Author
College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences, Salahaddin University, Erbil, Iraq
,
Document Type : Research Paper
Abstract
Beetles from the family Melyrdae, belong to the order Coleoptera, which comprised of numerous genera and species. Malachite beetle is one of the most important insect associating with plants and weeds bearing flowers, they play a vital role in insect based pollination of flowers. Taxonomic study was conducted in Kurdistan region of Iraq including Sulaimanyah, Duhok and Erbil governorates, to investigate genus and species of insects associated with flowers within the Melyridae and Coleoptera, the Soft-winged flower beetles, Malachius bipustulatus (Linnaeus, 1758), was recorded for the first time in Iraq. In this study, taxonomic characteristics of the species including mandibles, antennae, elytra, abdominal tergite, sternite and aedeagus have been described and illustrated. According to description results: Mandibles have a couple of acute and equal length teeth. Antennae are slightly serrate and comprised of eleven segments (antennomeres): The elytra are of shining, metallic green in colour and at the apical end, there is a bright red colour spot. The Aedeagus is straight and cylindrical in shape, its colour ranges from brown to dark brown, and strongly stiffened (sclerotized).
- Abdulla, A. P. B. S., Ahmmed, L. S. H., Mawlood, N. A., and Omar, A. P. Z. Z. (2021). A New Species of Histerid Beetles, Saprinus Erichson, 1834 (Coleoptera: Histeridae: Saprininae) From Iraq. Annals of the Romanian Society for Cell Biology, 8478-8485.
- Anderson, R., Nash, R., and O'Connor, J. P. (1997). Irish Coleoptera: a revised and annotated list. The Irish Naturalists' Journal, 2
- Arnett, R. H. (1968). The beetles of the United States (a manual for identification). The American Entomological Institute. Ann Arbor, Michigan, 11: 12.
- Asano, M., Ikeda, H., Kamezawa, H., and Nomura, S. (2018). Revision of six species of the subtribe Ebaeina of Japan, with description of a new species (Coleoptera: Melyridae). Japanese Journal of Systematic Entomology, 24(1): 141-149.
- Barnard, B. C. (2011). The Royal Entomological Society Book of British Insects. 1st, A John Wiley and Sons, Ltd., Publication, 383.
- Constantin, R. (2007). Révision des Aplocnemus de France avec description de trois nouvelles espèces. Observations taxonomiques et faunistiques sur les espèces françaises de Dasytidae et Acanthocnemidae (Coleoptera, Cleroidea). Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France, 112(2): 151-170.
- Crowley, L. M., of Oxford, U., Lab, W. W. G. A., of Life, W. S. I. T., and Darwin Tree of Life Consortium. (2021). The genome sequence of the common malachite beetle, Malachius bipustulatus (Linnaeus, 1758). Wellcome Open Research, 6.
- Dettner, K. (1997). Inter-and intraspecific transfer of toxic insect compound cantharidin. In Vertical Food Web Interactions: Evolutionary Patterns and Driving Forces. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 115-145.
- Evers, A. M. J. (1985). Distribution of the Palaearctic species of the genus complex of Malachius F. 54th Contribution to the knowledge of the Malachiidae. Entomologische-Blatter-fur Biologie-und-Systematik-der-Kafer, 81(1/2): 1-40.
- Farrow, R. A. (1974). A modified light‐trap for obtaining large samples of night‐flying locusts and grasshoppers. Australian Journal of Entomology, 13(4): 357-360.
- Fiori, G. (1971). Contributi alla conoscenza morfologica ed etologica dei Coleotteri. IX. Psilothrix viridicaeruleus, 3-70.
- Gimmel, M. L., Bocakova, M., Gunter, N. L., and Leschen, R. A. (2019). Comprehensive phylogeny of the Cleroidea (Coleoptera: Cucujiformia). Systematic Entomology, 44(3): 527-558.
- Gradwell, G. R. (1957). Habits of larvae of Malachius bipustulatus. Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine, 93, 104.
- Gutowski, J. M. (1990). Pollination of the orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii by longhorn beetles in primeval forests of Northeastern Poland. Biological Conservation, 51(4): 287-297.
- Hatch, M. H. (1962). The beetles of the pacific northwest. Part III: Pselaphidae and Diversicornia I., Washn. Pub. Bio., 16: ix+ 503.
- Hätönen, M., Kantner, C., Losada, R. L. I., Ludwig, N., González, A. B., Riedhammer, C., ... and Alonso, S. G. (2022). European arthropods and their role in pollination: scientific report of their biodiversity, ecology and sensitivity to biocides.
- Hawkeswood, T. J. (1987). Notes on some Coleoptera from Baeckea stenophylla F. Muell.(Myrtaceae) in New South Wales, Australia. Giornale italiano di Entomologia, 3: 285-290.
- Kolibac, J., and Huang, D. (2019). New cleroid beetles from the Middle–Late Jurassic of China. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 64(1).
- Lawrence, J. F., and Leschen, R. A. B. (2010). Melyridae Leach, 1815. In: Handbook of zoology, Coleoptera.. Morphology and systematics (Elateroidea, Bostrichformia, Cucujiformia partim) (Eds., Leschen RAB, Beutel RG, Lawrence JF). Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, 2: 273-280.
- Leschen, R. A. B. (2010). Cleroidea, Latreille, 1902: Introduction and phylogeny. In: Leschen, R.A.B., Beutel, R.G., Lawrence, J.F. (Eds.), Handbook of Zoology, Coleoptera, Morphology and Systematics (Elateroidea, Bostrichiformia, Cucujiformia partim), Walterde Gruyter, Berlin, 2: 237-239.
- Majer, K. (1982). Species of the genus Aplocnemus of Middle Europe (Col. Melyridae). Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift, 29(4‐5): 421-445.
- Malschi, D. (2000). Actual aspect regarding the control of cereal leaf beetles (Oulema melanopus L.) in Central Transylvania. Probleme de Proteçtia Plantelor, 28(1): 17-28.
- Mawlood, N. A., Al-Mallah, N. M., and Ahmmed, S. H. (2018). Description of click beetle, Melanotus dichrous (Erichson, 1841)(Coleoptera: Elateridae: Melanotinae) from Kurdistan region-Iraq. Kirkuk University Journal For Agricultural Sciences, 9(3): 195-199.
- Mayor, A. J. (2002). 74. Melyridae Leach, 1815. American Beetles, Polyphaga: Scarabaoidea through Curculionoidea, 2: 281-303.
- Nikbakhtzadeh, M. R. (2009). New records of canthariphily among beetles (Coleoptera) from Iran. Türkiye Entomoloji Dergisi, 33(4): 243-251.
- Panov, A. A. (1989). The histology of the cerebral neurosecretory system in several representatives of Cleroidea (Coleoptera, Insecta). Journal fur Hirnforschung, 30(1): 5-10.
- Ronald, G. (1998). Checkered Beetles: Illustrated Key to the Cleridae and Thanerocleridae of the Western Palaearctic., Weikersheim, Germany: Margraf Verlag, 12-15.
- Szafraniec, S., Szafraniec, P., and Mazur, M. A. (2010). Species of Melyridae (Coleoptera: Cleroidea) from the Western Beskidy Mts. Opole scientific society nature Journal, 43: 95-100.
- Triplehorn, C. A., and Johnson, N. F. (2005). Borror and DeLong’s introduction to the study of insects. Thomson Brooks/Cole, Belmont, CA. 864.
- Tshernyshev, S. E. (2015). A new species of soft-winged flower beetles of the genus Kuatunia Evers, 1945–48 (Coleoptera, Cleroidea, Malachiidae) from Nepal. Zootaxa, 3941(2): 255-260.