@article {2579, title = {A method for the extraction of Sitona (Col.: Curculionidae) eggs from soil and occurrence of a mymarid (Hym.: Chalcidoidea) in the Mediterranean region.}, journal = {Entomophaga}, volume = {20}, number = {4}, year = {1975}, pages = {403-408.}, abstract = {

A simple method of extracting the eggs of Sitona spp. from the soil is described. From 1973 to 1975 it was used in Spain, France, Italy and Greece to collect in good condition the eggs of Sitona humeralis STEPHENS, a weevil which has recently become a major pest in Australia. A mymarid parasitoid provisionally identified as Patasson lameerei DEBAUCHE emerged from these eggs apparently unaffected by the extraction method.

}, keywords = {eggs, extraction, Mediterranean, method, occurrence, soil, αυγά, έδαφος, εκχύλιση, εμφάνιση, μέθοδος, Μεσόγειος}, url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF02371595}, author = {Aeschlimann, J.} } @article {2580, title = {Notes on Patasson lameerei (Hym., Mymaridae), an egg parasitoid of Sitona spp. (Col., Curculionidae) in the Mediterranean region.}, journal = {Entomophaga}, volume = {22}, number = {1}, year = {1977}, pages = {111-114.}, abstract = {

During surveys in the Mediterranean region to search for natural enemies of Sitona spp., which are important pests of lucerne and other species of Medicago, considerable numbers of mymarids were reared from eggs of Sitona recovered from soil samples taken in France, Italy, Greece and to a lesser extent in those from Spain; no mymarids were obtained from eggs of Sitona from Morocco, Algeria or Tunisia. The most abundant of the mymarids was Patasson lameerei (Debauche) and its biology and habits are discussed. In central Europe, adults of this parasite are recorded from May to September, but in the Montpellier region of southern France the larvae aestivate within the host eggs during the summer. This ability to adjust to local conditions suggests that it might adapt well to those of southern Australia, where it is being introduced. Other mymarids reared included Anaphes pratensis Forst., which was parasitising eggs of S. humeralis Steph. and Hypera sp. in lucerne crops in southern France, and P. heterotomus Mathot, which was reared from eggs of S. humeralis and Hypera sp. beneath lucerne and other Medicago spp. in southern France and northern Greece.

}, keywords = {bio-control, biological control, Mediterranean, natural enemies, parasitoid, Μεσόγειος, παρασιτοειδές, φυσικοί εχθροί}, author = {Aeschlimann, J.} } @article {2581, title = {The Sitona (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) species occuring on Medicago and their natural enemies in the Mediterranean region.}, journal = {Entomophaga}, volume = {25}, number = {2}, year = {1980}, pages = {139-154.}, abstract = {

Twenty Sitona species were found in the Mediterranean region during surveys on 17 volunteer and/or cultivated species of Medicago. The distribution of the weevils was analyzed using the 3 concepts of abundance, constancy and dominance. Eight Sitona species were consistently recorded on lucerne and medics; of these, 3 were \“constants\” and only 2, S. humeralis STEPHENS and S. lineatus LINNAEUS, also \“dominants\” in the sites investigated.

Sixteen species of natural enemies were identified (table 4), including 3 egg predators, 3 egg parasitoids, 1 entomogenous fungus, 2 nematodes and 5 parasitoids of adult weevils. The effect of each organism on the Sitona population numbers was slight, not exceeding in most cases an average mortality of 15\%. At high host densities however, the braconid Microctonus aethiopoides LOAN which is the preponderant parasitoid, caused estimated mortalities up to 80\% during a single weevil generation. Noticeable changes in the relative importance of the natural enemies were observed between the areas surveyed, with onlyM. aethiopoides and the mymarid egg parasitoid Patasson lameerei DEBAUCHE occurring widely. Moroccan, French and Greek strains of these 2 parasitoids were forwarded to Australia for the biological control of S. humeralis there.

}, keywords = {bio-control, biological control, Medicago, Mediterranean, natural enemies, pests, Μεσόγειος, παράσιτα, φυσικοί εχθροί}, url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF02374316}, author = {Aeschlimann, J.} }