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Butterflies of the Inani Reserve Forest were studied between May 2014 and May 2015. One hundred twenty five species of butterflies belonging to 84 genera and six families (Hesperiidae, Papilionidae, Pieridae, Lycaenidae, Riodinidae and Nymphalidae) were recorded during this study. The highest number of species comprised Family Nymphalidae (38 species, 30.4%) followed by Lycaenidae (35 species, 20.8%), Hesperiidae (26 species, 20.16%), Pieridae (16 species, 12.8%), Papilionidae (9 species, 7.2%) and the Family Riodinidae comprised the lowest (one species, 0.8%). The abundance of recorded butterflies was calculated in term of Very Common (20 species), Common (29 species), Uncommon (32 species), Rare (23 species) and Very Rare (21 species). The butterflies preferred different types of habitat (viz., Grass Land, Crop Land, Open Forest, Scrub Forest, Dense Forest and Bamboo Patches). Thirty species of butterflies were regularly observed in all kind of habitats, 69 species preferred multiple habitats (8 in 4 types, 24 in 3 types and 38 in 2 types of habitat) and 25 species were recorded only in a single type of habitats. Mud-puddling of 36 species were also observed. During this study, Zinaspa todara (Family: Lycaenidae) was the first time record in Bangladesh and Euploea doubledayi (Family: Danaidae) was recorded after 150 year later.

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Rosy apple aphid, Dysaphis plantaginea (Passerini), with worldwide distribution is an important pest of apple orchards. Host plant resistance is an essential component of integrated management of this insect pest. We investigated the resistance of seven apple cultivars, Malus domestica (Borkhausen), namely Granny Smith, Starkrimson, Golden Smoothee, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Boshghabi, and Shaki to rosy apple aphid under field and greenhouse conditions. The damage level by rosy apple aphid was significantly different among the tested cultivars precisely three weeks after infestation in both field and greenhouse conditions. The least leaf curling was observed on Shaki, while the most deformation was detected on Golden Delicious. There was positive correlation between damage in greenhouse and field studies. In addition, the lowest and highest numbers of aphids were observed on Shaki and Golden Delicious, respectively. Consequently, our results demonstrated that among the cultivars tested the Shaki cultivar is moderately resistant to rosy apple aphid and has the potential to be used in the integrated management of this aphid.  

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The objective of this study was to identify the species of thrips associated with rice crops in order to determine population fluctuation of the dominant species. Studies were conducted during the month of April to August in the year 2017 form different growth stages of rice in Babolsar city, Mazandaran Province (Northern Iran). Samplings were done from four fields located at two sites, KeyxaMahalle and MirBazar. A total of seven species of thrips belonging to four genera and two families (Thripidae and Phlaeothripidae) were identified. Amongst them, Haplothrips eragrostidis Priesner was the dominant species accounting for 75.47% in abundance. This was followed by Thrips hawaiiensis Morgan comprising 6.47%. The other species include Anaphothrips sudanensis Trybom, Frankliniella intonsa (Trybom), F. tenuicornis (Uzel), Thrips tabaci Lindeman and Haplothrips flavicinctus (Karny) which comprised of4.85%, 4.32%, 4.31%, 4.04% and 0.54% respectively. The maximum number of thrips species was found in the middle of July and minimum in the month of May. Assessment of thrips abundance in rice fields were started at the beginning of dough stage and were continued until complete maturity.

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The population assemblage of Drosophilidae in the four districts of North Western Ghats was analysed. A total of 13,604 individuals comprising 17 species collected from 8 localities during the period of 2021–22 across various seasons. The study highlights the dominance of three species (Drosophila bipectinata Duda, D. malerkotliana Parshad & Paika and D. eugracilis Bock & Wheeler) belonging to ananassae and eugracilis subgroups. Overall collection data revealed the highest species richness and diversity for Dharwad and UK interior forests, whereas the maximum abundance and the highest evenness were observed in UK coastal and Belagavi forests respectively. The species rank-abundance curve revealed Dharwad forest had higher species richness and comparatively stable species assemblage. Drosophila eugracilis was the dominant species in localities of Dharwad and Belagavi forests, whereas D. bipectinata was the dominant species in both coastal and interior localities of UK forests. Rare faction curves plotted across the different seasons for all the forest localities revealed population assemblage and species richness of all forests across different seasons. Morisita index of similarities showed similarities for populations across localities and seasons. Nonparametric independent sample Kruskal-Wallis test was done to test distribution of abundance of individual species across spatial and temporal groups. The study reveals variation of population assemblage across the forests of Dharwad, Belagavi, and Uttara Kannada (coastal and interior) and dominance of D. bipectinata, D. malerkotliana and D. eugracilis.

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The following paper outlines a study conducted on the abundance, distribution, and diversity of butterflies in Mt. Koritnik. located in the Republic of Kosovo, during 2019–2022. This research resulted in a total of 8166 recorded specimens, which belonged to 6 butterfly families, 50 genera and 131 species. The richest family in terms of abundance was Nymphalidae with 4611 specimens (56.47%), followed by Lycaenidae 1924 specimens (23.56%), Pieridae 856 (10.48%), 561 Hesperiidae (6.87%), Papilionidae 179 specimens (2.19%) and Riodinidae with 24 specimens (0.29%). In terms of species richness, Nymphalidae were the richest with 55 species, Lycaenidae 40, followed by 15 Pieridae, 15 Hesperiidae, 5 Papilionidae and 1 Roidinidae. Among 131 registered species, 11 have Near Threatened status in Europe. Our results indicated that species richness and abundance of butterflies were significantly negatively correlated with altitude (p<0.01), whereas they showed a strong positive correlation (p<0.01) with the temperature. The highest abundance and number of species were presented in the lower altitudinal range and the numbers decreased with altitude increasing. Activities such as intensive agriculture, grazing, fires and illegal timber cutting, which were observed during our survey, may be the main threats for butterflies in Mt. Koritnik in the future, therefore, we suggest the data from this research serve as a basic information for authorities to monitor future changes in butterfly diversity.

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Since the first oil shock in 1973, almost the economic performance of Iran has been related to its natural resource wealth. The economy has experienced relatively lower per capita GDP growth and higher income inequality. This may support this hypothesis that natural resources seem to have been more of a curse than a blessing for Iran. This paper aims to analyze the effects of oil resource abundance on two major macroeconomic variables, economic growth and income distribution, in Iran using the data over the period 1968 - 2005. I take a time series perspective and focus on major forces of economic growth including oil resource. Moreover, the main determinants of income distribution are theoretically specified to examine the effects of oil resource. Due to the problem of data availability, and ARDL approach is employed to estimate the empirical models. Using the production function approach, the results of the study confirm that the overall long run effect of oil abundance on GDP is positive and significant but the value of the estimated coefficient is too small. The findings show that physical capital and human capital have positive and significant effects on GDP in the long run. Moreover, this study finds that oil abundance have negative and significant effect on income distribution. It means that oil revenue improves income equality in Iran. It should be point out that while the Gini coefficient is relatively higher compared to most countries, poverty level are substantially lower because of the distinguished social welfare system in the country and cohesive system of private social responsibility through a religious charitable system. However, income and human capital have a negative and significant effect on income distribution. The overall findings appeared to support this hypothesis that oil abundance is not a blessing for Iran.

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This study was conducted in Van province, which is located in the eastern region of Türkiye. The study area is located in the Irano-Anatolian hotspot region, divided to the east and west by the Anatolian diagonal. Here, we demonstrate the diversity, distribution, and seasonality of horseflies. Malaise and water traps were used to collect adult horseflies. A total of 1026 specimens were collected and 52 species identified. Chrysops divaricatus Loew, 1858; Haematopota csikii Szilady, 1922; Haematopota pallidula (Krober, 1922) and Haematopota turkestanica (Krober, 1922) were recorded for the first time from Türkiye. The distribution and seasonality of the species were presented.

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Lotic systems are rapidly changing due to anthropogenic impacts, making it crucial to note the diversity and abundance of Odonates for effective conservation of these running waters. Our study aimed to assess and compare the Odonate communities in two adjacent rivers, Medjerda and Cheref, in Souk Ahras, northeastern Algeria collected during the period from January 2022 to August 2023. In total, 27 species belonging to 7 families and 17 genera were recorded, with three rare species in Numidia, and three Maghrebian endemic species, including Gomphus lucasii (Selys, 1850) listed as “Vulnerable” in the IUCN Mediterranean Red List. Coenagrion mercuriale (Charpentier, 1840), a locally endangered species, was abundantly present in the Medjerda River. Additionally, the presence of the desert species Trithemis kirbyi (Selys, 1891) in Medjerda confirms their northward expansion within Algeria. The Libellulidae were the most dominant family with 11 species. Our findings revealed no significant differences in terms of biodiversity indices (Richness, Simpson, Shannon, & Pielou's evenness) between the two rivers. However, significant dissimilarities were observed in Odonate assemblages likely due to habitat and environmental variations. Many factors, such as water pumping, overgrazing, untreated wastewater, and riverbank development, which influence Odonate species, were observed in the two rivers. Consequently, an urgent conservation plan should be put in place to preserve water resources and biodiversity in the region. This study highlights the need for continued monitoring and conservation efforts, especially for rare and threatened species in the face of increasing anthropogenic pressures on these aquatic ecosystems.

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Management and optimal utilization of ecosystems need to identify their components and the relation and interactions between these components. The purpose of this research to determine the correlation between soil factors and vegetation parameters in a part of the Watershed rangelands in the Mazandaran province. The area of rangeland was about 2296 ha. For this purpose, 25 land units were selected by overlaying the slope, aspect and height maps using GIS as a foundation of sampling of vegetation and soil. Soil factors such as N, organic material, pH, EC, texture and structure were determined. Then plant cover parameters (canopy and density) measured for some species. Using statistic methods, correlations results showed that between soil factors and percentage of canopy cover and density in studied species identified, the effects of soil factors on studied species were not the same. EC, pH and clay were more effective on canopy and EC, clay, N and pH were more effective than the others on density of most of species. Also these relations differ with kind of vegetation. Also results showed that each plant species grows and lives in special edaphically condition that is different for others.

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 The accumulation heavy metals in the soil poses a significant risk to the health of plants, animals, and human communities. This study investigated the effect of small amounts of iron, zinc, and copper salts on hemocyte abundance, nutritional indices, and biological characteristics of the Ephestia kuehniella Zeller in-vitro. Fourth instar larvae were treated with iron, zinc, and copper salts at 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg in 24 and 48 h intervals. Immunological assessments included total hemocyte count, plasmatocytes, granulocytes, and phenol oxidase enzyme activity. The results demonstrated significant changes in immunological parameters compared to the control group. Notably, iron and zinc at 100 mg/kg exhibited the significant increase in enzyme activity at both 24 and 48 h. Conversely, iron caused a significant decrease in the activity of this enzyme after 24 h at 50 mg/kg when compared to other treatments. In terms of nutritional indicators, copper metal salt at 25 mg/kg enhanced the relative growth rate compared to the control. This preliminary study highlights the significant impact of zinc, copper, and iron salts on the biological characteristics and immune response of E. kuehniella. These findings suggest that the incorporation of small amounts of these metals into the insect's diet can induce biological and physiological disorders.


 

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This study evaluated the impact of substrate composition on macrobenthos distribution using a new Coverage Range Index (CRI), and diversity index variables and macrobenthos data sets obtained over a period of 12 months, between June 2015 and June 2016, along 6 sampling transects at 2 sites. The selected transects were all situated in littoral zone of Hormuz Island in the Persian Gulf and had hard bottom type with different substrate compositions. Accordingly, macrobenthos samples at each site were taken from 3 hard bottom types: boulder, cobble, and pebble. CRI and diversity indices (Simpson, Shannon-Wiener, Pielou, Brillouin, Menhinick, Margalef and Berger-Parker) were employed to evaluate the abundance of macrobenthos. CRI was also selected to tentatively assign the investigated abundance range of macrobenthos into 3 coverage range categories: wide, middle, narrow. CRI boundary of the categories was estimated. The analyses of CRI and diversity indices revealed a similar clustering between the sampling transects. These findings indicate that CRI is a simpler indicator in assessing abundance of macrobenthos than diversity indices, because CRI is only based on species abundance, but diversity indices are based on both species number and abundance. Hence, CRI proved to be a universal ecological index due to its different ranges of small to large samples, rare species to dominant ones, and individual specimens to polyps of animal colonies. Future study should focus on extending the database to test CRI in other bottom types. Finally, the results from this study may be useful not only for developing countries but also for any organization struggling to use macrobenthos based indices with restricted financial resources and knowledge.

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