Journal articles on the topic 'Australian insect'
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1
Sogari, Giovanni, Diana Bogueva, and Dora Marinova. "Australian Consumers’ Response to Insects as Food." Agriculture 9, no. 5 (May 22, 2019): 108. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/agriculture9050108.
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Many research articles have been published about people’s perceptions and acceptance of eating insects as novel foods in Western countries; however, only a few studies have focused on Australian consumers. The aim of this work is to explore attitudes towards edible insects of younger Australians (Millennials and Generation Z) with data collection carried out in Sydney, Australia. Two representative surveys were conducted in 2018 and 2019 using open-ended questions. The main findings suggest that there is low willingness to accept edible insects as a meat substitute among Australian consumers, due mainly to the strong psychological barriers such as neophobia and disgust, combined with a perception about threats to masculinity. Environmental and nutritional benefits, even when recognised, do not seem to influence consumers to consider insects as a food alternative. In the near future, as young people become more aware of sustainability and climate change issues related to food production, the impact of the potential benefits of insects might grow. Furthermore, a positive sensory experience might improve the acceptability of insects as food. Introducing new processed, insect-based products may help establish familiarity with such novel food options and open up new business opportunities.
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Si, Aung, and Myfany Turpin. "The Importance of Insects in Australian Aboriginal Society: A Dictionary Survey." Ethnobiology Letters 6, no. 1 (September 17, 2015): 175–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.14237/ebl.6.1.2015.399.
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Insects and their products have long been used in Indigenous Australian societies as food, medicine and construction material, and given prominent roles in myths, traditional songs and ceremonies. However, much of the available information on the uses of insects in Australia remains anecdotal. In this essay, we review published dictionaries of Aboriginal languages spoken in many parts of Australia, to provide an overview of the Indigenous names and knowledge of insects and their products. We find that that native honeybees and insect larvae (particularly of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera) are the most highly prized insects, and should be recognized as cultural keystone species. Many insects mentioned in dictionaries lack scientific identifications, however, and we urge documentary linguists to address this important issue.
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Drake, VA. "The influence of weather and climate on agriculturally important insects: an Australian perspective." Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 45, no. 3 (1994): 487. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ar9940487.
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Weather and climate affect insects and other arthropods of importance to agriculture in a wide variety of ways. Pest and beneficial insects, and insect vectors of plant and animal diseases, are all influenced both directly and indirectly by temperature, rainfall, wind, etc. These influences can be immediate or cumulative, and they can act either at the production site or, in the case of migrant species, at locations distant from it. Weather and climate influence, often very significantly, the development rate, survival, fitness, and level of activity of individual insects; the phenology, distribution, size, and continuity of insect populations; migration and the re-establishment of populations following local extinction; the initiation of outbreaks; the susceptibility of crops and stock to insect attack; and the capacity of producers to manage insect populations. In Australia, the high variability of rainfall is of particular significance in determining the size and quality of insect populations. Windborne migration can be important for transporting these populations into agricultural regions, and low winter temperatures in the south of the continent limit the distribution of tropical species. Current Australian research on these topics is directed mainly at the development of pest-forecasting systems, and at estimating the impact of global greenhouse warming.
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Withers, T. M., and J. Bain. "Reducing rate of Australian Eucalyptus insects invading New Zealand." New Zealand Plant Protection 62 (August 1, 2009): 411. http://dx.doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2009.62.4863.
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Trees in the introduced genus Eucalyptus form an important part of New Zealands flora Since the 1860s Australian insects have steadily colonised this resource in this novel habitat There are now 28 specialist eucalypt insect species and approximately another 30 more polyphagous insect species that may feed on Eucalyptus spp established in New Zealand Throughout the 1990s the rate at which these insects had invaded New Zealand reached a peak of one insect every 18 months This study shows how the invasion rate appears to have dropped to one insect every five years Since 2000 only two new eucalyptus pests have established both being psyllids first identified in 2002 Creiis liturata (Froggatt) and Anoeconeossa communis Taylor The eucalyptspecific insect invaders are now dominated by sapsucking bugs particularly psyllids It may be that this group of insects is being dispersed the 1800 km by aerial flight a natural pathway that will not be able to be closed
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DiGiacomo, K., H. Akit, and B. J. Leury. "Insects: a novel animal-feed protein source for the Australian market." Animal Production Science 59, no. 11 (2019): 2037. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/an19301.
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The increasing demands on natural resources to provide food and feed has led to increased global initiatives to improve production sustainability and efficiency. The use of insects as an alternate source of protein for human food and production-animal feed is one such avenue gaining attention. With there being a large variety of insect species endemic to each region, there is likely to be an ideal candidate for each specific production system and region. Insects require less land and water than do terrestrial animals, have high feed-conversion efficiency (FCE) and emit low levels of greenhouse gases (GHG). Insect species currently investigated for mass production include black soldier fly larvae (BSFL), mealworms and crickets. In western societies, it is less likely that wide-scale adoption of insects as a food source will occur, although speciality products with ‘hidden’ insects, such as cricket flour, are commercially available. It is likely to be more achievable for insects to be included into the diets of production and companion animals. While there has been significant investment in research and development of large-scale insect-production systems, such facilities are yet to start producing at a significant scale. The safety and efficacy of insects as a food or feed must be established in conjunction with the development of mass rearing facilities and the optimisation of insect-rearing substrates. Insects also have nutraceutical properties that may have beneficial impacts on animal health and growth, with scope for these properties to be exploited as feed or food additives. The present review will explore the following question: ‘are insects a future livestock industry for Australia?’.
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Cunningham, Saul A., Frances FitzGibbon, and Tim A. Heard. "The future of pollinators for Australian agriculture." Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 53, no. 8 (2002): 893. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ar01186.
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Agriculture in Australia is highly dependent on insect pollination, in particular from the introduced western honeybee, Apis mellifera. Most agricultural pollination is provided as an unpaid service by feral A. mellifera and native insects. A smaller proportion of agricultural pollination is provided as a paid service by beekeepers. Insect pollination is threatened by misuse of insecticides and the loss of remnant vegetation, but most potently by the likelihood that the honeybee mite, Varroa destructor, will enter the country. Now is the time to prepare for the effect of these changes, and international experience with pollinator decline should serve as a guide. We need to protect and manage our remnant vegetation to protect wild pollinators. Insurance against declining A. mellifera will come through the development of management practices for alternative pollinator species. By developing native insects as pollinators we can avoid the risks associated with the importation of additional introduced species.
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Yen, A., M. Flavel, C. Bilney, L. Brown, S. Butler, K. Crossing, M. Jois, et al. "The bush coconut (scale insect gall) as food at Kiwirrkurra, Western Australia." Journal of Insects as Food and Feed 2, no. 4 (October 24, 2016): 293–99. http://dx.doi.org/10.3920/jiff2016.0039.
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The bush coconut is used as a source of food by several Australian Aboriginal communities. It is actually a scaleinsect gall. Originally all bush coconut insects were given the same species name, but now there are at least three species in Australia. The bloodwood trees at Kiwirrkurra (Western Australia), Corymbia opaca, had bush coconuts built by the scale insect Cystococcus pomiformis. The use of the coconut is described by some Aboriginal women from Kiwirrkurra. The nutritional value of the bush coconuts from Kiwirrkurra is determined; this is importantinformation because the species tested is known while the species identification of galls in earlier publications is now uncertain due to taxonomic changes.
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Lichtwardt, Robert W., and Marvin C. Williams. "Trichomycete gut fungi in Australian aquatic insect larvae." Canadian Journal of Botany 68, no. 5 (May 1, 1990): 1057–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/b90-133.
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Arthropods containing gut fungi (Zygomycotina: Trichomycetes) were studied from 85 collecting sites in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania. The emphasis was on the fungal order Harpellales in endemic larvae or nymphs of aquatic Diptera, Ephemeroptera, and Plecoptera, but included a few Eccrinales in Crustacea. Of the more than 25 species of trichomycetes dissected from arthropods, 20 are described and illustrated. Of these, 10 are new species that are possibly endemic to Australia. All new Australian species were different from new species described in a correlated study of New Zealand trichomycetes. The new Australian species are Austrosmittium aussiorum, Glotzia tasmaniensis, Smittium aciculare, Sm. boomerangum, Sm. delicatum, Sm. paludis, Sm. rupestre, Stachylina queenslandiae, St. thaumaleidarum (Harpellales), and Parataeniella latrobi (Eccrinales). Other possible new genera and species are briefly described, but not named. Thirteen axenic cultures of Harpellales were obtained; these include one of the new species, Sm. boomerangum, and another species not previously isolated, Sm. elongatum. Some unusual insect families were found infested by Australian trichomycetes. Distribution data on these fungi and their hosts are provided.
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Khadem-Safdarkhani, Hamid, Hamidreza Hajiqanbar, Markus Riegler, Owen Seeman, and Alihan Katlav. "Two New Phoretic Species of Heterostigmatic Mites (Acari: Prostigmata: Neopygmephoridae and Scutacaridae) on Australian Hydrophilid Beetles (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae)." Insects 13, no. 5 (May 22, 2022): 483. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects13050483.
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Many heterostigmatic mites (Acari: Prostigmata: Heterostigmata) display a wide range of symbiotic interactions, from phoresy to parasitism, with a variety of insects. Australia is expected to harbour a rich diversity of heterostigmatic mites; however, its phoretic fauna and its host associations remain mainly unexplored. We conducted a short exploration of Australian insect-associated phoretic mites in summer 2020 and found two new phoretic heterostigmatic species on a semiaquatic hydrophilid beetle species, Coelostoma fabricii (Montrouzier, 1860) (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae). Here, we describe these two new species, Allopygmephorus coelostomus sp. nov. (Neopygmephoridae) and Archidispus hydrophilus sp. nov. (Scutacaridae), which both belong to the superfamily Pygmephoroidea. Both species are distinct from their congeners, with a plesiomorphic character, bearing a median genital sclerite (mgs). Our study reports both genera for the first time from Australia.
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BRUMLEY, CAMERON. "A checklist and host catalogue of the aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) held in the Australian National Insect Collection." Zootaxa 4728, no. 4 (January 24, 2020): 575–600. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4728.4.12.
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The aim of this paper is to provide a checklist for Australian collected aphids present in the Australian National Insect Collection. Host plants for each species are provided, alongside Australian State and territory distribution. Six species are documented for the first time in Australia: Aphis forbesi, Micromyzella filicis, Trichosiphonaphis polygoni, Wahlgreniella nervata, Reticulaphis distylii and Reticulaphis inflata. A total of 137 new host plant associations are documented, spread across 51 species of aphids. A list of the remaining species previously published as present in Australia is also included.
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Holloway, Joanne C., Michael J. Furlong, and Philip I. Bowden. "Management of beneficial invertebrates and their potential role in integrated pest management for Australian grain systems." Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 48, no. 12 (2008): 1531. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ea07424.
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Beneficial invertebrates (predators and parasitoids) can make significant contributions to the suppression of insect pest populations in many cropping systems. In Australia, natural enemies are incorporated into integrated pest management programs in cotton and horticultural agroecosystems. They are also often key components of effective programs for the management of insect pests of grain crops in other parts of the world. However, few studies have examined the contribution of endemic natural enemies to insect pest suppression in the diverse grain agroecosystems of Australia. The potential of these organisms is assessed by reviewing the role that natural enemies play in the suppression of the major pests of Australian grain crops when they occur in overseas grain systems or other local agroecosystems. The principal methods by which the efficacy of biological control agents may be enhanced are examined and possible methods to determine the impact of natural enemies on key insect pest species are described. The financial and environmental benefits of practices that encourage the establishment and improve the efficacy of natural enemies are considered and the constraints to adoption of these practices by the Australian grains industry are discussed.
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Rix, Alan. "The Triassic insects of Denmark Hill, Ipswich, Southeast Queensland: the creation, use and dispersal of a collection." Memoirs of the Queensland Museum - Nature 62 (March 18, 2021): 217–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.17082/j.2204-1478.62.2021.2020-11.
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Type and additional fossil insects from the Late Triassic Denmark Hill locality in Southeast Queensland, Australia, are held in the collections of the Queensland Museum (Brisbane), the Australian Museum (Sydney) and the Natural History Museum of the United Kingdom (London). The history of these collections shows that they were the product of a concerted effort in the first two decades of the twentieth century to extract the fossils by Benjamin Dunstan, Queensland’s Chief Government Geologist, and to describe the fossils by Dunstan and Robin Tillyard, the foremost Australian entomologist of the time. They collaborated closely to document the late Triassic insects of Australia, at the same time as Dunstan carefully curated and organised both the official government collection of these insects for the Geological Survey of Queensland, and his own private collection. The death of the two men in the 1930s led to the sale by his widow of Dunstan’s private fossil collection (including type and type counterpart specimens) to the British Museum, and the donation of Tillyard’s by his widow to the same institution, in addition to some material that went to the Australian Museum. This paper documents the locations of all of the published specimens. The history of the Denmark Hill fossils (a site no longer accessible for collection) highlights the problems for researchers of the dispersal of holdings such as these, and in particular the separation of the part and counterpart of the same insect fossils. It also raises ethical questions arising from the ownership and disposal of private holdings of important fossil material collected in an official capacity.
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Smith, Helen M., Linda E. Neaves, and Anja Divljan. "Predation on cicadas by an Australian Flying-fox Pteropus poliocephalus based on DNA evidence." Australian Zoologist 40, no. 4 (January 2020): 515–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.7882/az.2018.029.
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Historically, reports of insectivory in family Pteropodidae have largely been anecdotal and thought to be an incidental corollary of flying-foxes feeding on plant products. More recent direct observations of flying-foxes catching and consuming insects, as well as advances in techniques that increase our ability to detect dietary items, suggest that this behaviour may be deliberate and more common than previously thought. Usually, multiple insects are consumed, but it appears that flying-foxes hunt and eat them one at a time. However, we have collected and photographed oral ejecta pellets under trees with high flying-fox activity, some containing evidence of multiple masticated insects. Further genetic analysis proved that these pellets came from Grey-headed Flying-foxes Pteropus poliocephalus. We propose that flying-foxes use an array of insect feeding strategies, most likely in response to variation in insect abundance and activity, as well as abiotic factors such as light and temperature.
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BEAVER, ETHAN P., MICHAEL D. MOORE, ALEJANDRO VELASCO-CASTRILLÓN, and MARK I. STEVENS. "Three new ghost moths of the genus Oxycanus Walker, 1856 from Australia (Lepidoptera: Hepialidae)." Zootaxa 4732, no. 3 (February 13, 2020): 351–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4732.3.1.
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Three new species of ghost moth, Oxycanus ephemerous sp. nov., O. flavoplumosus sp. nov., and O. petalous sp. nov. are described from South Australia, New South Wales, and south-west Western Australia, respectively. We illustrate these species and compare morphological and molecular (mtDNA COI gene) characters with similar Oxycanus Walker, 1856 species from Australia. Comparative images of Oxycanus subvaria (Walker, 1856), O. byrsa (Pfitzner, 1933), and O. determinata (Walker, 1856) are figured. The type material of the three new species are held in the Australian National Insect Collection, Canberra, the Western Australian Museum, Perth, and in the South Australian Museum, Adelaide. The type specimens of Oxycanus hildae Tindale, 1964 syn. n. were also examined and the taxon is here considered synonymous with O. subvaria. Concerns are raised about the conservation status of all three new species due to few or localised distribution records.
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Buckley, Thomas R., Dilini Attanayake, and Sven Bradler. "Extreme convergence in stick insect evolution: phylogenetic placement of the Lord Howe Island tree lobster." Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 276, no. 1659 (December 16, 2008): 1055–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2008.1552.
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The ‘tree lobsters’ are an enigmatic group of robust, ground-dwelling stick insects (order Phasmatodea) from the subfamily Eurycanthinae, distributed in New Guinea, New Caledonia and associated islands. Its most famous member is the Lord Howe Island stick insect Dryococelus australis (Montrouzier), which was believed to have become extinct but was rediscovered in 2001 and is considered to be one of the rarest insects in the world. To resolve the evolutionary position of Dryococelus , we constructed a phylogeny from approximately 2.4 kb of mitochondrial and nuclear sequence data from representatives of all major phasmatodean lineages. Our data placed Dryococelus and the New Caledonian tree lobsters outside the New Guinean Eurycanthinae as members of an unrelated Australasian stick insect clade, the Lanceocercata. These results suggest a convergent origin of the ‘tree lobster’ body form. Our reanalysis of tree lobster characters provides additional support for our hypothesis of convergent evolution. We conclude that the phenotypic traits leading to the traditional classification are convergent adaptations to ground-living behaviour. Our molecular dating analyses indicate an ancient divergence (more than 22 Myr ago) between Dryococelus and its Australian relatives. Hence, Dryococelus represents a long-standing separate evolutionary lineage within the stick insects and must be regarded as a key taxon to protect with respect to phasmatodean diversity.
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Downes, Sharon, Tom Walsh, and Wee Tek Tay. "Bt resistance in Australian insect pest species." Current Opinion in Insect Science 15 (June 2016): 78–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2016.04.002.
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Attfield, B., and D. Anderson. "Remote microscopy diagnostics for preclearance export of apricots grown in Central Otago." New Zealand Plant Protection 68 (January 8, 2015): 440. http://dx.doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2015.68.5842.
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Central Otago growers wishing to export apricots to Australia are required to have fruit graded packed and inspected by a registered packhouse as part of the Offshore PreClearance Inspection Programme As part of this programme an Australian government inspector is brought to Central Otago by the industry for approximately 6 weeks to carry out fruit inspections in the packhouse specifically targeting insect interceptions Any insects found in the 600 fruit sampled from each lot inspected (0530 pallets) are brought to Plant Food Research Clyde where a technician prepares the specimen for remote microscopy diagnostics (RMD) RMD enables sameday insect identification by experts from the Plant Health and Environment Laboratory Ministry for Primary Industries Christchurch A camera mounted on a compound or stereo microscope relays images in real time via the internet enabling the specimen to be manipulated by the technician in Clyde for identification by qualified staff in Christchurch Previously insect identification took approximately 3 days as specimens were sent by courier from Central Otago to a certified laboratory in Auckland RMD real time saving equates to less fruit spoilage and less disruption to transport systems awaiting shipments to be cleared
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Jurado-Rivera, José A., Alfried P. Vogler, Chris A. M. Reid, Eduard Petitpierre, and Jesús Gómez-Zurita. "DNA barcoding insect–host plant associations." Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 276, no. 1657 (November 11, 2008): 639–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2008.1264.
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Short-sequence fragments (‘DNA barcodes’) used widely for plant identification and inventorying remain to be applied to complex biological problems. Host–herbivore interactions are fundamental to coevolutionary relationships of a large proportion of species on the Earth, but their study is frequently hampered by limited or unreliable host records. Here we demonstrate that DNA barcodes can greatly improve this situation as they (i) provide a secure identification of host plant species and (ii) establish the authenticity of the trophic association. Host plants of leaf beetles (subfamily Chrysomelinae) from Australia were identified using the chloroplast trnL (UAA) intron as barcode amplified from beetle DNA extracts. Sequence similarity and phylogenetic analyses provided precise identifications of each host species at tribal, generic and specific levels, depending on the available database coverage in various plant lineages. The 76 species of Chrysomelinae included—more than 10 per cent of the known Australian fauna—feed on 13 plant families, with preference for Australian radiations of Myrtaceae (eucalypts) and Fabaceae (acacias). Phylogenetic analysis of beetles shows general conservation of host association but with rare host shifts between distant plant lineages, including a few cases where barcodes supported two phylogenetically distant host plants. The study demonstrates that plant barcoding is already feasible with the current publicly available data. By sequencing plant barcodes directly from DNA extractions made from herbivorous beetles, strong physical evidence for the host association is provided. Thus, molecular identification using short DNA fragments brings together the detection of species and the analysis of their interactions.
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Debus, Stephen Debus, Jerry Olsen, Susan Trost, and David Judge. "Diet of the Australian Hobby Falco longipennis breeding in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, in 2002–2004 and 2005–2008." Australian Field Ornithology 37 (2020): 174–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.20938/afo37174183.
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The diet of the Australian Hobby Falco longipennis was studied in Canberra (ACT), in the summers of 2002–2003 to 2004–2005 and 2005–2006 to 2008–2009 by analysis of prey remains and pellets (28 and 40 collections for a total of 229 and 132 prey items from six and four nests, respectively). The Hobbies’ breeding diet in the first period consisted of 73% birds, 1% microbats and 26% insects by number, and 98% birds, <1% microbats and 1% insects by biomass, mainly parrots (Psittaculidae), Common Starlings Sturnus vulgaris and sparrows Passer sp. In the second period, it consisted of 94% birds, 3% mammals (mostly microbats), 2% lizards and <1% insects by number, and was more dominated by Starlings and other introduced birds, with the change perhaps reflecting a recent decline in local insect abundance. The Hobby’s dietary metrics correspondingly shifted to a greater Geometric Mean Prey Weight and narrower food niche. The Hobby’s diet overlapped moderately (42%) with that of the similarly sized Collared Sparrowhawk Accipiter cirrocephalus in the ACT over the same timeframe, although the two are separated by foraging habitats and methods.
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ALLSOPP, PETER G., and PETER J. HUDSON. "Novapus bifidus Carne, 1957, a primary homonym and synonym of Novapus bifidus Lea, 1910 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae)." Zootaxa 4560, no. 3 (February 26, 2019): 576. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4560.3.9.
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In his landmark revision of the Australian Dynastinae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Phil Carne (1957) described Novapus bifidus Carne, 1957 from males and females collected at Cape York and Thursday Island. The type series is in the Australian National Insect Collection, Canberra, Australia (ANIC); the Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom; the South Australian Museum, Adelaide, Australia (SAM); and the Museum of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. He noted “In the collections of the South Australian Museum there are specimens designated as types of bifidus Lea. No description of this species has been published, and it is now described under the same specific name”. One of his paratypes is a female in SAM identified as “Lea’s unpublished ♀ type” and two other paratypes are males in SAM. Cassis & Weir (1992) noted that one of the SAM specimens has the registration number I4268, although they knew of only two paratypes (one male, one female) in that collection. The name has been attributed to Carne by most subsequent authors (Endrődi 1974, 1985; Carne & Allsopp 1987; Cassis & Weir 1992; Dechambre 2005; Atlas of Living Australia 2018.). Krajcik (2005, 2012) listed it in his scarab checklists but as “bifidus? Carne 1957”.
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Green, K., and L. A. Mound. "An extension to the insect fauna of Heard Island." Polar Record 30, no. 173 (April 1994): 131–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247400021343.
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The insect fauna of Heard Island were investigated on the ChallengerExpedition in 1875 (Kirby 1884); the Deutsche Sudpolar-Expedition in 1902 (VanHöffen 1912); and the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition in 1951/52(Brown 1964; Gressitt and Temple 1970; Home 1984). With the addition of Lepidoptera in these last reports, six orders of insects were recognised as occurring on Heard Island, the others being Collembola, Coleoptera, Diptera, Siphonaptera, and Mallophaga. The present note reports the addition of a seventh order, Thysanoptera, to the fauna.
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Brundrett, Mark C. "Scientific approaches to Australian temperate terrestrial orchid conservation." Australian Journal of Botany 55, no. 3 (2007): 293. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/bt06131.
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This review summarises scientific knowledge concerning the mycorrhizal associations, pollination, demographics, genetics and evolution of Australian terrestrial orchids relevant to conservation. The orchid family is highly diverse in Western Australia (WA), with over 400 recognised taxa of which 76 are Declared Rare or Priority Flora. Major threats to rare orchids in WA include habitat loss, salinity, feral animals and drought. These threats require science-based recovery actions resulting from collaborations between universities, government agencies and community groups. Fungal identification by DNA-based methods in combination with compatibility testing by germination assays has revealed a complex picture of orchid–fungus diversity and specificity. The majority of rare and common WA orchids studied have highly specific mycorrhizal associations with fungi in the Rhizoctonia alliance, but some associate with a wider diversity of fungi. These fungi may be a key factor influencing the distribution of orchids and their presence can be tested by orchid seed bait bioassays. These bioassays show that mycorrhizal fungi are concentrated in coarse organic matter that may be depleted in some habitats (e.g. by frequent fire). Mycorrhizal fungi also allow efficient propagation of terrestrial orchids for reintroduction into natural habitats and for bioassays to test habitat quality. Four categories of WA orchids are defined by the following pollination strategies: (i) nectar-producing flowers with diverse pollinators, (ii) non-rewarding flowers that mimic other plants, (iii) winter-flowering orchids that attract fungus-feeding insects and (iv) sexually deceptive orchids with relatively specific pollinators. An exceptionally high proportion of WA orchids have specific insect pollinators. Bioassays testing orchid-pollinator specificity can define habitats and separate closely related species. Other research has revealed the chemical basis for insect attraction to orchids and the ecological consequences of deceptive pollination. Genetic studies have revealed that the structure of orchid populations is influenced by pollination, seed dispersal, reproductive isolation and hybridisation. Long-term demographic studies determine the viability of orchid populations, estimate rates of transition between seedling, flowering, non-flowering and dormant states and reveal factors, such as grazing and competition, that result in declining populations. It is difficult to define potential new habitats for rare orchids because of their specific relationships with fungi and insects. An understanding of all three dimensions of orchid habitat requirements can be provided by bioassays with seed baits for fungi, flowers for insects and transplanted seedlings for orchid demography. The majority of both rare and common WA orchids have highly specific associations with pollinating insects and mycorrhizal fungi, suggesting that evolution has favoured increasing specificity in these relationships in the ancient landscapes of WA.
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Krige, Anna-Sheree, Siew-May Loh, and Charlotte L. Oskam. "New host records for ticks (Acari : Ixodidae) from the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) revealed in Australian museum survey." Australian Journal of Zoology 65, no. 6 (2017): 379. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo18018.
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A nationwide survey was conducted for ticks (Ixodidae) removed from echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Shaw, 1792), that had been previously collected between 1928 and 2013, and archived within Australian national (Australian National Insect Collection, Australian Capital Territory) and state (Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, and Western Australia) natural history collections. A total of 850 ticks from 89 T. aculeatus hosts were morphologically identified to determine instar, sex and species. Seven larvae, 349 nymphs and 494 adults were identified; 235 were female and 259 were male. The most common tick species was Bothriocroton concolor (Neumann, 1899) (89.2%). In addition, ticks previously recorded from T. aculeatus were identified, including Amblyomma australiense Neumann, 1905 (1.8%), Amblyomma echidnae Roberts, 1953 (0.1%), Bothriocroton hydrosauri (Denny, 1843) (1.4%), Bothriocroton tachyglossi (Roberts, 1953) (1.5%) and Ixodes tasmani Neumann, 1899 (1.2%). For the first time, 22 Amblyomma fimbriatum Koch, 1844 (2.6%) and 19 Amblyomma triguttatum Koch, 1844 (2.2%) ticks were recorded from T. aculeatus. This is the first survey to utilise archived Australian tick collections for the purpose of acquiring new data on tick species that parasitise T. aculeatus.
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MacKay, DA, and MA Whalen. "Geographic variation in ant defence of a widespread Australian euphorb." Australian Systematic Botany 9, no. 2 (1996): 235. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/sb9960235.
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Consequences of ant visitation to plants with extra-floral nectaries (EFNs) in the endemic Australian genus Adriana (Euphorbiaceae) were studied at two locations near Broome, WA and Toowoomba in south-eastern Queensland. At both localities, the prevailing weather conditions were very dry during the study, and ant and herbivore densities were low. The ant and herbivore faunas on adrianas differed between the Western Australian and Queensland sites. At Broome, sap-sucking insects were the most common herbivores seen on plants. Densities of these insects tended to increase when ants were experimentally excluded. At the Queensland study sites, leaf-chewing beetles were the most common herbivores. Although numbers of these insects did not increase significantly when ants were experimentally excluded from treatment branches, behavioural assays showed that the presence or absence of ants could significantly affect the beetles' residence time on plants. Attendance by an assemblage of several ant species apparently provides adrianas with a defence that can function in seasonally dry conditions, that acts primarily to protect young and developing tissues and that acts against a variety of insect herbivores.
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Solley, Graham O. "Stinging and biting insect allergy: an Australian experience." Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology 93, no. 6 (December 2004): 532–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s1081-1206(10)61259-8.
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Eakin-Busher, E. L., P. G. Ladd, J. B. Fontaine, and R. J. Standish. "Mating strategies dictate the importance of insect visits to native plants in urban fragments." Australian Journal of Botany 68, no. 1 (2020): 26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/bt19122.
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Plant species conservation relies on their reproductive success and likelihood of population persistence. Knowledge of plant mating systems, particularly the relationship between plants and their pollinators, is fundamental to inform conservation efforts. This knowledge could be critical for prioritising efforts in human-dominated fragmented landscapes such as the world’s biodiversity hotspots, where reproductive success can be compromised due to habitat loss, limited access to pollinators or other factors. Yet, fundamental data on plant mating systems are lacking for many Australian plants. Here we determined the mating systems of native plant species growing in native woodland fragments within Perth’s urban landscape in south-western Australia. We manipulated insect access to flowers and pollen transfer on five locally common native species, then observed floral visitors and examined reproductive success. Hemiandra pungens and Patersonia occidentalis had mixed mating systems with some ability to self-pollinate, whereas Dianella revoluta and Jacksonia sericea were reliant on insects for outcross pollination. The fruits and seeds produced by Tricoryne elatior were too low to draw conclusions about its mating system. The introduced honey bee (Apis mellifera) was the sole visitor to the mixed mating species, whereas native bees visited D. revoluta and J. sericea (one bee species each). Overall, our data suggest that D. revoluta and J. sericea are more vulnerable to fragmentation than H. pungens and P. occidentalis. Although insects contributed significantly to the reproductive output of the two former plant species, our observations suggested low frequency and richness of insect visitors to these urban fragments. More research is required to determine the generality of our findings. A comparative study in larger native woodland fragments would help estimate the effect of fragmentation on insect pollinators and consequences for the insect-reliant plant species.
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Gunter, Nicole L., Geoff B. Monteith, Stephen L. Cameron, and Tom A. Weir. "Evidence from Australian mesic zone dung beetles supports their Gondwanan origin and Mesozoic diversification of the Scarabaeinae." Insect Systematics & Evolution 50, no. 2 (April 9, 2019): 162–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1876312x-00002171.
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The evolution of dung beetles remains contentious with two hypotheses reflecting Cretaceous and Paleogene origins driven by different methods. We explore biogeographic evidence and phylogeographic origins against vicariance and dispersal scenarios that attribute to the four elements of the Australian fauna using a multi-gene approach. Maximum-likelihood and Bayesian analyses supported the Australasian clade, composed of almost all Australian, New Caledonian and New Zealand endemic genera (to the exclusion of Boletoscapter). Two Australian lineages with east-west splits and few lineages with restricted, non-overlapping distrbution were identified, and biogeography models provided evidence that vicariance and founder event speciation are important processes in the diversification of Australasian scarabaeines. Our phylogenetic results are largely congruent with a mid-Cretaceous origin of the Australasian clade, the tectonic history of Gondwanaland and climatic history of the Australian continent, and provide compelling evidence that Australian dung beetles are a relictual fauna whose history is linked to mesic zone fragmentation.
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Cunningham, D. C., and K. B. Walsh. "Establishment of the peanut bruchid (Caryedon serratus) in Australia and two new host species, Cassia brewsteri and C. tomentella." Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 42, no. 1 (2002): 57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ea00182.
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The distribution of Caryedon serratus, the peanut (groundnut) bruchid, on 2 Australian native plants, Cassia brewsteri and C. tomentella, was documented over 2 years. Caryedon serratus was observed across the central and northern parts of the range of C. brewsteri (latitudes 19.258–24.140˚S) and at least part of the range of C. tomentella (as far as 24.427˚S). Seed loss to C. serratus in these species assessed across all collection sites was 40 ± 8.0% (mean ± s.e.). Where the bruchid was detected at a given site, 72 ± 8.6% of pods on 71 ± 8.5% of trees were affected. Additional distribution points and other potential host species from previous C. serratus collections in the Australian National Insect Collection (ANIC) are reported. The combined data were used to predict a potential range for the bruchid across the dry tropics of Australia. No reports of migration to cultivated or stored peanut (Arachis hypogaea) in Australia were located. Further investigation of the potential impact of this bruchid on the Australian peanut industry is recommended. A potentially beneficial aspect of C. serratus establishment may be the biological control of Acacia nilotica (prickly acacia) in Australia.
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Eden, John-Sebastian, John Kovaliski, Janine A. Duckworth, Grace Swain, Jackie E. Mahar, Tanja Strive, and Edward C. Holmes. "Comparative Phylodynamics of Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus in Australia and New Zealand." Journal of Virology 89, no. 18 (July 8, 2015): 9548–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jvi.01100-15.
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ABSTRACTThe introduction of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) into Australia and New Zealand during the 1990s as a means of controlling feral rabbits is an important case study in viral emergence. Both epidemics are exceptional in that the founder viruses share an origin and the timing of their release is known, providing a unique opportunity to compare the evolution of a single virus in distinct naive populations. We examined the evolution and spread of RHDV in Australia and New Zealand through a genome-wide evolutionary analysis, including data from 28 newly sequenced RHDV field isolates. Following the release of the Australian inoculum strain into New Zealand, no subsequent mixing of the populations occurred, with viruses from both countries forming distinct groups. Strikingly, the rate of evolution in the capsid gene was higher in the Australian viruses than in those from New Zealand, most likely due to the presence of transient deleterious mutations in the former. However, estimates of both substitution rates and population dynamics were strongly sample dependent, such that small changes in sample composition had an important impact on evolutionary parameters. Phylogeographic analysis revealed a clear spatial structure in the Australian RHDV strains, with a major division between those viruses from western and eastern states. Importantly, RHDV sequences from the state where the virus was first released, South Australia, had the greatest diversity and were diffuse throughout both geographic lineages, such that this region was likely a source population for the subsequent spread of the virus across the country.IMPORTANCEMost studies of viral emergence lack detailed knowledge about which strains were founders for the outbreak or when these events occurred. Hence, the human-mediated introduction of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) into Australia and New Zealand from known starting stocks provides a unique opportunity to understand viral evolution and emergence. Within Australia, we revealed a major phylogenetic division between viruses sampled from the east and west of the country, with both regions likely seeded by viruses from South Australia. Despite their common origins, marked differences in evolutionary rates were observed between the Australian and New Zealand RHDV, which led to conflicting conclusions about population growth rates. An analysis of mutational patterns suggested that evolutionary rates have been elevated in the Australian viruses, at least in part due to the presence of low-fitness (deleterious) variants that have yet to be selectively purged.
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Theischinger, G. "Australian Thaumaleidae (Insecta: Diptera)." Records of the Australian Museum 38, no. 6 (December 31, 1986): 291–317. http://dx.doi.org/10.3853/j.0067-1975.38.1986.184.
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Chandler, Donald S. "New Genera and Species of Tyrini From Australia (Coleoptera: Pselaphidae)." Psyche: A Journal of Entomology 94, no. 1-2 (January 1, 1987): 15–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/1987/42532.
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While preparing a paper on the pselaphid genera of Australia, three groups of the Tyrini, subtribe Tyrina, were discovered which could not be placed within the current generic concepts of the Australian fauna One of hese groups apears to be congeneric with Tyrogetus Broun from New Zealand. white the other two represent undescribed genera, With the recognition of these taxa, the major generic components of the Tyrini appear to be described for AustraliaAll measurements are in millimeters. Slides of cleared and disarticulated specimens were used to determine the patterns of foveation of the genera. Holotypes are placed in the Australian National Insect Collection Canberra, or in the National Museum of Victoria, Abbotsford.
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Fromont, Caroline, Markus Riegler, and James M. Cook. "Characterisation of 14 microsatellite markers for the Australian fig psylloid, Mycopsylla fici." Australian Journal of Zoology 63, no. 4 (2015): 233. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo15027.
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The Australian fig psylloid, Mycopsylla fici, is a sap-feeding insect herbivore that is host-specific to the Moreton Bay fig, Ficus macrophylla. It has periodic major outbreaks that can cause complete defoliation of individual trees and massive decrease in local leaf and fruit availability, with significant effects for many insect and vertebrate species that utilise the tree’s resources. We used ⅛ of an Illumina MiSeq run to sequence genomic DNA from two pools of five psylloids from two different field sites. We identified 14 polymorphic microsatellite loci and characterised them in 43 individuals from two populations (Sydney and Lord Howe Island, Australia). Within populations, the number of alleles ranged from 4 to 15 per locus with observed heterozygosity of 0–0.9. Four loci deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. The microsatellite primers will be useful for the study of population genetics and gene flow within and between psylloid populations.
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Qureshi, S. A., D. J. Midmore, S. S. Syeda, and D. J. Reid. "A comparison of alternative plant mixes for conservation bio-control by native beneficial arthropods in vegetable cropping systems in Queensland Australia." Bulletin of Entomological Research 100, no. 1 (March 27, 2009): 67–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0007485309006774.
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AbstractCucurbit crops host a range of serious sap-sucking insect pests, including silverleaf whitefly (SLW) and aphids, which potentially represent considerable risk to the Australian horticulture industry. These pests are extremely polyphagous with a wide host range. Chemical control is made difficult due to resistance and pollution, and other side-effects are associated with insecticide use. Consequently, there is much interest in maximising the role of biological control in the management of these sap-sucking insect pests. This study aimed to evaluate companion cropping alongside cucurbit crops in a tropical setting as a means to increase the populations of beneficial insects and spiders so as to control the major sap-sucking insect pests. The population of beneficial and harmful insects, with a focus on SLW and aphids, and other invertebrates were sampled weekly on four different crops which could be used for habitat manipulation: Goodbug Mix (GBM; a proprietary seed mixture including self-sowing annual and perennial herbaceous flower species); lablab (Lablab purpureus L. Sweet); lucerne (Medicago sativa L.); and niger (Guizotia abyssinica (L.f.) Cass.). Lablab hosted the highest numbers of beneficial insects (larvae and adults of lacewing (Mallada signata (Schneider)), ladybird beetles (Coccinella transversalis Fabricius) and spiders) while GBM hosted the highest numbers of European bees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus) and spiders. Lucerne and niger showed little promise in hosting beneficial insects, but lucerne hosted significantly more spiders (double the numbers) than niger. Lucerne hosted sig-nificantly more of the harmful insect species of aphids (Aphis gossypii (Glover)) and Myzus persicae (Sulzer)) and heliothis (Heliothis armigera Hübner). Niger hosted significantly more vegetable weevils (Listroderes difficillis (Germar)) than the other three species. Therefore, lablab and GBM appear to be viable options to grow within cucurbits or as field boundary crops to attract and increase beneficial insects and spiders for the control of sap-sucking insect pests. Use of these bio-control strategies affords the opportunity to minimise pesticide usage and the risks associated with pollution.
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Auld, TD. "Patterns of Predispersal Seed Predators in the Fabaceae of the Sydney Region, South-Eastern Australia." Australian Journal of Zoology 39, no. 5 (1991): 519. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo9910519.
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Predispersal seed predators are widespread throughout the legume flora of south-eastern Australia. Within the Coleoptera, weevils, anthribids and bruchids are important seed predators. Some weevils are restricted to certain host plant genera and are found on many species of these genera, e.g. Melanterius on Acacia; Plaesiorhinus on Bossiaea. Anthribids and bruchids are found in a range of plant genera. Host-specific relationships in these latter two groups must await further insect collections and subsequent taxonomic treatments of the insects involved. More generalist seed feeders are some Hymenoptera, including Eurytoma (Eurytomidae) and probably Megastigmus (Torymidae). Other hymenopterans associated with seeds are mostly parasitic on coleopteran larvae, e.g. Diospilus spp. (Brachonidae) on Plaesiorhinus (Curculionidae). Lepidopterans are also widespread seed feeders; however, detailed relationships between lepidoptera and host plants requires successful rearing of adult moths. Hemipterans are probably relatively unimportant as destructive seed feeders in south-eastern Australian legumes.
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Lis, Jerzy A. "A revision of Australian species of the genus Macroscytus Fieber (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Cydnidae)." Insect Systematics & Evolution 29, no. 4 (1998): 459–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/187631298x00078.
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AbstractA revision of Australian species of the genus Macroscytus Fieber is presented, including descriptions of eight new species: M. annulipoides (Queensland), M. arnhemicus (Queensland, Northern Territory), M. australoides (South Australia), M. bisetosus (Queensland), M. glaberrimus (Queensland), M. minimus (Queensland), M. monteithi (Queensland), and M. pseudaustralis (Western Australia). M. dilatatus (Signoret, 1881) is synonymized with M. piceus (West-wood, 1837). A key for the determination of all Australian species of the genus is provided.
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Clark, Doreen V., and Jennifer A. Genion. "George William Kenneth 'Ken' Cavill 1922–2017." Historical Records of Australian Science 29, no. 2 (2018): 172. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/hr18010.
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Ken Cavill knew from his high school years that his career lay in science. Whilst completing his Bachelor of Science at the University of Sydney he chose to focus on organic chemistry and made his academic career in that field. Ken gained his PhD at Liverpool University in England in 1949 and was awarded a DSc from that university in 1957. He was employed during World War 2 at W. Hermon Slade & Co., and then as a lecturer in chemistry at Sydney Technical College, becoming a senior lecturer at the newly formed University of New South Wales (UNSW), where he had a distinguished career in research and teaching until his retirement in 1982. He received the first personal chair awarded by the university in 1964 and was made a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 1969. He was made an emeritus professor by UNSW in 1983. He actively pursued collaboration between chemistry and biology, and pioneered studies in Australia on the chemistry of insect venoms, attractants and repellents, leaving a legacy of a well-respected body of work in this field. Ken was awarded a Centenary of Federation Medal in 2001 for his service to Australian society and science in the field of organic biological chemistry. Pursuing his love of Australiana, he devoted his retirement to researching and writing about Australian silverware and jewellery manufacturers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
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Bulach, Dieter, Rebecca Halpin, David Spiro, Laura Pomeroy, Daniel Janies, and David B. Boyle. "Molecular Analysis of H7 Avian Influenza Viruses from Australia and New Zealand: Genetic Diversity and Relationships from 1976 to 2007." Journal of Virology 84, no. 19 (July 28, 2010): 9957–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jvi.00930-10.
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ABSTRACT Full-genome sequencing of 11 Australian and 1 New Zealand avian influenza A virus isolate (all subtype H7) has enabled comparison of the sequences of each of the genome segments to those of other subtype H7 avian influenza A viruses. The inference of phylogenetic relationships for each segment has been used to develop a model of the natural history of these viruses in Australia. Phylogenetic analysis of the hemagglutinin segment indicates that the Australian H7 isolates form a monophyletic clade. This pattern is consistent with the long-term, independent evolution that is, in this instance, associated with geographic regions. On the basis of the analysis of the other H7 hemagglutinin sequences, three other geographic regions for which similar monophyletic clades have been observed were confirmed. These regions are Eurasia plus Africa, North America, and South America. Analysis of the neuraminidase sequences from the H7N1, H7N3, and H7N7 genomes revealed the same region-based relationships. This pattern of independent evolution of Australian isolates is supported by the results of analysis of each of the six remaining genomic segments. These results, in conjunction with the occurrence of five different combinations of neuraminidase subtypes (H7N2, H7N3, H7N4, H7N6, H7N7) among the 11 Australian isolates, suggest that the maintenance host(s) is nearly exclusively associated with Australia. The single lineage of Australian H7 hemagglutinin sequences, despite the occurrence of multiple neuraminidase types, suggests the existence of a genetic pool from which a variety of reassortants arise rather than the presence of a small number of stable viral clones. This pattern of evolution is likely to occur in each of the regions mentioned above.
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Kunz, Martin. "From London to Australia with Love: The Australian Native Bee Book by Tim Heard." Bee World 95, no. 3 (July 3, 2018): 103–4. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0005772x.2018.1485825.
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Hall, John A., Gimme H. Walter, Dana M. Bergstrom, and Peter Machin. "Pollination ecology of the Australian cycad Lepidozamia peroffskyana (Zamiaceae)." Australian Journal of Botany 52, no. 3 (2004): 333. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/bt03159.
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Experiments carried out to investigate the reproductive ecology of the Australian cycad Lepidozamia peroffskyana (Regal, Bull. Soc. Imp. Nat. Mosc. 1857, 1: 184) revealed that this species is pollinated exclusively by host-specific Tranes weevils (Pascoe 1875). The weevils carry out their life cycle within the tissues of the male cones but also visit the female cones in large numbers. Female cones from which insects (but not wind) was excluded had a pollination rate that was essentially zero. In contrast, female cones from which wind (but not insects) were excluded had a pollination rate comparable with naturally pollinated cones. Assessment of Tranes weevil pollen load indicated that they are effective pollen-carriers. No other potential insect pollinators were observed on cones of L. peroffskyana. Sampling of airborne loads of cycad pollen indicated that wind-dispersed grains were not consistently recorded beyond a 2-m radius surrounding pollen-shedding male cones. The airborne load of cycad pollen in the vicinity of pollination-receptive female cones was minimal, and the spatial distribution of the coning population indicated that receptive female cones did not usually occur close enough to pollen-shedding male cones for airborne transfer of pollen to explain observed natural rates of seed set. These multiple lines of evidence suggest that wind–once considered the only pollination vector for cycads and other gymnosperms–plays only a minimal role in the pollination of L. peroffskyana, if any at all. The global diversity of insects associated with cycads suggests that some lineages of pollinating beetles may have been associated with cycad cones since Mesozoic times.
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Chang, Jung C., Geoff M. Gurr, Murray J. Fletcher, and Robert G. Gilbert. "Structure - Property and Structure - Function Relations of Leafhopper (Kahaono montana) Silk." Australian Journal of Chemistry 59, no. 8 (2006): 579. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ch06179.
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Kahaono montana Evans (Insecta: Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), an endemic Australian leafhopper, is unique among the insect order Hemiptera in producing a silk. In this study, the secondary structure of the protein comprising leafhopper silk, and the surface stretching mechanical properties of this biopolymer, were investigated using Fourier-transform infrared microscopy and atomic force microscopy, respectively. The curve-fitted amide I and amide III bands revealed a composition of 13.1% α-helix, 23.8% β-sheet, 25.5% random coil, and 37.6% aggregated side chains. The molecular stretching behaviour of raw and cleaned silk fibres differed markedly. Analysis of the AFM force curves showed an adhesive property of the raw silk, while the pure fibre showed only the presence of protein. These findings suggest that the silk fibres act as a structural support for other leafhopper secretions and together form a hydrophobic barrier that may protect the insects from rain and natural enemies. This is the first time such a use of silk has been found in a biological system.
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Smit, Harry. "The water mites of Western Australia (Acari: Hydrachnidia), with the description of 13 new species." Acarologia 61, no. 4 (October 27, 2021): 928–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.24349/2ew3-djkg.
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The following 13 new species are described from Western Australia: Tartarothyas curtipalpis n. sp., T. beedelup n. sp., T. setosa n. sp. (Hydryphantidae), Oxus siniscutatus n. sp. (Oxidae), Procorticacarus beedelup n. sp., Procorticacarus minutus n. sp. (Hygrobatidae), Koenikea (Notomideopsis) longiseta n. sp., Unionicola neowalkeri n. sp. (Unionicolidae), Piona kimberleyensis n. sp. (Pionidae), Austraturus simplex n. sp., Axonopsella porphyria n. sp., (Aturidae), Arrenurus (Truncaturus) pinderi n. sp. (Arrenuridae) and Momoniella rubripes n. sp. (Momoniidae). A key is provided for the Australian Tartarothyas species. Many new records are given for Western Australia, resulting in 16 species new to the fauna of the state (apart from the new species described).
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Doggett, Stephen L., Christopher J. Orton, David G. Lilly, and Richard C. Russell. "Bed Bugs: The Australian Response." Insects 2, no. 2 (April 15, 2011): 96–111. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects2020096.
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Costa, S. C. P., P. A. Girard, M. Brehélin, and R. Zumbihl. "The Emerging Human Pathogen Photorhabdus asymbiotica Is a Facultative Intracellular Bacterium and Induces Apoptosis of Macrophage-Like Cells." Infection and Immunity 77, no. 3 (December 15, 2008): 1022–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/iai.01064-08.
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ABSTRACT Photorhabdus species are gram-negative entomopathogenic bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. Among the different members of the genus, one species, Photorhabdus asymbiotica, is a pathogen of both insects and humans. The pathogenicity mechanisms of this bacterium are unknown. Here we show that P. asymbiotica is a facultative intracellular pathogen that is able to replicate inside human macrophage-like cells. Furthermore, P. asymbiotica was shown for the first time in an intracellular location after insect infection. We also demonstrated that among Australian and American clinical isolates, only the Australian strains were able to invade nonphagocytic human cells. In cell culture infection experiments, Australian clinical isolates as well as cell-free bacterial culture supernatant induced strong apoptosis of a macrophage cell line at 6 h postinfection. American isolates also induced cellular death, but much later than that induced by Australian ones. Mammalian cultured cells analyzed for key features of apoptosis displayed apoptotic nuclear morphology, activation of the initiator caspases 8 and 9 and the executioner caspases 3 and 7, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase proteolysis, suggesting activation of both the intrinsic and extrinsic apoptotic pathways.
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Cousins, YL, BR Lyon, and DJ Llewellyn. "Transformation of an Australian Cotton Cultivar: Prospects for Cotton Improvement Through Genetic Engineering." Functional Plant Biology 18, no. 5 (1991): 481. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/pp9910481.
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Somatic embryogenesis and regeneration of whole plants is a highly genotype-dependent process in cotton. We have identified at least one highly regenerable Australian cultivar, Siokra 1-3, which is a sister line to the current major variety being grown in Australia. A number of plants have been regenerated and although some are showing abnormal pollen development, most can produce fertile seed when selfed or crossed with a normal pollen donor. Agrobacterium tumefaciens has been used to efficiently produce fertile transgenic Siokra 1-3 plants expressing novel genes such as the bacterial neomycin phosphotransferase or the β-glucuronidase. This is the first example of the transformation of an elite commercial cultivar. Critical factors in the transformation are the use of a supervirulent disarmed Ti-plasmid with a binary transformation vector, and a highly regenerable genotype of cotton. Bacterial concentration at the time of infection, tissue age, kanamycin selection regime, and co-cultivation support and media composition all have an influence on transformation efficiency and were optimised in our protocol. The ability to transform an elite Australian cultivar of cotton paves the way for agronomic improvements through genetic engineering. We have concentrated on increasing the tolerance of Australian cotton to the herbicide 2,4-D (to protect it from spray drift damage from adjacent cereal crops), and increasing its tolerance to insect pests, such as Helicoverpa armigera, using BT-toxin genes, protease inhibitors and other novel insect resistance genes.
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Tann, John. "Images of Australian Odonata wings." Technical Reports of the Australian Museum online 33 (March 24, 2021): 1–101. http://dx.doi.org/10.3853/j.1835-4211.33.2021.1767.
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A recently finished project has created an openly accessible, high-resolution, photographic library of wings of Australian dragonflies and damselflies, order Odonata. The library is an open resource for identification and research. Both male and female wings of 318 species of dragonfly and damselfly have been photographed with a specialist set-up using identified museum collection material. In general, both wings were removed from the insect body to produce an image with a minimum of visual artefacts. Each resulting image shows a pair of right wings, a scale, an identifying taxonomic name and sex.
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Pilkington, L. J., G. M. Gurr, M. J. Fletcher, E. Elliott, A. Nikandrow, and H. I. Nicol. "Reducing the immigration of suspected leafhopper vectors and severity of Australian lucerne yellows disease." Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 44, no. 10 (2004): 983. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ea03162.
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Three newly-sown lucerne stands in the mid Lachlan Valley region of New South Wales, Australia, were sampled, over 50 weeks, for Australian lucerne yellows disease symptom distribution and severity. Leafhopper populations were also monitored. Symptoms developed in all 3 stands within 32 weeks of sowing. There were statistically significant spatial differences in the density of symptomatic plants for 2 dates at this and another site. Two possible insect vectors, Austroagallia torrida and Batracomorphus angustatus were more numerous in some sections of crop margins at 2 sites. These 2 species and a third possible insect vector Orosius argentatus each had a statistically significant spatial and temporal correlation with symptomatic plant numbers for at least 1 site date. Two subsequent border treatment experiments evaluated the effect of crop-margin treatments on leafhopper movement into and from the stand. The second border treatment experiment examined also the treatment effect on Australian lucerne yellows disease symptomatic plant numbers. Treatment with insecticide or herbicide significantly reduced the overall movement of leafhoppers. In addition, the insecticide treatment lowered the incidence of disease expression in adjacent lucerne. Results suggest that there is scope for management of this plant disease by reducing immigration of leafhopper vectors into lucerne from non-crop vegetation.
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Austin, Andrew D., David K. Yeates, Gerasimos Cassis, Murray J. Fletcher, John La Salle, John F. Lawrence, Peter B. McQuillan, et al. "Insects 'Down Under'- Diversity, endemism and evolution of the Australian insect fauna: examples from select orders." Australian Journal of Entomology 43, no. 3 (August 2004): 216–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1326-6756.2004.00448.x.
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Milner, Richard J. "METARHIZIUM FLAVOVIRIDE (FI985) AS A PROMISING MYCOINSECTICIDE FOR AUSTRALIAN ACRIDIDS." Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada 129, S171 (1997): 287–300. http://dx.doi.org/10.4039/entm129171287-1.
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AbstractOnly one isolate of Metarhizium flavoviride Gams and Roszypal group 3 has been isolated from a field-infected acridid in Australia. This is isolate FI985 (ARSEF 324) obtained from a spur-throated locust, Austracris guttulosa (Walker), near Rockhampton, Queensland, in 1979. In terms of conidial size and shape as well as phialide morphology, FI985 is intermediate between Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin and M. flavoviride. It has been compared with other group 3 isolates using RAPDs and sequence analysis of the ITS region and found to be very similar. However the analysis shows that these group 3 isolates are genetically closer to M. anisopliae than to M. flavoviride sensu stricto. Laboratory bioassays have shown that FI985 is virulent for five species of acridid pests in Australia. Comparative bioassays with other isolates of Metarhizium, including other group 3 isolates from Africa and Asia, have not yet revealed any isolate more virulent than FI985. This isolate is amenable to mass-production on rice and has been formulated in oil as a mycoinsecticide. The results from six field tests, mostly against wingless grasshopper, Phaulacridium vittatum (SjÖstedt), using doses of 2–7 × 1012 conidia per hectare and plot sizes up to 50 ha are summarized. These trials (with the exception of the first against the Australian plague locust) have given high levels of disease-related mortality in caged samples of the target collected within 3 days of spraying. In the four trials with wingless grasshopper, population reductions were detected 10–30 days after application; however these reductions were much less than suggested by cage samples as a result of movement of the target acridids. In contrast, positive control plots sprayed with fenitrothion gave a very high initial kill (>90% in 1 day) but were then more rapidly reinvaded. Consequently, 3–4 weeks after spraying the density in the plots treated with chemical insecticide and those treated with mycoinsecticide were similar. Further field trials are needed especially against the Australian plague locust and evaluating lower doses. The results obtained to date show that a mycoinsecticide based on FI985 is likely to be effective over a wide range of target acridids and weather conditions.
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Toussaint, Emmanuel F. A., Chris J. Müller, Jérôme Morinière, Rene Tänzler, and Michael Balke. "A glide over the Indo-Australian geological maze: repeated transgressions of Lydekker’s and Wallace’s Lines in archdukes, barons and dukes (Nymphalidae: Limenitidinae: Adoliadini)." Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 129, no. 4 (February 19, 2020): 810–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/biolinnean/blaa008.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract Archdukes, barons, counts, dukes and marquises are forest-dwelling butterflies found in mainland Asia and most islands of the Indo-Australian archipelago west of Wallace’s Line, with only a few species occurring as far east as the Bismarck Archipelago. This pattern is unusual among butterfly groups of the region, which often present more widespread geographical ranges bearing little signature of Lydekker’s and Wallace’s Lines. Using a molecular multimarker matrix, we infer the first dated phylogeny for this clade and estimate its biogeographical history. We recover the Oriental genus Euthalia as polyphyletic, although other genera are monophyletic. The clade originated in continental Indomalaya in the late Oligocene ~24 Mya, when the Indo-Australian archipelago was at one of the most dynamic stages of its orogeny. Multiple independent colonization events towards the Lesser Sunda Islands, Moluccas, Australia and New Guinea suggest the relative permeability of Lydekker’s and Wallace’s Lines to these butterflies. Colonization of Melanesia took place twice, probably before the recent formation of Sulawesi. The study of Indo-Australian Adoliadini provides additional evidence that biogeographical barriers long thought to prevent exchange between the Asian and Australian biotas are, in fact, permeable especially to vagile insect lineages in the region.
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Cook, David F., Sasha C. Voss, Jonathan T. D. Finch, Romina C. Rader, James M. Cook, and Cameron J. Spurr. "The Role of Flies as Pollinators of Horticultural Crops: An Australian Case Study with Worldwide Relevance." Insects 11, no. 6 (June 2, 2020): 341. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects11060341.
Full textAbstract:
Australian horticulture relies heavily on the introduced managed honey bee, Apis mellifera Linnaeus 1758 (Hymenoptera: Apidae), to pollinate crops. Given the risks associated with reliance upon a single species, it would be prudent to identify other taxa that could be managed to provide crop pollination services. We reviewed the literature relating to the distribution, efficiency and management potential of a number of flies (Diptera) known to visit pollinator-dependent crops in Australia and worldwide. Applying this information, we identified the taxa most suitable to play a greater role as managed pollinators in Australian crops. Of the taxa reviewed, flower visitation by representatives from the dipteran families Calliphoridae, Rhiniidae and Syrphidae was frequently reported in the literature. While data available are limited, there was clear evidence of pollination by these flies in a range of crops. A review of fly morphology, foraging behaviour and physiology revealed considerable potential for their development as managed pollinators, either alone or to augment honey bee services. Considering existing pollination evidence, along with the distribution, morphology, behaviour and life history traits of introduced and endemic species, 11 calliphorid, two rhiniid and seven syrphid species were identified as candidates with high potential for use in Australian managed pollination services. Research directions for the comprehensive assessment of the pollination abilities of the identified taxa to facilitate their development as a pollination service are described. This triage approach to identifying species with high potential to become significant managed pollinators at local or regional levels is clearly widely applicable to other countries and taxa.