Mating disruption field experiments to control the vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), were carried out in 2008 and 2009 in two commercial vineyards in Sardinia (Italy). The effectiveness of mating disruption was evaluated by testing reservoir dispensers loaded with 100 mg (62.5 g/ha) and 150 mg (93.8 g/ha) of the sex pheromone in 2008 and 2009, respectively. The number of males captured in pheromone traps, the P. ficus population density and age structure, the parasitism rate, the percentage of ovipositing females, and the crop damage were compared between disrupted and untreated plots. In both field trials, the number of males captured in mating disruption plots was significantly reduced by 86% and 95%, respectively. Mating disruption at the initial dose of 62.5 g/ha of active ingredient gave inconclusive results, whereas the dose of 93.8 g/ha significantly lowered the mealybug density and modified the age structure, which showed a lower percentage of ovipositing females and a higher proportion of preovipositing females. Mating disruption did not affect negatively the parasitism rate, which was higher in the disrupted than in the control plots (>1.5-fold). Crop damage at harvest was very low in both field trials and did not differ between treatments. Mating disruption was effective in wide plots protected with dispensers loaded with 150 mg of the sex pheromone, showing its potential to be included in the overall integrated control programs in Mediterranean wine-growing regions.

Intensive livestock and aquaculture systems require high-quality feeds with the correct nutritional composition. The decrease in wild fish proteins has led to demands within the feed supply chain for new alternatives to fulfil the growing demand for protein. In this context, edible insects like the yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) have the greatest potential to become a valid alternative source of proteins. This study evaluated the growth performance and nutritional profile of yellow mealworm larvae reared under laboratory conditions on eight different agro-industrial by-products: wheat middling, durum wheat bran, rice bran, hemp cake, thistle cake, dried brewer’s spent grains, dried tomato pomace, and dried distilled grape marc. The quantitative and qualitative impacts of rearing substrates on larvae were compared. The results showed that larvae adapt well to different substrates with different nutritional compositions, including the fibrous fraction. However, substrates affect larval growth feed conversion and larval macro composition. Hemp cake stood out for its superior nutritional value, as reflected by its high protein content and moderate NDF (Neutral Detergent Fiber) levels, which determine fast larval growth. On the contrary, imbalanced substrate lipid or carbohydrate content (rice bran), as well as the presence of potential antinutritional compounds (thistle cake), appeared to negatively affect growth performances.

The early spring folivore green oak leaf roller moth, Tortrix viridana, is one of the most harmful pests of Palaearctic oaks. The young larvae develop inside flushing buds and therefore require moth egg-hatching and budburst of their host plant to be synchronized. The aim of this study was to understand which factors (geographical distances, oak species, oak leaf phenology and timing of moth egg-hatching) influence the genetic structure of the moth. We performed multilocus analyses (COI and COII mitochondrial genes and eight nuclear microsatellites) on 30 populations from key forest districts in Sardinia and other Mediterranean localities. Both mitochondrial and nuclear markers detected a genetic divergence among populations that were separated by long distances and/or wide sea straights (Sardinia–Corsica vs. Tunisia vs. Italian peninsula–Sicily). Mitochondrial variation was divided into two major haplogroups relating to early or late egg-hatching behaviour, which was dependent on adaptation to specific oak budburst phenologies. On a regional scale, AMOVA tests showed the highest fixation indexes when populations were grouped according to early or late egg-hatching, whereas oak leaf phenology [deciduous (pubescent oak) or evergreen (holm oak and cork oak)] was the main factor in structuring populations on a larger Mediterranean scale. Furthermore, we demonstrated evidence for non-random patterns of gene flow mediated by male-biased dispersal, with females as the philopatric sex.