 116 individuals from 11 localities in Brazil and 7 localities in Suriname were analyzed. Additional sequences available at GenBank from Indonesia (Lampung) and Thailand (San Pa Tong and Muang District) were also used in the analysis. We sequenced a fragment of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase subunit I. A total of 35 haplotypes were found. Haplotypes from Indonesia were closest to the haplotypes from South America, separated only by a few mutational steps. This suggests that Indonesia is the likely source for the introduction of B. carambolae into South America. The Southeast Asian populations appeared as the most ancestral group in the phylogenetic trees. The high similarity and sharing of several haplotypes among populations within South America indicate a lack of genetic structure. The mismatch distribution and neutrality tests suggest that South American populations have undergone a rapid growth and expansion following a single founder event. The low genetic diversity and the population expansion evidenced by the neutrality tests lend support to the hypothesis of a recent introduction of a single lineage of the carambola fruit fly into South America.

The first reports of viruses in psittacine birds date back to the early 1970s. Here, we elucidate the differences among these previous studies and the advances achieved. The objective of this study was to carry out a comprehensive review using both scientometric and systematic methods to analyze the evolution of published studies on viruses in psittacine birds up to 2022. The search descriptors “virus”, “diagnosis”, and “Psittaciformes” were used to find the articles of interest for this study. A total of 118 articles were manually selected, and the scientometric data were organized using the software VOSviewer® version 1.6.18. The present review revealed that: (i) on average, 2.5 articles/year on the diagnosis of viral infection in psittacine birds were published since 1975; (ii) the most productive research groups are concentrated in three countries: Australia, the United States, and Germany; (iii) the most important virus in psittacine birds is the Circovirus, which causes psittacine beak and feather disease; (iv) the diagnostic method of choice is polymerase chain reaction (PCR); and (v) the most studied psittacine birds were those in the Psittacidae family that were kept in captivity.

The genus Adenomera Steindachner, 1867 currently comprises 29 nominal species, some of which are suggested to be cryptic species complexes. The present study was carried out with specimens of the “thomei” clade that encompasses three taxa distributed in the Atlantic Forest biome: Adenomera thomei Almeida et Angulo, 2006, Adenomera sp. L., and Adenomera sp. M. We used classical cytogenetics to describe the diploid number and karyomorphology of these three species collected in two different locations in the state of Bahia, Brazil. Our results revealed the diploid number 2n = 24 (FN = 34) with two pairs of metacentric chromosomes (pairs 1 and 5), three pairs of submetacentric chromosomes (pairs 2, 3, and 4), and seven pairs of telocentric chromosomes (pairs 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12). Further morphological, bioacoustic, and cytogenetic data (C-banding and AgNor) are needed to better delineate the lineages within the “thomei” clade.

ABSTRACT We report for the first time field infestation under natural conditions by Anastrepha bahiensis on star fruit (Averrhoa carambola L., Oxalidaceae) in the state of Pará, Eastern Amazon, Brazil. This report reinforces the importance of field infestation studies on fruit flies in the Brazilian Amazon.

As moscas-das-frutas (Diptera: Tephritidae) são pragas-chave na cultura da goiabeira Psidium guajava L., com predominância de diferentes espécies de acordo com a região produtora no Brasil. Os objetivos do presente trabalho foram conhecer a diversidade e analisar parâmetros faunísticos das moscas-das-frutas obtidas em um pomar de goiabeira, no município de Cruzeta, Rio Grande do Norte, situado no semiárido brasileiro. As moscas-das-frutas foram coletadas semanalmente, com auxílio de armadilhas McPhail, tendo como atrativo proteína hidrolisada a 5% v/v. Foram registradas cinco espécies no pomar estudado: Ceratitis capitata (Wied.), Anastrepha zenildae Zucchi, Anastrepha sororcula Zucchi, Anastrepha obliqua (Macquart) e Anastrepha dissimilis Stone. Ceratitis capitata foi a espécie mais frequente, constante e dominante, considerada como uma praga invasiva, potencial em pomares de goiabeira no semiárido brasileiro.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the diversity of fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) species that use myrtaceous fruit, particularly guava, as hosts in several localities in the state of Bahia and to determine the infestation rates, pupal viability rates, and fruit fly-parasitoid associations. Sampling of myrtaceous fruit was carried out in 24 municipalities in different regions in the state of Bahia. Four fruit fly species, Anastrepha fraterculus, Anastrepha zenildae, Anastrepha sororcula, and Ceratitis capitata were obtained from the collected fruit. Three parasitoid species (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) emerged from Anastrepha larvae/pupae, Doryctobracon areolatus, Utetes anastrephae, and Asobara anastrephae. Doryctobracon areolatus emerged from A. fraterculus, A. sororcula and A. zenildae; Utetes anastrephae emerged from A. fraterculus and A. zenildae; and Asobara anastrephae emerged from A. fraterculus. Fruit fly and myrtaceous fruit associations are reported for the first time in several municipalities in the state of Bahia. A. zenildae was found infesting Syzygium malaccense for the first time in Brazil.

This study aimed at knowing the diversity of fruit fly species (Diptera: Tephritidae) and discussing the influence of abiotic factors on the population fluctuation of these species on a guava (Psidium guajava L.) orchard in Russas, CE. Two McPhail traps baited with protein hydrolisate at 5% were set up on the orchard. The traps were serviced weekly and all the insects captured were transported to the laboratory where the fruit flies were separated from other insects, counted and preserved in alcohol (70%). The survey was carried out from January to December 2003. Tephritids were identified at the Laboratório de Moscas-das-Frutas at UFERSA, in Mossoró (RN). Population fluctuation was calculated based on the number of flies/trap/day, considering the total number of males and females of Anastrepha and Ceratitis. Climate data used in this study were obtained from CENTEC weather station. The correlation between population fluctuation and abiotic factors was analyzed using Spearman correlation coefficient at the 5% level. A total of 1,164 fruit flies belonging to four species were captured - Anastrepha zenildae Zucchi (77.45%), A. sororcula Zucchi (18.69%), A. obliqua (Macquart) (0.15%) and Ceratitis capitata (Wied.) (3.71%). Among the abiotic factors, temperature and relative humidity were the ones that most indirectly influenced the population fluctuation of fruit flies. However, the availability of host fruits is the preponderant factor that determines the populational peaks of fruit fly species throughout the year on this guava orchard in Russas (CE).

We present evidence of the paraphyly of the ant genus Pachycondyla resulting from our cytogenetic studies on 29 populations in 18 species from Brazil and French Guyana. It is likely that karyotypes with a large number of chromosomes and comprising mostly small acrocentric chromosomes in species within the Pachycondyla stricto sensu group resulted from a succession of centric fission events. On the other hand, karyotypes with a small chromosome number comprising mostly metacentric chromosomes are also interpreted as little derived and tend to undergo centric fission. The karyotypes of the group Neoponera are more heterogeneous and probably undergo successive cycles of rearrangements tending to increase the chromosome number by centric fission. The apicalis and verenae complexes form two probable sister groups that evolved independently due to centric fissions (verenae) and pericentric inversions (apicalis). Our results reveal the karyotype diversity in the genus and reinforce the hypothesis on the paraphyly of Pachycondyla.

Abstract Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) are important mango (Mangifera indica L.) pests in several parts of the world. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to know the species of fruit flies associated with commercial mango orchards in a semiarid region of Rio Grande do Norte state, Brazil; report the species of quarantine importance; discuss the influence of the semiarid environment on the distribution of the species and verify their faunistic indices. The study was carried out between July 2011 and June 2014 in ten commercial orchards of mango cultivar Tommy Atkins in the semiarid region of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Northeastern Brazil. Fruit flies were captured in McPhail traps baited with 5% hydrolyzed corn protein (Bio Anastrepha®). Mangoes fruits were also collected. Faunistic analysis was performed to characterize the populations. Eight fruit fly species (Anastrepha spp. and C. capitata) were captured. The species C. capitata had the highest geographic distribution and was the only one to infest mangoes. The faunistic analysis showed that most of the orchards had low species richness and that C. capitata was the most frequent and predominant species.