Insect life processes and reproductive behaviors are significantly affected by extremely high temperatures. This study focused on Tuta absoluta, which poses a severe threat to tomato cultivars. The effects of intense heat stress on the growth, development, oviposition, and longevity of T. absoluta were investigated. This investigation encompassed various developmental stages, including eggs, pupae, and adults. This study revealed that egg hatching and pupa emergence rates were significantly reduced at a temperature of 44 °C maintained for 6 h. The longevity of adults that emerged after the egg and pupal stages were exposed to 44 °C for 6 h was significantly reduced compared to the control. Notably, there was no significant variation in adult fecundity after egg-stage exposure to high temperatures. However, all treatments exhibited significantly reduced fecundity compared to the control after exposure to high temperatures during the pupal stage. Adult survival rates after exposure to 40 °C and 44 °C for 3 h were 74.29% and 22.40%, respectively, dramatically less than that of the control, which was 100%. However, no significant differences were noted in terms of longevity and egg production. These results offer a better understanding of the complex interactions between extreme temperatures and the life history traits of T. absoluta, thereby offering valuable insights for implementing management strategies to alleviate its impact on tomato crops in response to climate change.

Species identification of Aphytis on the basis of adult morphology is extremely difficult, especially in the A. lingnanensis group, with several cryptic species. Pupal pigmentation could be used as one of the taxonomic characters for Aphytis species, and in some instances, pupal pigmentation actually provided the first clue to the distinctness of cryptic Aphytis species. The present study investigated the full-grown larvae or younger pupae of Aphytis species, and pupal pigmentation and pupal development were observed and photographed. Four characteristic pigmentation patterns of Aphytis pupae were summarized including: entirely yellow, partly dark brown, entirely or predominantly black, and partly black. The species in the chilensis and mytilaspidis groups, and some unassigned species, generally have entirely, or predominantly and or partly black pupae. The species in the chrysomphali, funicularis, and proclia groups generally have the pupae entirely yellow. The species of the lingnanensis group have the pupae both entirely yellow, e.g., A. fisheri, and partly dark brown pupae, e.g., A. lingnanensis, A. holoxanthus and A. melinus. The pupae of Aphytis species in this study had a developmental duration of about 5–8 days at 27 ± 1 °C, 70 ± 5% RH and a photoperiod of 10L: 14D. It was found that the pupal skin was always melanized at the beginning stage, generally in the first day, among the pigmented pupae of Aphytis species. As development continued, the pigmentation became darker and the eye colour changed from pale red/brown to green. No significant intra-specific variation in pupal colour pattern was detected despite relatively high numbers of specimens examined, many from multiple, and different, origins. Overall, our study indicates that pupal pigmentation could be more helpful in species identification of Aphytis.

Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) p26 is conserved among all Lepidoptera baculoviruses that have been completely sequenced thus far, and some baculoviruses even have two copies of p26, which suggested that p26 may play an important role in the virus infection cycle. This study aimed to characterize BmNPV p26. We found that BmNPV p26 transcripts were detectable as early as 3 h post-infection (hpi), and the transcript levels rapidly increased starting from 12 hpi. Western blot analysis using an anti-p26 polyclonal antibody demonstrated that the corresponding protein was also detectable from 6 hpi in BmNPV-infected cell lysates. Immunofluorescence analysis demonstrated that p26 was mainly dispersed in the infected cell cytoplasm, whereas the over-expressed fusion protein EGFP-p26 also accumulated in the nucleus. These results indicated that p26 is an early BmNPV gene and has functions both in the cytoplasm and the nucleus. RNAi-based knockdown of p26 could produce infectious virus and normal-appearing virions but decreased budded virus (BV) production in BmNPV-infected cells at 72 hpi. Moreover, the results of further quantitative PCR (Q-PCR) analysis indicated that the gp64 and p74 transcripts levels decreased significantly. These results indicated that BmNPV p26 may be associated with BmNPV replication during the late infection stage.

Seventeen species of the mali-group of Aphelinus (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) are reviewed worldwide, including three new species, and five previously described species in China. The mali-group was defined by a combination of characters: head and body dark with parts of metasoma pale; fore wing with a complete row of setae inside the linea calva, or also only with a few setae in the angle between the linea and marginal vein; legs with mesocoxae, metacoxae and metatibia dark, metafemur pale. In this paper, three new species, Aphelinus tuberocephalus Wang & Huang, sp.n., Aphelinus hainanensis Wang & Huang, sp.n. and Aphelinus ruellia Wang & Huang, sp.n., are described and illustrated, with notes on one species, Aphelinus coreae Hopper & Woolley, new to China. A revised key to species of the mali-group is provided. Mitochondrial (COI) partial sequences were obtained successfully for A. tuberocephalus, A. hainanensis, A. ruellia and A. coreae.

During investigations in the Fujian and Hunan Provinces of China, 5 parasitoids associated with Parlatoria ziziphi were identified based on morphological characteristics and 28SrDNA sequences. They comprised 4 ectoparasitoids: A. chrysomphali (Mercet), Aphytis jinshanensis Wang & Huang, sp.n., Aphytis nigromaculata Wang & Huang, sp.n., and A. nr. melinus DeBach, and 1 endoparasitoid, Encarsia citrina (Craw). The 2 new species are described and illustrated in detail, and the relationships of the 4 Aphytis parasitoids treated here are analyzed, resulting in a phylogenetic tree based on 28SrDNA sequences. Moreover, the 5 Aphytis species (including 1 new species described in this work) having the mid-tibia tipped with black in the male are summarized with their scale hosts and distribution, and an identification key to these species is provided.

The Chinese species of the genus Ablerus Howard (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Azotidae) are recorded, including 10 described species, Ablerus atomon (Walker), A. calvus (Huang), A. chionaspidis (Howard), A. connectens Silvestri , A. floccosus (Huang), A. macrochaeta Silvestri, A. perspeciosus Girault, A. pexus (Huang), A. promacchiae Viggiani & Ren, A. williamsi (Annecke & Insley), and 1 new species, Ablerus fasciarius Wang, Huang & Polaszek sp. nov. A key to the females of Chinese Ablerus species is provided. Se registran las especies chinas del género Ablerus Howard (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Azotidae), incluyendo 10 especies descritas, Ablerus atomon (Walker), A. calvus (Huang), A. chionaspidis (Howard), A. connectens Silvestri, A. floccosus (Huang), A. macrochaeta Silvestri, A. perspeciosus Girault, A. pexus (Huang), A. promacchiae Viggiani y Ren, A. williamsi (Annecke y Insley), y 1 especie nueva, Ablerus fasciarius Wang, Huang y Polaszek sp. nov. Se provee una clave de las hembras de las especies de Ablerus en China.