The dung beetle, Copris tripartitus, has been listed as an endangered insect in Korea. In contrast to typical genomic characteristics, the 15,457-bp long, the complete mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) of C. tripartitus has a few unusual characteristics. The genome has the trnP-trnT arrangement at the ND4L-ND6 junction, which is found only in two species of Scarabaeoidea, including C. tripartitus, in 53 available species. Twelve protein coding genes (PCGs) have typical ATT and ATG start codons, whereas COII had the start codon GTA, which is unprecedented in Scarabaeidae. The 297-bp A + T-rich region, which is the shortest available in Scarabaeidae, harbors three repeat units (26, 29, and 21 bp), each consisting of duplicated identical sequences interspersed in the A + T-rich region. Phylogenetic analyses were performed using the concatenated sequences of the 13 PCGs and two rRNA genes using both the Bayesian inference (BI) and maximum likelihood (ML) methods for the families Scarabaeidae and Lucanidae that are available for their mitogenomes in Scarabaeoidea. Our consensus phylogeny yielded monophylies of each family and the subfamily Scarabaeinae in Scarabaeidae with the high nodal supports (0.99-1 by BI and 79-100 by ML). Among the three tribes, represented by multiple genera in Scarabaeinae each Oniticellini and Onitini was supported as monophyletic groups with the highest nodal supports (1 by BI and 100 by ML), whereas Onthophagini was non-monophyletic group, presenting the tribe relationships: ((((Oniticellini + Onthophagini [Caccobius, Milichus, Onthophagus]) + Onthophagini [Digitonthophagus, Phalops]) + Onitini) + (Phanaeini + Eurysternini) + Coprini).

Previously, a partial mitochondrial COI and CytB gene sequences have been used to infer genetic diversity and gene flow of the species. In this study, we additionally collected C. tripartitus from one previous and two new localities, sequenced the COI and CytB genes. Sequence divergence of current samples showed slightly lower values, but nearly equivalent to previous study. Haplotype diversity was still high and nucleotide diversity indicating that Seogwi-dong showed the highest estimates in both gene sequences. Gene flow among populations is high, but a significance difference was detected between Gulupdo and Anmado; and between Gulupdo and Seogwi-dong only in COI sequences (P < 0.05). Considering the high genetic diversity and gene flow in C. tripartitus populations, one of the major issues regarding conservation seems not to be the recovery of genetic diversity as has been suggested before.

Insects are attracting the attention of alternative sources of protein. In order to produce high quality insects, studieson the development of safe and nutritious feed sources are needed. Given the cost of rearing insects, agricultural andindustrial by-products were good materials of insect feed. In the current study, Citrus unshiu peel (CP), soybean curdcake (SCC), soybean oil meal (SOM), and brewers dried grain (BDG) were investigated for their effects on larval growthand development of Protaetia brevitarsis. Interestingly, larvae fed on 10% SCC increased their weight by 3.5 times. Forthe larval period, they were significantly shorter than the control. Furthermore, minerals and amino acids were recordedto be high in them. The heavy metals were not detected in any of the investigated groups. These findings provided ascientific basis for the utilization of soybean curd cake as a nutritional feed source to promote larval growth and producequality insects.

남한산 큰자색호랑꽃무지는 그 동안 일본에 분포하는 Osmoderma opicum으로 동정되어 왔으며, 국내에서는 그 희귀성에 의해 멸종위기종으 로 다루어지고 있지만, 남한 개체군에 대한 면밀한 종의 실체에 대한 구명은 없었다. 이에 대해, 남한산 큰자색호랑꽃무지와 유라시안 근연종에 대 해 형태 및 COI유전자 염기서열을 비교를 실시하였다. 결과적으로, 남한산 개체군은 형태적으로 극동러시아에 분포하는 O. caeleste와 동일하였다. 따라서, 남한산 큰자색호랑꽃무지는 O. caeleste임을 제안한다.

The white-spotted flower chafer, Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), is traditionally considered to be an important source of medicinal properties of suppression of cancer and prevention of liver-related diseases. Recently, it was listed as a temporal food ingredient by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. To use this insect species without endangering wild populations and produce better quality insects, a mass rearing technique and the suitable rearing conditions are needed. The present study was carried out to determine whether different diets and temperatures can affect the larval weight of this beetle. The larval weight change of third instar larvae was tracked for 14 weeks with different combination of three rearing temperatures – 25, 27.5, and 30℃ - and two feed ingredients – soybean cake and rice bran. Among three temperatures, 27.5℃ was the best temperature condition for rearing this beetle. Among four combinations of two feed ingredients, the addition of soybean cake made significant weight increasement for third instar larvae. These results showed that adding soybean cake at 27.5℃ was the best rearing condition for larval weight gain. This rearing condition can be considered in terms of producing better insects and maximizing producers’ benefits.

Since we reported a viral disease extremely fatal to A. dichotoma, had landed on Korea in 2015, we have investigated this disease nationwide and it was turned out the viral disease has spread in the majority of the larva-rearing farms all over the country. The transmission of this disease is most severe when the larvae are harvested and stored for overwintering. During this period, even a few virus-infected larvae can easily transmit the virus and about two hundreds of larvae stored in a container can be killed. In a peroral infection experiment, 80% of infected larvae were killed but survived larvae became adults fully functional physiologically. These survived beetles were confirmed as live virus carrier. Also, about 75% of larvae hatched from the eggs laid by the infected beetles were infected and killed by the virus. This vertical transmission is due to the feeding and secretion activity of the infected parents.

Rhyparus azumai azumai Nakane, 1956을 기반으로 Rhyparini족을 국내에서 처음으로 보고한다. 본 종의 형태학적 재기재, 수컷 생식기를 포함한 진단학적 형질 사진, 그리고 한국산 똥풍뎅이아과의 족 분류 검색표를 제공한다.

The white-spotted chafer, Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) was recently listed as a temporal food ingredient by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Traditionally, this beetle has been regarded as a medicine for suppressing live cancer and preventing liver-related disease. Based on these facts, this beetle has been focused as a economically important insects in Korea. Therefore, this beetle is commercially reared and distributed in Korea. As the economic importance is growing, we have investigated to enhance insect rearing conditions for better commercial value. In this study, we compared two food supplements, clay and charcoal, on the larval weight gain for second instar larvae of P. brevitarsis. Clay and charcoal are generally known as a good adsorbent for heavy metals and bio-waste. However, clay and charcoal is not a conventional feed supplements, so its effects were not investigated for insect rearing. The second instar P. brevitarsis larvae were fed fermented sawdust with seven different combinations of cla and/or charcoal, and measured body weight for 17 weeks until pupated. Addition of clay at 2.5 % w/w of the fermented sawdust diet had no negative effect on larval weight gain, and thus may improve the quality of P. brevitarsis as a commercial food.

The current market size of insect industry in Korea is estimated at 300 million dollars and more than 500 local farms are related to many insect industry. One of the strong candidates for insect industry is Korean horn beetle, Allomyrina dichotoma. Early this year, we reported a viral disease extremely fatal to A. dichotoma larvae. While we were proceeding a nationwide investigation of this disease, several farmers answered that similar disease symptom has been occurred occasionally during past 10 years. The symptom can be easily confused with early stage of bacterial infection or physiological damage including temperature and moisture. A peroral infection with the purified virus to healthy larvae produced a result that only 21% of larvae survived and became pupae. Although some of the survived adult beetle were deformational, many of them had no abnormal appearance and even succeeded in mating. Later, these beetles were examined if they were carrying the virus, and all except one were confirmed as virus carrier. This implies that these beetle may fly out and spread the disease throughout the country. We found the evidence by collecting wild A. dichotoma larvae which were virus infected, near two local farms rearing the horn beetle. So far, transovarial transmission of this virus to the eggs, or horizontal transmission to other commercially reared insects are not known yet.

The white-spotted chafer, Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), is the one of the mass-rearing insects in Korea. Traditionally, it has been considered as a medicine for preventing liver-related diseases and suppressing cancer. In addition, this beetle was recently enlisted as a temporal food ingredient by Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. As the economic importance of this beetle is growing, the suitable rearing conditions are needed for more detailed investigation. In this study, we compared three different temperature conditions – 25, 27.5, and 30°C – and the four combinations of two ingredients – soybean cake, and rice bran. With these treatments, the weight change of third instar larvae was tracked for ten weeks. Among three temperatures, 27.5°C was identified as the best temperature condition for rearing this beetle. Among four combinations of different ingredients, the addition of soybean cake made significant weight incensement for third instar larvae. Based on these results, we concluded that adding soybean cake at 27.5°C is the best rearing condition among 12 combinations of temperatures and feed ingredients. In addition, we observed the body weight was reduced when the larvae were closed to the pupation period. Therefore, we recommend that ca. seven weeks after third instar is the best time to distribute it to the market.

In Korea, the value of insect resources has been increased immensely and the insect industry is expected to increase up to 40 billion dollars by 2020. Among them, Korean horn beetle, Allomyrina dichotoma, is one of the strongest candidates for insect industry as medicinal purpose for various liver diseases and diabetes. In many local farms rearing larvae, a few bacterial and fungal pathogens causing disease of A. dichotoma larvae have been identified including Bacillus thuringiensis and Metarhizium anisopliae. For past few years, a disease seemingly due to viral infection has been reported for causing death of larvae en masse. The pathogen of this disease has not been identified so far. In Southeastern Asia, Oryctes rhinoceros nudivirus (OrNV) is known to cause severe disease in coconut palm rhinoceros beetle, Oryctes rhinoceros, and is used as a biological control agent to reduce the pest population. Here, we report for the first time that OrNV may have landed on Korea and may be the major pathogen for the diseased larvae of A. dichotoma. After peroral inoculation with the purified virus extracted from the hemolymph of diseased larvae, we confirmed that over 60% of infected larvae perished in six weeks. This viral disease spreads very fast in many farms nationwide throughout Korea. This threat not only makes economic loss of local farms rearing larvae, but also may disturb the ecosystem by transmitting to wild A. dichotoma.

Scarabaeus typhon has the extensively wide distribution from Europe to the Far East Asia and the extremely similar morphological feature with closely related species. The Korean population of S. typhon had often been confused in its specific status including several misidentifications and synonymous name. By these circumstances, we presumed that there is a possibility to exist potential cryptic species or subspecies, which might be separated between local populations across their distribution range. Therefore, the primary aim of this study was to reassess that the geographical populations of S. typhon can be divided into each other and to establish a sketchy knowledge of its unknown phylogenetic relationships between the relatives using COI gene and comparative morphology. As the result, S. typhon was detected as a single species despite to have the wide distribution and the various intraspecific distances ranging from 0.67% to 3.50%. Two species, S. pius and S. babori were revealed to have two distinct lineages respectively. Among them, two Korean female specimens were detected belonging to group B of S. pius, it is suggested as a cryptic species or subspecies.

Phoretic mites were collected from Copris ochus and C. tripartitus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). These beetles were collected from Holoce Ecosystem Conservation Research Institution, Gangwon-do. Five unrecorded species of Eviphis hastatellus Berlese, 1910 (Eviphididae), Holostaspella scatophila Takaku, 1994 (Macrochelidae), Macrocheles japonicus Evans & Hyatt, 1963 (Macrochelidae), Pachylaelaps siculus Berlese, 1921 (Pachylaelapidae) and Parasitus consanguineus Oudemans & Voigts, 1904 (Parasitidae) were recorded from Korea for the first time. However, Parasitus consanguineus Oudemans & Voigts (Parasitidae) was already recorded by Oudemans & Voigts in 1904 but since then no one has recorded. We have rerecorded this species in Korea.

한라산 중산간 지역은 최근 인위적 간섭으로 인해 소똥구리과(Scarabaeidae)의 서식지가 소멸되는 있어, 소똥구리과를 구성하는 종들의 상대수도, 종풍부도, 종다 양도를 파악하여 소똥구리과 분포에 관한 기초자료를 제공하고자 실시하였다. 본 조사는 2013년 5월부터 9월까지 한라산 제2 산록도로(1115지방도)변 중산간 목장 지역 6곳(남원읍 신례리, 서귀포시 동홍동, 대천동, 하원동, 색달동, 한림읍 금악리) 을 대상으로 월 3회 실시하였으며, 각 지역마다 함정덫(Pit-fall Trap)을 5m 간격으 로 6개씩 설치하여 닭내장으로 유인하였다. 조사결과 렌지소똥풍뎅이(Onthophagus lenzii) 806개체, 제주도소똥풍뎅이(O. ohbayashii) 455개체, 모가슴소똥풍뎅이 (O. fodiens) 246개체, 멸종위기Ⅱ급 보호종인 애기뿔소똥구리(Copris tripartitus) 가 94개체 및 혹가슴검정소똥풍뎅이(O. atripennis) 12개체 등 총 1,613개체가 조 사되었다. 종풍부도(Richness Index, RI)에서 다수종(Abundant)은 렌지소똥풍뎅 이와 제주도소똥풍뎅이였고, 애기뿔소똥구리 등 3종은 희소종(Rare)으로 나타내 었다. 각 지역별 종다양도(H’)는 하원동(1.25), 대천동(1.22), 색달동(1.22), 동홍동 (0.96), 금악리(0.51), 신례리(0.45) 순이며, 월별 종다양도는 8월(1.29), 5월(1.14), 6월(1.09), 9월(1.05), 7월(0.80)순으로 나타내었다. 특히, 본 조사 결과 멸종위기Ⅱ 급 보호종 애기뿔소똥구리는 금악리를 제외한 중산간 목장 지역 전체가 서식지로 파악되어 한라산 중산간 목장 지역에 대한 체계적인 보전대책 마련이 시급하다고 사료된다.

Allomyrina dichotoma is a typical pet beetles in Korea. From 2010, similar symptoms of milky spore disease were found collectively in grubs of the species reared in insect farms. They shared a specific symptom that the skin of last instar larvae was changed softer with opaque white and infested grubs eventually died. To clarify the cause of the symptom, we collected the larvae of A. dichotoma from five farms and examined intestinal bacterial florae of them using pyrosequencing technique. From those results, a member of Paenibacillus was found only in the larvae showing the symptom of disease. Through PCR analysis using a Paenibacillus specific primer set, we obtained the partial 16S rRNA gene sequence and confirmed the microbe as Paenibacillus sp. For detailed characterizing, a whole guts was extracted from each larva showing the sign of the disease and incubated at 70℃ for 15 min to isolate spore forming bacteria. After then, each content of guts was cultured on MYPGPNAL agar medium (12.5 μg/ml of nalidixic acid) at 30℃. The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis for six isolate showed that they were closely related to P. rigui (97.5~98.0% similarity) and to P. chinjuensis (95.9~96.6% similarity). Additional tests including API test and cellular fatty acid composition analysis were performed, but the strain couldn’t be identified at species level, suggesting it may represent novel species of the genus Paenibacillus.

The dung beetle, Copris tripartitus, (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), is one of the insect species listed as endangered wildlife in Korea. In order to establish conservation strategy an investigation on nation-wide genetic magnitude and nature of genetic diversity would be required. In this study, we sequenced each partial sequences of mitochondrial COI (658 bp) and CytB (433 bop) genes and complete internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) of the nuclear ribosomal DNA (411~420 bp) from 70 individuals of C. tripartitus collected from five Korean localities. The sequence divergence of mitochondrial genes was unexpectedly substantial as 5.0% (33 bp) for COI and 4.6% (20 bp) for CytB, whereas that of ITS2 was only 1.9% (6 bp), revealing much higher variability in mitochondrial DNA. In phylogenetic analysis, each 57 and 47 haplotypes obtained from COI and CytB gene sequences was subdivided into two groups (groups A and B), but the node supports for each group was not strong enough to consider each group as independent monophyletic groups in both genes. This interpretation was further supported by the same analysis with ITS2, showing no subdivision at all. These findings reinforce importance for the inference of phylogenetic result using both mitochondrial and nuclear encoded sequences. The C. tripartitus occurring in Korean peninsula was genetically well connected to each other and no obvious population genetic structure was detectable.

Copris tripartitus Waterhouse is a coprophagus insect which enhances the soil fertility as conveying dung into the soil. We compared preimaginal development, mortality, and size of C. tripartitus at various temperature condition (15, 17.5, 20, 25, 27.5, 30). Total preimaginal periods ranged from 118.0d at 17.5℃ to 49.3d at 27.5℃. Development threshold temperature (DT) and total effective temperature for the development of egg, larva, pupa and for complete development (egg to emergence) were 12.1, 11.2, 12.1 and 9.2℃ and 82.7, 462.0, 225.7 and 947.2 degree days, respectively. The mortality of egg and larva was the lowest at 25℃. The optimum temperature for hatchability and on the development of C. tripartitus was estimated to the 25℃.

Sex pheromone blends of large black chafer, Holotrichia parallela (Motschulasky), which consist of a major component L-isoleucine methyl ester (LIME) and a minor component (R)-(-)-linalool, showed different attractiveness depending on the mixing ratios of the two components in potato fields in South Korea. The best ratio for H. parallela attraction was 2.5:1 of LIME and (R)-(-)-linalool. The attraction ability of pheromone traps bated with 2.5:1 ratio did not drop up to 14m, but significantly decreased at 21m from H. parallela release point. Korean population of H. parallela showed almost same periodical activity to sex pheromone with that reported in Japan, which showing a circabidian periodicity of 48h cycle.

골프장의 문제해충들 중 녹색콩풍뎅이(Popillia quadriguttata) 성충의 방제를 위하여 세 종의 한국산 곤충병원성선충 Steinernema carpocapsae KCTC 0981BP 계통 (ScK), S. glaseri Dongrae 계통(SgD), Heterorhabditis sp. KCTC 0991BP 계통 (HsK)을 이용하여 실험을 수행하였다. 3일 후, 녹색콩풍뎅이 성충 한 마리당 900마리의 선충을 처리하였을 때, 치사율은 ScK가 , HsK가 , SgD가 를 각각 나타냄으로써 이용한 선충 모두가 높은 병원력을 나타내었다. 성충 한 마리 당 900마리의 선충을 처리한 3일 후의 치사율은 ScK는 , HsK는 , SgD는 였다. 선충의 녹색콩풍뎅이 성충 표면부착율과 침입율은 접종 선충의 종과 밀도에 따라 차이가 있었다. 즉, 성충한 마리당 900마리의 선충을 처리하였을 때 녹색콩풍뎅이 성충의 표면에서 검출된 HsK의 비율은 였으며, SgD는 , ScK는 였다. 녹색콩풍뎅이 성충 내에 침입한 선충의 검출여부에 따른 선충의 침입율은 성충 한 마리 당 900마리의 선충을 처리한 3일 후 ScK는 , HsK와 SgD는 각각 를 보였다. 반면, 성충 한 마리 당 90마리의 선충을 처리한 3일 후의 ScK 검출율은 , SgD는 였으나 HsK는 발견되지 않았다.