Tropilaelaps mercedesae Anderson and Morgan, 2007 (Acari: Laelapidae) is a serious ectoparasite of the brood of several honey bee species. Among the four recognized species of Tropilaelaps, Korean population was renamed as T. mercedesae from T. clareae on the basis of morphological evidences and genetic data. In this study, we report the complete mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) sequence of T. mercedesae. The 15,119-bp long mitogenome has an identical gene arrangement to that of Chinese sample reported previously. Comparison of two geographic samples showed COII, ND5, ND4, ND6, CytB, and ND1 to have higher number of variable sites than COI, which is often used for population-level study, suggesting these genes to have potential usefulness for population genetic study. The mitogenome sequence of T. mercedesae from Korea could be useful for species identification for geographic samples, trace of the origin of local populations, and illustration of evolutionary distinction among Tropilaelaps species either using part of or whole genome.

Fly ash consists of various metal oxides which can remove SO2 gas by the catalyst effect. When fly ash is added in the preparation process of pitch-based activated carbon, the pitch particles aggregate and fly ash is embedded in the activated carbon. To increase SO2 gas removal performance, activated carbon was prepared by surface-treated fly ash and petroleum-based pitch. Carboxyl groups were introduced into the fly ash by malic acid treatment. The introduced carboxyl groups acted as an activation agent to create micropore around the fly ash, and created micropores were exposed to the fly ash outside of the activated carbon. The exposed fly ash increased removal amount of SO2 gas by a catalytic effect of the metal oxides. The SO2 gas removal performance improved by 34% because of the catalyst effect of the exposed fly ash and improvement in the micropore structure in the activated carbon.

To verify the progenitor of B. mori, we sequenced 14 B. mori strains preserved in Korea and one B. mandarina collected in Korea and conducted phylogenetic analysis of Bombycidae using maximum-likelihood method and concatenated sequences of 13 PCGs and 2 rRNA genes. All B. mori strains, regardless of their origin, formed a strong monophyletic group, with the highest nodal support. This B. mori group was placed as the sister to the two B. mandarina collected each from Korea and Shandong, China with the highest nodal support. Finally, the remaining two B. mandarina, which were collected in Japan were independently placed as the most basal lineage of B. mori and B. mandarina group. These results appear to indicate that an immediate ancestor for the domestic silkworm strains may have been originated from China and Korea.

The spotted-wing drosophila (SWD), Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae), originally distributed across a few Asian countries, including South Korea, has invaded North America and Europe, but is absent from Australia. In order to export the South Korean grape cultivar Campbell Early to Australia, its potential to serve as oviposition and development medium for SWD must first be determined. In this study, we determined the oviposition and development potential of SWD on Campbell Early, after elucidating the SWD life cycle and establishing an artificial diet-based mass-culturing system. An investigation of the life cycle under five temperature regimes (16, 19, 22, 25, and 28°C) showed that the durations of the egg, larval, and adult stages were shorten when temperature was increased from 16, 19, 22, 25, and 28°C, but pupal duration was shortest at 25°C and extended again at 28°C. A test of oviposition and development potential of SWD on Campbell Early grape clusters showed oviposition of 30.8 ± 6.8 eggs per cluster of injured grapes and 157.7 ± 16.2 eggs on a culture dish of artificial diet. However, in a similar experiment using uninjured grape clusters, only a single egg was deposited on the grape skin, which soon dried. In light of these results, newly harvested grapes left at vineyards during daily harvests are unlikely to serve as an oviposition and development medium for SWD, as long as the grapes remain uninjured.

Varroa destructor and Tropilaelaps mercedesae mites are ectoparasitic to honey bee having similar life cycle and damage symptoms. Both invade into the last instar larval cell and reproduce during capped brood period of honey bee development. Female adult mites escape from the comb cell on the back of the emerging adult bee (phoretic period) and invade another cell for reproduction. Objective of this study was to study the effect of competitive interaction on each parasitic mite species population. We assessed population monitoring of host and parasitic mites. Honey bee population was monitored by approximating sealed brood and adult bees based on the coverage of the combs. Parasitic mites were monitored by detection technique like sugar shake, stick board, and sealed brood. This monitoring continued at weekly interval during 2008, 2014, and 2015. Additionally Invasion distribution of each species was checked. We calculated carrying capacity, population growth rate, and competition parameter from population monitoring data. Single parasitic mite, Varroa occurred and infestation increased continuously throughout the year in 2008. Co-occurrence of Varroa and Tropilaelaps in honey bee colonies was studied in 2014 and 2015. Carrying capacity was higher in single parasite infesting honeybee than parasites in co-occurrence. While using sugar method, carrying capacity of Varroa alone was found higher than in its co-occurrence with Tropilaelaps. Population growth rate of Varroa when tested alone was higher than its co-occurrence with Tropilaelaps in sugar method. Population growth rate of Varroa and Tropilaepas was higher in sticky method than sugar methods when they were tested in co-occurrence. Population growth rate is higher in Tropilaelaps (0.09) than Varroa (0.05) when both are tested in co-occurrence. We calculated competition parameter of Varroa and Tropilaelaps which was 1.9 and 0.53, respectively. Negative effect on regulation of carrying capacity and population growth rate is due to interspecies competition. Varroa population was higher than Tropilaelaps because there was high intraspecies competition among Tropilaelaps. Single Varroa or its co-occurrence with Tropilaelaps both can destroy honeybee colonies.

We newly sequenced mitogenomes of five skippers belonging to Lepidoptera to obtain further insight into characteristics of butterfly mitogenomes and performed phylogenetic reconstruction using all available gene sequences (PCGs, rRNAs, and tRNAs) from 85 species in 19 families in eight superfamilies. The general genomic features found in the butterflies also were found in the five skippers: a high A/T composition (79.3% - 80.9%), dominant usage of TAA stop codon, similar skewness pattern in various levels, consistently long intergenic spacer sequence between tRNAGln - ND2 (64-87 bp), the ATACTAA motif betweent RNASer(UCN) and ND1, and characteristic features of the A+T-rich region (the motif ATAGA, varying length of poly-T stretch, and poly-A stretch). The start codon for COI was CGA in four skippers as typical, but Lobocla bifasciatus evidently possessed canonical ATG as start codon. Phylogenetic analyses mainly yielded the consensus superfamilial relationships ((((((Bombycoidea + Noctuoidea + Geometroidea) + Pyraloidea) + Papilionoidea) + Tortricoidea) + Yponomeutoidea) + Hepialoidea) with a high support for most nodes, confirming the validity of Macroheterocera and its sister relationship to Pyraloidea. Within Rhopalocera the familial relationships (Papilionidae + (Hesperiidae + (Pieridae + ((Lycaenidae + Riodinidae) + Nymphalidae))) were strongly supported, confirming invalidity of the superfamily Hesperioidea. On the other hand, superfamilial relationships among Noctuoidea, Geometroidea, and Bombycoidea and the familial relationships among Saturniidae, Sphingidae, and Bombycidae were dubious, requiring further representative taxon sampling.

Lepidoptera is one of the largest insect orders, but the phylogenetic relationships within this order, have yet to be completely described. One of the unresolved relationships includes the monophyly of Papilionoidea in relationship with the monotypic superfamily Hesperioidea. We newly sequenced five hesperid mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes), representing four subfamilies: Pyrginae (Daimio tethys and Lobocla bifasciatus), Coeliadinae (Choaspes benjaminii), and Hesperiinae (Potanthus flavus), and Heteropterinae (Carterocephalus silvicola). Along with these newly sequenced hesperid genomes phylogenetic analysis was conducted with all available lepidopteran mitogenomes including three reported species of Hesperiidae that consisted of ~70 species in ten lepidopteran superfamilies. The test for the effect of optimization schemes, such as exclusion and inclusion of third codon position of 13 PCGs, other genes (22 tRNAs and two rRNAs), and with and without partitions also was performed. Majority of datasets consistently placed the monophyletic Hesperiidae the sister to ((Pieridae + Lycaenidae) + Nymphalidae), placing another true butterfly family Papilionidae as the basal lineage of this group, presenting the relationships (Papilionidae + (Hesperiidae + ((Pieridae + Lycaenidae) + Nymphalidae))). Consistent to previous result, Pyraloidea was placed as the sister to ((Bombycoidea + Geometroidea) + Noctuoidea), placing the Macrolepidoptera as non-monophyletic group.