The ovipositor of parasitoid hymenoptera: how micro-surgery is inspired by nature’s inventions

By Pascal ROUSSE In the world of parasitoids (lire this article), the ovipositor, also called oviscapte (abdominal appendix with which eggs are deposited), has a crucial role since it allows to locate precisely the egg laying in space and time, which is essential when it has to match the biological cycle of the host. Before…

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Conoderinae: the Brazilian weevil who thinks He’s a fly!

Widespread in Curculionidae beetles, also known as weevils, mimicry offers astonishing models of study in these Species. Two Brazilian entomologists, Sergio A. Vanin (department of zoology-university of Sao Paulo) and Tadeu J. Guerra (department of Biology-federal University of Minas Gerais), have described in 2012 a new remarkable species of weevil that mimics Flies of the…

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The Asian Hornet: A Recent Invasion

Introduction of the Asian hornet in France Vespa velutina, an invasive hornet from southeast Asia, is widespread from Nepal and northern India to eastern China, the Indochinese peninsula and Indonesia. In the 2000s, it was reported in Korea where its expansion is probably limited by competition from the other six hornets species present locally. He…

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Diptera Celyphidae: when flies mimic Beetles

The world of insects sometimes contains surprising and mysterious species. Diptera (“flies”) Celyphidae are among them. caption id=”attachment_3078″ align=”alignright” width=”301″] Paracelyphus hyacinthus (Source : Anthony KeiC Wong-Flickr)[/caption] The name of this family comes from the Greek word “κέλυφος” which can be translated as “box” or “shell” which characterizes the most striking characteristic of these insects:…

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