Austral Entomology最新文献

{"title":"The abundance and phenology of four common agromyzid leafmining flies (Diptera: Agromyzidae) and their associated parasitoid wasps in southern Victoria","authors":"Marianne P. Coquilleau,&nbsp;Peter M. Ridland,&nbsp;Xuefen Xu,&nbsp;Paul A. Umina,&nbsp;Ary A. Hoffmann","doi":"10.1111/aen.70015","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70015","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Three polyphagous agromyzid leafminers, <i>Liriomyza sativae</i> Blanchard, <i>Liriomyza huidobrensis</i> (Blanchard) and <i>Liriomyza trifolii</i> (Burgess), have recently invaded mainland Australia, posing a threat to horticultural crops. Overseas, these species are often effectively controlled by local hymenopteran parasitoids. It is important to assess the abundance and composition of the existing parasitoid community capable of impacting these pests as they spread across Australia. We surveyed three adventive agromyzids, <i>Liriomyza brassicae</i> (Riley), <i>Phytomyza plantaginis</i> Goureau and <i>Phytomyza syngenesiae</i> (Hardy), and one endemic species, <i>Liriomyza chenopodii</i> (Watt), at six sites around Melbourne, Victoria, between August 2018 and January 2020. In all, 4748 agromyzids and 2474 identified parasitoids were reared. Eleven wasp species were identified: seven eulophids, three braconids and one pteromalid. Four eulophid species—<i>Asecodes</i> sp., <i>Diglyphus isaea</i> (Walker), <i>Closterocerus mirabilis</i> Edwards &amp; La Salle and <i>Hemiptarsenus varicornis</i> (Girault)—and one braconid species, <i>Opius cinerariae</i> (Fischer), were reared from all agromyzid hosts. Three eulophid species—<i>Chrysocharis pubicornis</i> (Zetterstedt), <i>Neochrysocharis formosa</i> (Walker) and <i>Zagrammosoma latilineatum</i> Ubaidillah—and one pteromalid species, <i>Trigonogastrella parasitica</i> (Girault), were reared from three host agromyzids. <i>C. pubicornis</i> (Zetterstedt), a pupal parasitoid, was the most abundant parasitoid overall but was almost entirely reared from the two <i>Phytomyza</i> spp. at only one site. Peaks in parasitism were observed in late spring and late autumn, depending on the host. These results show that a diversity of local agromyzids persists throughout the year in southern Victoria, supporting a stable parasitoid community that should help control invasive <i>Liriomyza</i> spp. in the future.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70015","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144273076","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Queen turnover, nest usurpation and colony mortality in wild nests of the stingless bees Tetragonula carbonaria and Tetragonula hockingsi (Hymenoptera: Apidae)","authors":"Estella Xia,&nbsp;Matthew Keir,&nbsp;Boyd Tarlinton,&nbsp;Caroline Hauxwell,&nbsp;Gabriele Buchmann,&nbsp;Julianne Lim,&nbsp;Nadine Chapman,&nbsp;Rosalyn Gloag","doi":"10.1111/aen.70014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70014","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Social bees of the tribe Meliponini (stingless bees) are used as managed pollinators of crops throughout the world's tropical and subtropical regions. On Australia's East Coast, two native species—<i>Tetragonula carbonaria</i> and <i>Tetragonula hockingsi</i>—are the most widely propagated in hives, but knowledge of their biology and ecology in natural nests remains poorly documented. Here we monitor a wild population of <i>Tetragonula</i> in remnant forest in south-east Queensland over a 5-year period to assess three aspects of their life history: (i) rates of colony mortality, (ii) rates of queen turnover and (iii) incidences of nest usurpation. The latter occurs when one colony usurps the nest cavity of another, installing its own queen and enslaving the existing workers and brood. The range of <i>T. hockingsi</i> has increased in recent decades due to hive trade and southward range expansion. Our study area was located in the southern region of overlap with <i>T. carbonaria</i>. A total of 58 wild colonies were identified within the study site (1.5 nests per hectare), three-quarters of which were <i>T. carbonaria</i>. Colony mortality averaged 8.3% per year, such that 40% of colonies had died by the end of the 5-year study interval. Sequencing of mitochondrial-COI and microsatellite genotyping of workers at four time points was used to infer that queen turnover (i.e., queens replaced by daughter queens) typically occurs every 20–30 months. Eight cases were detected consistent with interspecific nest usurpation, in all of which <i>T. hockingsi</i> replaced <i>T. carbonaria</i>. However, <i>T. hockingsi</i> colonies also had lower annual survivorship than those of <i>T. carbonaria</i>, resulting in a stable proportion of each species in the study area over time. Overall, results show that although nest occupancy by <i>Tetragonula</i> colonies is typically several years, colony death and nest usurpation are common in wild populations, and community composition is shaped by interspecific differences in both usurpation success and annual mortality.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-06-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70014","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144197316","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Abundance, diversity and development of thrips (Thysanoptera) on avocados and macadamias in the Levubu region of Limpopo Province, South Africa","authors":"Maxwell K. Kibor,&nbsp;Catherine L. Sole,&nbsp;Elsje Joubert,&nbsp;Christopher W. Weldon","doi":"10.1111/aen.70013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70013","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Some thrips (Thysanoptera) species are presumed to injure avocado and macadamia trees and fruit when feeding as nymphs and adults. We investigated the abundance and species richness of thrips and monitored fruit and nut set and damage on four avocado (Fuerte, Hass, Maluma and Pinkerton) and macadamia (695, 814, 816 and A4) cultivars. Different stages of avocado fruit (1–3, 4–6 and 7–9 cm) or macadamia nut development (closed racemes, nut set, nut size 1–1.5 cm and nut size 3–4 cm) were sampled over two seasons in the Levubu region of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Thrips development on fruit, nuts and leaf flush was recorded to verify the thrips species causing damage. A total of 15 535 thrips were collected during August–January 2020–2021 and 2021–2022. Six thrips morphotypes were identified across macadamia and avocado orchards: <i>Scirtothrips aurantii</i> Faure (Thripidae), <i>Thrips tenellus</i> Trybom (Thripidae), <i>Haplothrips gowdeyi</i> Franklin (Phlaeothripidae), <i>Frankliniella occidentalis</i> Pergande (Thripidae), <i>Megalurothrips</i> sp. (Thripidae) and <i>Caliothrips</i> sp. (Thripidae). Thrips were less abundant in the 2020/2021 season compared to the 2021/2022 season and in avocados than in macadamias. Pinkerton (2020/2021: 4.9 ± 0.8 and 2021/2022: 13.1 ± 0.2) and Fuerte (2020/2021: 6.9 ± 1.3 and 2021/2022: 7.5 ± 0.1) had the highest damage and fruit set per inflorescence in both seasons. Fruit size 1–3 cm had a mean damage of 3.4 ± 0.8 in 2020/2021 and 4.0 ± 0.7 in 2021/2022, 4–6 cm had 5.3 ± 0.9 and 4.7 ± 0.7 in 2021/2022, and 7–9 cm had 5.2 ± 0.9 in 2020/2021 and 5.0 ± 0.8 in 2021/2022. Macadamia cultivars and developmental stages most affected by thrips were dependent on the season. Our results suggest that damage occurs earlier in fruit or nut development, and Fuerte avocados and Macadamia 695 were the least susceptible to thrips damage. <i>S. aurantii</i> larvae developed from all sampled avocado and macadamia tissues and were able to persist until the adult stage, confirming it as the main damaging thrips species of avocado and macadamia in the Levubu region.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70013","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144190811","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Myrmecia: Volume 61, Part 2","authors":"","doi":"10.1111/aen.12697","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.12697","url":null,"abstract":"<p>No abstract is available for this article.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.12697","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144118197","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Both Native and Introduced Non-Crop Flowering Plants Around Orchards Support Potential Crop Pollinators and Other Beneficial Insects","authors":"Yolanda Hanusch,&nbsp;Ros Gloag,&nbsp;Tanya Latty","doi":"10.1111/aen.70009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70009","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Non-crop floral resources in agricultural areas play an important role in supporting crop pollinating taxa and increasing biodiversity. We studied flower-insect interactions to two spring flowering crops and accompanying non-crop flowering resources (introduced/native) in apple and blueberry orchards in southern Tasmania, Australia, to (i) identify the important crop pollinating taxa in this region and (ii) examine if crop and non-crop introduced and native flowering plants within orchards supported different community assemblages of flower-feeding insects. We found a high overall contribution to crop visitation by introduced honeybees (<i>Apis mellifera</i>), which dominated visitation to apple (91% of total visits) and blueberry (76% total visits). A second introduced bee, the earth bumblebee (<i>Bombus terrestris</i>), made up 19% of total visits to blueberry, yet rarely visited flowering apple. Reed bees (<i>Exoneura</i>) were the most frequent native bee visitor to both apple 2.5% and blueberry 4%. Non-crop flowering plants around orchards showed significantly different community assemblages of flower-feeding insects in comparison to flowering crops. These differences were shaped by high association of insects with certain vegetation types, including <i>A. mellifera</i> with flowering apple, <i>B. terrestris</i> with flowering blueberries, native reed bees (<i>Exoneura</i>) with flowering apple and native flowers, soil nesting halictid bees (<i>Lasioglossum</i>) with introduced and native flowers and hoverflies with flowering apple and introduced forbs.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70009","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143865722","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effectiveness of spinosad and spinetoram against the citrus gall wasp, Bruchophagus fellis (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae), and their impacts on beneficial arthropods in citrus","authors":"Lisa S. Kirkland,&nbsp;Meena Thakur,&nbsp;Jianhua Mo","doi":"10.1111/aen.70005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70005","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The citrus gall wasp, <i>Bruchophagus fellis</i>, is a significant pest in Australian citrus production. It particularly affects Valencia citrus growers, as the available chemical control options are considered unsuitable due to persistence of residues and associated long withholding periods, or too costly. We investigated the effectiveness of two spinosyn-based foliar products, spinosad and spinetoram, for controlling <i>B. fellis</i> and their impact on beneficial arthropods in citrus orchards. Both chemicals demonstrated efficacy, with over 98% mortality in <i>B. fellis</i> adults within 24 h of direct application in laboratory tests. Residual toxicity assessments showed prolonged efficacy, with spinetoram remaining toxic to <i>B. fellis</i> for up to 21 days and spinosad for up to 14 days post-spray. Spinetoram appears more toxic to <i>B. fellis</i> than spinosad. A field trial confirmed efficacy of both active ingredients in reducing <i>B. fellis</i> infestations, particularly with well-timed applications before peak adult <i>B. fellis</i> emergence. A double-spray application of spinetoram (1 week apart) showed the most effective control, with 66% reduction in gall weights and 84% reduction in the proportion of large galls compared to the untreated control. Four important beneficial arthropods [<i>Aphytis lingnanensis</i> (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), <i>Cryptolaemus montrouzieri</i> (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), <i>Mallada signatus</i> (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) and <i>Neoseiulus californicus</i> (Acari: Phytoseiidae)] of Australian citrus orchards were selected for the toxicity studies. Spinosad and spinetoram appeared relatively safe to <i>C. montrouzieri</i> and <i>M. signatus</i> but were highly toxic to <i>A. lingnanensis</i> and <i>N. californicus</i>. Based on these findings, spinetoram could be a good foliar application option for Valencia growers to target adult <i>B. fellis</i>.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143861695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Review of larval food plant associations of the Agaristinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Australia","authors":"Michael F. Braby","doi":"10.1111/aen.70010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70010","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The Australian Agaristinae comprises a small group of predominantly diurnal moths with aposematic larvae and adults that are assumed to be unpalatable to most predators. A critical review of the larval food plants of this subfamily based on published records in the literature, together with unpublished records, is presented. Of the 120 moth–plant species-level records, associations are documented for two-thirds of all species (34 out of 53, or 64%) and almost all genera (19 out of 21, or 90%) of Agaristinae. At the generic level, the overwhelming pattern is a high level of monophagy (12 genera on 1 plant family), followed by oligophagy (4 genera on 2 families); only three genera (<i>Apina</i>, <i>Phalaenoides</i>, <i>Cruria</i>) are polyphagous (&gt;3 plant families). Despite high levels of specialisation, Australian Agaristinae, overall, feed on a set of 19 families of angiosperms in 16 orders and eight higher informal groups, most of which are not closely related. Lack of a well-resolved global phylogeny of Agaristinae precludes analyses of deep evolutionary patterns of host usage, but Vitaceae (Vitales) are the most widely exploited family (used by 12 moth species in 10 genera), followed by Dilleniaceae (Dilleniales) (used by 11 moth species in six genera). Available data indicate no evidence of phylogenetic conservatism in the Australian Agaristinae; rather, there appears to be a pattern of frequent host shifts and repeated colonisations to distantly related plants. The role of secondary plant compounds (e.g. sequestration of alkaloids and other metabolites) in chemical defence of Agaristinae requires further study, especially in the Vitaceae and Dilleniaceae.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70010","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143856804","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Species delimitation and molecular dating of southern African Tetramesa (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae): An understudied microhymenopteran group","authors":"Clarke J. M. van Steenderen,&nbsp;Guy F. Sutton,&nbsp;Liam D. Yell,&nbsp;Kim Canavan,&nbsp;Iain D. Paterson","doi":"10.1111/aen.70006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70006","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The genus <i>Tetramesa</i> Walker (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae) comprises over 200 species of herbivorous wasps that feed exclusively on grasses. Recent field surveys in South Africa for grass biological control programs have uncovered a large diversity of potential <i>Tetramesa</i> on African grasses. Here, mitochondrial (cytochrome <i>c</i> oxidase I [COI]) and nuclear (28S) genetic sequences were used to compare the outputs of seven popular species delimitation methods and to guide the generation of consensus species boundaries for putative <i>Tetramesa</i> taxa and close relatives. Additionally, the nuclear region was used to run a dated analysis that applied a molecular clock rate. Consensus species delimitation results found 35 molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) in the COI data and 21 MOTUs in the 28S data. Of the 35 COI MOTUs, there were 17 putative <i>Tetramesa</i> taxa (16 novel southern African taxa and 1 described Northern Hemisphere species, <i>Tetramesa romana</i>), 13 of which showed evidence of specialisation to a single host plant. Comparatively, of the twenty-one 28S MOTUs, there were 5 putative <i>Tetramesa</i> taxa (4 novel southern African taxa and 1 <i>T. romana</i>), all of which showed evidence of host specificity. The dated analysis suggested that the genus <i>Tetramesa</i> originated ~67.1 mya. There was evidence of rapid diversification in the Southern Hemisphere clades between 5 and 15 mya, which coincides with grassland expansions and climatic fluctuations in Africa at the time that may have driven host specialisation. The present results provide valuable insights into the diversity and broader scale evolutionary patterns in this Southern Hemisphere microhymenopteran group.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70006","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143849311","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhancing Lasioglossum (Homalictus) dotatum (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) habitats: The role of rock gravel in bare soil landscapes","authors":"Freya M. Jackson,&nbsp;Kit S. Prendergast,&nbsp;Giles Hardy,&nbsp;Wei Xu","doi":"10.1111/aen.70008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70008","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Native bee populations are generally in decline, and although their conservation needs are recognised, habitat requirements for the majority of species remain unknown. Many bee species construct nests underground, including the native Australian bee <i>Lasioglossum (Homalictus) dotatum</i>. However, like most ground-nesting bees, their nesting ecology, particularly their substrate preferences and soil surface requirements, remains poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, this study examined whether <i>L. dotatum</i> prefers nesting in bare sand or amid rock gravel and whether soil treatment influences nest-site selection. Experiments were conducted using 24-L pots of Bassendean sand, placed near active <i>L. dotatum</i> nesting aggregations. Ten pots had a layer of rock gravel, while the remaining 10 were left bare. Within each treatment, half of the pots contained untreated sand, and half contained steam-treated sand to remove potential contaminants. This design tested whether <i>L. dotatum</i> prefers certain soil conditions and surface features when selecting nest sites. Results showed that female <i>L. dotatum</i> preferentially nest in pots with rock gravel over those with bare sand, suggesting that rock cover may create a more favourable environment by moderating temperature, retaining moisture, or providing structural stability for nest entrances. Additionally, females preferred steam-treated sand over untreated sand, possibly indicating that factors associated with untreated soil, such as microbial presence or organic residues, may deter nesting. This study advances our understanding of <i>L. dotatum</i> nesting behaviour and provides a framework for creating pollinator-friendly spaces by identifying key soil and surface features that influence nest-site selection. However, the mechanisms driving their preference for steam-treated sand remain unknown, highlighting the need for further research to distinguish the roles of hygiene, soil properties and potential chemical cues in nest-site selection.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70008","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143826966","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Teaching entomology online: Challenges, benefits and examples of effective hands-on activities","authors":"Gregory I. Holwell,&nbsp;Angela Mech,&nbsp;Harald Parzer,&nbsp;Anna F. Probert","doi":"10.1111/aen.70007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70007","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Traditionally, teaching entomology to undergraduate students has relied upon conventional laboratory-style practical classes—where students are taught how to collect, identify and curate specimens, as well as understand the form and function of key insect groups using unsophisticated but specialised equipment. Entomology educators had to promptly adapt their methods of teaching in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the online delivery of courses that often largely relied on face-to-face teaching. This imposed limitations on what could be effectively taught outside of a lab setting, although in many cases these were mitigated through online technology that introduced opportunities to support entomology students. Here, we assess the learning objectives of a range of current entomology courses taught namely in Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, the United States and Europe. We found that practical hands-on skills, such as identification and curation, and understanding of insect morphology and diversity, often taught via lab activities, are common across many courses. Given the perceived tension between current moves to online educational delivery and these common practical learning objectives in entomology, we present a series of four activities that can be taught via online or distance approaches. These exercises can be used to effectively teach key concepts and skills such as identification, form and function and ecological research skills related to insects. We also discuss some challenges and benefits associated with the online delivery of entomology courses, emphasising a number of equity and accessibility benefits that online approaches might deliver.</p>","PeriodicalId":8574,"journal":{"name":"Austral Entomology","volume":"64 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/aen.70007","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143818696","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}