Protection of intensive apple orhards from phytophages complex in steppe zone of Ukraine

According to long-term surveys of apple plantations in Ukraine, they are da maged by an unpaired western bark beetle (Xyleborus dispar F.). The share of this pest colonizing perennial plantations in Ukraine is about 30%, and there is also a tendency of spreading colonization of this type of production tracts over fruit plantations. The prevalence of bark beetle in production areas of orchards has increased significantly in recent years. Unpaired pest, unlike many other species of bark beetles, completely destroys healthy trees. The increase in the number and harmfulness of odd western bark beetle is associated with climate change, the use of various protection systems, etc. Nowadays measures to reduce the number of this species consisted only of a mechanical technique (cutting and burning dam-aged trees) and spraying of garden plantings in the phase of “swelling of the buds ‒ beginning of budding” with old insecticides of second generation (metaphos, chlorophos, carbophos, etc). Pruning and burning damaged trees are an ineffective measures to reduce the number of pests in orchards. The expediency of testing a number of modern insecticides is urgent and effective against a complex of phytophages in the “green cone” phase ‒ “ Rose bud” (beetle, goose, budworm, apple blossom beetle, aphids, leafworms) ‒ “end of flowering” (leafworms, aphids) and can be effective against the western unpaired bark beetle. The basis was the du-ration of action and the peculiarities of the mechanism of action of these insecticides (contact intestinal action ‒ Aktara 240 SC, HP, Mospilan, P. P., Calypso 480 SC , etc. and contact, par-tially systemic action with fumigation effect ‒ Bi‑58 new, etc., Pirinex Super, etc., Danadim stable, etc., Danadim Mix, etc., Fufanon 570, etc.). The use of the drugs mentioned above (for double treatment of plantings) demonstrated high technical efficiency against openly living phytophages (for the first treatment of plantations ‒ against aphids, leafworms, garden wee-vils and tube worms, for the second treatment ‒ against aphids, leafworms), which amounted to 91,3‒99,2%. The western unpaired bark beetle (Xyleborus dispar F.) is a permanent species in the industrial areas of the apple tree. And therefore, protecting trees from it in industrial plantings should be an integral part of modern technology for obtaining fruit products. Un-doubtedly, the application of the complex of insecticides Bi‑58 new, к.е. (2,0 l/ha), Pirinex Super, к.е. (1,25 l/ha), Danadim stable, etc. (2,0 l/ha), Danadim Mix, etc. (2,0 l/ha), Fufanon 570, E.C. (2,0 l/ha) is a highly effective method for reducing the harmfulness of the western unpaired bark beetle in industrial plantations of apple trees, an economically beneficial meth-od in the modern intensive protection technologies.

Chaetopterus antarcticus (Polychaeta: Chaetopteridae) in Argentinian shelf scallop beds: from infaunal to epifaunal life habits

ABSTRACT. Introduction: The shelf-break frontal area in the Argentine Sea, between 37º S and 40º S, is characterized by high frequency and abundance of the parchment worm Chaetopterus antarcticus Kinberg, 1866 associated to Zygochlamys patagonica scallop beds. This polychaete was usually collected within its U tubes, typical of infaunal habit. During 2007, a surprising massive settlement of worms on scallops was observed. Objective: Our objectives is to report the variability of life habits of C. antarcticus in scallop grounds distributed between 37º S and 40º S in Argentinean waters. Methods: The presence of the parchment tube worms on Z. patagonica was analyzed in 892 scallops coming from three samples collected in September (previously obtained for other purposes) and November 2007 and April 2008, between 99-106 m depth in Management Unit B (16.186 km2, 38º S - 39º 52’ S). Polychaetes were identified and quantified on both valves. In addition, both epibiont and infaunal worms were registered through time. The settlement of C. antarcticus on scallops was monitored during the period 2007-2015 and the presence of free tubes, both empty and inhabited by worms, were registered during the period 2008-2015 from a total of 374 representative subsamples (10 l) collected with trawling tools between 37º S and 40º S. Results: Scallops collected in 2007 and 2008 showed that 468 (> 50 %) specimens were encrusted; in 66 % (311 specimens) of them C. antarcticus was settled. The temporal analysis showed that the spatial distribution of epibiotic worms decreased in 2009, 2010 and 2012, with its total absence in 2013, 2014 and 2015 in the study area. During the period 2007 - 2015, infaunal worms were registered throughout the area, collected in part of the locations monitored. Conclusions: The variability of life habits of C. antarcticus was not commonly registered previously in the study area; epibiotic behavior could be the result of intensive soft sediment disturbance due to trawling and hence, the selection of other available primary settlement substrate.

Jellyfish Lakes at Misool Islands, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia

Purba GYS, Haryono E, Sunarto, Manan J, Rumenta L, Purwanto, Becking LE. 2018. Jellyfish Lakes at Misool Islands, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 19: 172-182. Misool Islands, located in southern Raja Ampat in West Papua, has dozens of anchihaline lakes (marine lakes). Three of these lakes, Lenmakana, Karawapop, and Keramat, house populations of jellyfish. This study mapped and described the characteristics of the three ‘jellyfish lakes’ during field surveys in October 2015 and May 2016. The lakes ranged in area from 0.5−3.2 hectares. All three lakes harbored Mastigias papua, Lenmakana and Keramat lakes also harbored Aurelia sp., and Keramat had a third jellyfish species Cassiopea ornata. However, at Karawapop the jellyfish were not found on the water surface during the first round of field work because of effects associated with the El Niño phenomenon at that time. As a result of the El Niño effect, at Keramat, brown Mastigias became white in May 2016. The three lakes have different tidal delays (30−120 min) and dampened tidal amplitude (62%) compared to the sea. The benthos was found to be dominated by bivalves (Brachidontes sp.), algae (Cladophora sp., or Halimeda sp.) and sponges (predominantly Haliclona spp. and Tethya spp.). In addition, species of the family Synaptidae (Holothuroidea) were abundant and spread over almost all the bottom of Karawapop Lake, while tube-worms of the Polychaeta class were identified in Keramat Lake. Although these lakes are identified as a conservation area, currently there is no management activity in Lenmakana and Karawapop Lakes, despite the fact that the lakes are growing in popularity as a tourist site. Our paper provides the baseline data for future conservation efforts.

Massive asphalt deposits, oil seepage, and gas venting support abundant chemosynthetic communities at the Campeche Knolls, southern Gulf of Mexico

Hydrocarbon seepage is a widespread process at the continental margins of the Gulf of Mexico. We used a multidisciplinary approach, including multibeam mapping and visual seafloor observations with different underwater vehicles to study the extent and character of complex hydrocarbon seepage in the Bay of Campeche, southern Gulf of Mexico. Our observations showed that seafloor asphalt deposits previously only known from the Chapopote Knoll also occur at numerous other knolls and ridges in water depths from 1230 to 3150 m. In particular the deeper sites (Chapopopte and Mictlan knolls) were characterized by asphalt deposits accompanied by extrusion of liquid oil in form of whips or sheets, and in some places (Tsanyao Yang, Mictlan, and Chapopote knolls) by gas emission and the presence of gas hydrates in addition. Molecular and stable carbon isotopic compositions of gaseous hydrocarbons suggest their primarily thermogenic origin. Relatively fresh asphalt structures were settled by chemosynthetic communities including bacterial mats and vestimentiferan tube worms, whereas older flows appeared largely inert and devoid of corals and anemones at the deep sites. The gas hydrates at Tsanyao Yang and Mictlan Knolls were covered by a 5-to-10 cm-thick reaction zone composed of authigenic carbonates, detritus, and microbial mats, and were densely colonized by 1–2 m-long tube worms, bivalves, snails, and shrimps. This study increased knowledge on the occurrences and dimensions of asphalt fields and associated gas hydrates at the Campeche Knolls. The extent of all discovered seepage structure areas indicates that emission of complex hydrocarbons is a widespread, thus important feature of the southern Gulf of Mexico.