Oenopia conglobata is an important active predator of pistachio psyllid in pistachio orchards. Alternative host or prey has an important role in the stability of natural enemies population in nature. In this study, prey preference of 4th larval instar, male and female of O. conglobata were examined in 10 replications. Nymphs and adults of Agonoscena pistaciae, Aphis fabae, Aphis gossypii and eggs of Ephestia kuehniella with corn pollen were used as preys. In order to study the effects of these preys on consumption rate of adult stage of O. conglobata when feeding only on the common pistachio psylla, it was reared on each diet separately and the feeding percentage was determined after 24 hours. The results showed that the larvae and adults of this predator prefer nymphs of pistachio psylla to other preys. They fed 87±1.52 and 85.5± 1.74 % of psyllid nymphs, respectively. The Manly preference index in the prey-preference test on different diets also showed more preference to nymphs of pistachio psylla compared to other diets. Those predators reared on psylla had more consumption rate on pistachio psylla nymphs (99.2±0.512 %) than to other preys. The results showed that O. conglobata preferred common pistachio psylla to other preys and the common pistachio psylla is a suitable prey for rearing of this predator, but due to feasibility and rearing expenses, A. fabae as a second prey is the most favourable prey for rearing of O. conglobata for biological control of A. pistaciae.

The common pistachio psylla (CPP), Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt and Lauterer, 1989 (Hem.: Psylloidea: Rhinocolinae) is an important pest of pistachio trees. The presence of a large population of psyllid causes severe problems such as falling buds and leaves and therefore this pest causes heavy economic damage to farmers. Predators are the largest and the most diverse natural enemies of the CPP. They are offered as biological control agents against pistachio pests, especially CPP, although they are mostly general predators. Oenopia conglobata contaminata (Menteries) is one of the common psylla predators of pistachio orchard that have a significant role in biological control of Agonoscena pistaciae population. Despite the importance of this efficient predator, the limited study has been done on the effect of different hosts on the biological parameters of this lady beetle. In this study, the demographic parameters of this lady beetle by feeding on 4 different prey species, A. pistaciae , Aphis fabae Scopoli (Hem.:Aphididae), Aphis gossypii Glover (Hem.:Aphididae) and eggs of Ephestia kuehniella (Zell.)(Lep.:Pyralidae) were studied in the laboratory conditions (25 ± 2°C, relative humidity of %65 ±5 and photoperiod of 16 hours light and 8 hours of darkness).
Nymphs of CPP (A.pistaciae) and adults of O. conglobata contaminata beetles were collected on the pistachio leaves from a pistachio orchard. Aphids (A. fabae and A. gossypii) were reared on the bean and the cotton plants planted in a greenhouse. Eggs of E. kuehniella were prepared from insectarium of Kerman Plant protection management and rearing of E. kuehniella was done in the laboratory conditions in Kerman Agricultural and Natural Resoarce Research Center. Before starting the experiment, one generation of O. conglobata contaminata was reared in the laboratory on the different host separately. One hundred eggs of O. conglobata contaminata were used to determine the demographic parameters. After hatching of eggs, larvae was individually transferred to a plastic container (5*10 cm) and kept in a growth chamber. Every day the larvae were fed with the above mentioned host. Their growth and development were monitored daily and also mortality rate was recorded. In the experiments, fourth-instar nymph of the aphids and A. pistaciae were used. The raw data of the developmental time and female daily fecundity of O. conglobata contaminata individuals were analyzed based on the age-stage, two-sex life table using the computer program TWO SEX MS Chart.
Results showed that the maximum net reproduction rate (R0) and intrinsic rate of increase (rm) in psylla diet was 290.87 , 0.1559, respectively and the minimum of R0 and rm belong to eggs of E. kuehniella diet (61.68 and 0.1103). This result proves that psylla diet is the best food for O. conglobata contaminata and aphids diets were in the next ranks (R0 and rm in A.fabae and A.gossypii diets were 200.48, 0.140; 72.44,0.128, respectively). Results of mean generation time of O. conglobata contaminata that was rearing on different diets showed that there were significant differences among the different diets. Mean generation time of O. conglobata in Psylla, A.fabae, A.gossypii and egg of E. kuehniella diets were 36.31, 37.72, 33.34 and 37.30 days, respectively. Finite rate of increase (λ) of O. conglobata contaminata by feeding A.pistasciae, A.fabae, A.gossypii and E. kuehniella was determined 1.198, 1.150, 1.136 and 1.116, respectively.The results of this study can be compared with the result of Mokhtari and Samih (2014), Rounagh and Samih (2014) and Hassani et al. (2009). Life expectancy of female and male O. conglobata contaminata by feeding A.pistasciae, A.fabae, A.gossypii and E. kuehniella were 80.82,64.16; 81.02,68.76; 80.54,68.88 and 59.75, 62.11 days, respectively. Results also indicated that the psylla and A.fabae diets improved the demographics parameters and the life expectancy of O. conglobata contaminata.
The results illustrated that this predator by feeding on nymphs of A. pistaciae has the highest intrinsic rate of increase (rm) and with respect to the demographic parameters, it was the most suitable prey .The compare of O. conglobata contaminata -rm that rearing by CPP with A. pistaciae -rm proves that this predator can control of A. pistaciae in the field and this ladybeetle can be used in IPM of pistachio orchards. According to the difficulty of rearing CPP in laboratory conditions, aphids are suitable preys for mass rearing of O. conglobata contaminata in insectariums.

Aphids are very successful insects of the superfamily Aphidoidea with the highest number of species are found in temperate regions. One of the most important aphid, is Myzus persicae, known as the green peach aphid or the peach-potato aphid, is a small green aphid. It is the most significant aphid pest of peach trees, causing decreased growth, shriveling of the leaves and the death of various tissues. It is also hazardous because it acts as a vector for the transport of plant viruses, such as potato virus Y and potato leafroll virus to members of the nightshade/potato family Solanaceae, and various mosaic viruses to many other food crops. The green peach aphid is found worldwide, although it is less tolerant of colder climates and overwinters through its eggs, laid in trees of the genus Prunus. The aphid also benefits from the presence of greenhouses in these areas The common pistachio psylla, Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt and Lauterer (Hemiptera: Psylloidea), is now the most destructive insect pest of cultivated pistachio trees (Pistacia vera Linnaeus) in Iran This pest occurs throughout the pistachio plantation region of the country and causes severe reductions in pistachio yields. these pests are controlled almost exclusively by pesticides; however, environmental contamination and resistance by A. pistaciae and M.persica to insecticides has lead to considerable efforts to understand the potential of biocontrol agents for the common pistachio psylla and green peach aphid control. Coccinellids have been widely used in biological control for over a century and are considered to be important natural enemies of pest species, especially whitefly, aphids, mealy bugs, scales and mites. Lady beetles belong to the order beetles (Coleoptera) are the Coccinellidae family. To achieve a successful biological control program, it is necessary to characterize the growth, stage structure, fecundity, and predation rate of the pest’s predators. Life table studies are fundamental to population ecology. A life table gives the most comprehensive description of the survivorship, development, and reproduction of a population. The collection of life table data for related species at different trophic levels in a food chain is a basic and important task for conservation and pest management. Knowledge of the life table of both predator and prey is necessary for the mass rearing and practical application of a natural enemy to biological control systems. However, most of the traditional female age-specifc life tables ignore the male population and the stage differentiation. They cannot take into account the variable predation rate amon stages and the predation rate of the male. They cannot take into account the variable predation rate among stages and the predation rate of the male. To take the variable developmental rates among individuals and both sexes into consideration Chi and Liu developed an age-stage life table theory Because variation in developmental rate among individuals and between sexes in a natural population is a normal occurrence an age-stage structured model helps take the variation in the predation rate and the survival rate of individuals of the same age but different stage into consideration. The intrinsic rate of increase (rm) is a useful statistic for describing population growth rates. Estimates of rm have been used to assess the potential effectiveness of natural enemies. The predation activity of larvae and adult of Oenopia conglobata as a predator of aphids and psyllids of forest, fruit and crop plants has been reported from the most regions of Iran. Due to widespread of lady beetle, O. conglobata and its useful role in controlling of aphids, probably its conservation, rearing and its release can be useful in integrated pest management programs. This study provides information for understanding the primary potential of a native predator of the common pistachio psylla and green peach aphid. Obtaining knowledge about this species and other psyllid and aphids biocontrol agents will help extension officers to reduce chemical applications against the psyllid and aphid. This paper describes the relationship between the predatory ladybird, O. conglobata contaminate and common pistachio psylla and green peach aphid. In this article, we use the age-stage, two-sex life table theory to analyze the life history of O.conglobata with feeding on M.persica and A. pistaciae .The temperature threshold for development and thermal requirement for preimaginal development, food consumption and prey preference were determined under controlled conditions. Also, the reproductive responses and rm of this .ladybird on psyllid and aphid nymphs were quantified.
Adults of O. conglobata contaminata were collected from gardens of peaches and apricots around Isfahan in June 2011 and transferred to the laboratory of Biological Control Research Institute Isfahan, Iran. The initial population of aphids on plants of pepper from the Department of Plant Ecology Laboratory of Virology, University of Shiraz and transferred to Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan. The experiment was performed under laboratory conditions (i25±1oC 55±5 RH and 16:8 L: D). A cohort with about 100 eggs

During a survey of gall-inducing aphids on pistachio trees in Razavi-Khorasan Province, larvae of a parasitic mite were collected inside the galls of Forda hirsuta (Aphididae). The mite was identified as Erythraeus (Erythraeus) pistacicus Haitlinger, Mehrnejad & Šundić based on morphological, and molecular data. This is the first record of this mite from the host aphid, F. hirsuta, and also the third record of the occurrence of the mite in Iran. The survey of possible infections with bacterial symbionts in natural populations of E. (E.) pistacicus from Mashhad and Feizabad localities in northeastern Iran revealed the presence of three bacterial symbionts, Wolbachia, Planomicrobium, and Cardinium at different infection rates (55%, 30%, and 10% respectively), while Arsenophonus, Rickettsia, and Spiroplasma were not detected. Investigating bacterial symbionts in predatory insects/mites provide a valuable framework for better understanding the complex interactions between symbionts and their hosts and will lead to developing more efficacious biocontrol strategies particularly, those seeking to decrease reliance on chemical pesticides.

During a survey on pistachio, Pistacia vera L., pests in Isfahan, Iran, in 2015, some lepidopteran larvae living and feeding inside galls of the wrinkling pistachio aphid, Forda hirsuta Mordv., were observed. After laboratory rearing of these larvae, the moths were identified as Altenia mersinella (Staudinger, 1879) (Lep.: Gelechiidae) by the third author. This species has previously been reported from Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine but it is the first report of this species from Iran. Based on the available literature, this is also the first record of a host plant for this species.

Common pistachio psylla، Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt & Lauterer، is the most economically important species among the psyllid pests of pistachio in Iran. Hence، the possibility of using nonchemical control methods against A. pistaciae and the existence of its natural enemies need to be investigated. The spotted amber ladybird، Hippodamia variegata (Goeze)، is one of the most effective predators in pistachio orchards. It is a highly polyphagous coccinellid that preys mainly on aphid and psyllid pests of pistachio trees. This study is intended to improve the knowledge about the predation capacity of A. pistaciae. The experiment was conducted under laboratory conditions of 25oC and 30oC، 55 ± 5 RH and 16:8 L: D. Logistic regression was used to determine the type of functional response and nonlinear regression calculated the parameters of the rate of searching efficiency (a) and handling time (Th). The functional response on different density of prey at both temperatures was type II. The attack rate and handling time were 0. 088 ± 0. 012 h-1 and 0. 0647 ± 0. 011 h at 25ºC and 0. 195 ± 0. 031 h-1 and 0. 0698 ± 0. 056 h at 30ºC، respectively. The density and temperature affected the predation rate significantly. The data suggests that the H. variegata is a viable biological agent against A. pistaciae.

Common pistachio psylla, Agonoscena pistaciae Burckardt and Lauterer (Hemiptera: Aphalaridae) is one of the economical pest among the pistachio orchards. The adoni's ladybird, Hippodamia variegata (Goeze) (Col: Coccinellidae) is one of the most prominent coccinellid predator in pistachio orchards. It is omnivorous and feed on aphids and psylla. Functional response studies using a suitable index of the successful of natural enemy in the biological control programs for pests. Sometimes the application of pesticides have indirect effects on functional response and related behaviors of predators. In this study, the effects of insecticide: hexaflumuron and acaricide spirodiclofen were investigated on functional response of the 4th instars larvae of H. variegata in controlled conditions (26±2ºC, 60±5٪ RH, 16L: 8D). For this purpose, different densities including 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 95, 128, 150, 200 and 300 5th instars nymphs of common pistachio psylla were placed on pistachio leaf disc in a petri dish. Larvae were treated with field recommended concentration by topical application method. Type of functional response, the searching efficiency (a) and handling time (Th) were estimated by using logistic regression and non-linear regression methods, respectively using SAS software. According to the result, functional response was type II in all treatments. Searching efficiency in hexaflumuron, spirodiclofen and control were estimated 0. 077±0. 014, 0. 098±0. 030 and 0. 125±0. 245 h-1, and for handling time were 0. 13±0. 017, 0. 11±0. 023 and 0. 01±0. 12 h respectively. This achievement shows that these pesticides do not change the potential of H. variegata significantly.

A survey was conducted to collect and identify the parasitoid wasps associated with pistachio gall aphids caused by Forda hirsuta and Slavum mordvilcovi on Pistacia atlantica in Kerman, Fars and Yazd provinces of Iran during 2013. The overwintered Galls were randomly collected and reared in plastic jars under room temperature until the adults of insects inhabiting the galls were appeared. Among the collected and identified species, Nemeritis divida (Dbar, 1985) (Hym.: Ichneumonidae, Campopleginae) was a new genus and species for the insect fauna of Iran (1, 4). Specimens of this species were deposited in the Zoological Museum of the University of Turku, Finland and the entomology laboratory of Shahed University, Iran.Nemeritis divida (Dbar, 1985): Material examined: IRAN, Arsanjan, N=29°55′, E=53°26′, 2230 m a.s.l., 1♀, 5 May 2013, 1♀, 15 June 2013. General distribution: Azerbaijan, Turkey (4) and Iran (new record). Diagnostic characters: the species of the genus Nemeritis have a closed areolet; compound eyes without or with sparse hairs; fore wing with vein 2rs-m jointed near the middle of areolet; first tergite of metasoma without glymma and ovipositor a little longer than the metasoma (3). N. divida can be distinguished from other species of the genus by the combination of the following characters: face 0.7 times in the female and 0.9 times in the males as wide as high; the base and middle of hind tibia white, the outside, inside, sub basal and apical part of hind tibia dark brown to black; Ovipositor/hind tibia index 0.6-0.7 (2).Species of the genus Nemeritis are known as parasitoids of Raphidiidae (Insecta: Neuropterida, Raphidioptera) (2, 4). There has not been yet known any plant or insects host associated with N. divida (4). Pistacia atlantica and pistachio aphid gall, S. mordvilcovi, were newly established as plant-host-association and overwintering sites of N. divida.

In this research, barley aphids in Mahidasht region of Kermanshah province were identified. Spatial distribution type and statistics for corn leaf aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch) were also studied and sequential sampling models were developed. Regular weekly sampling was carried out in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Each sampling date, 100 tillers were randomly visited and aphids were transferred to the laboratory for counting and identification. Taylor’s power law was used to determine spatial distribution type and statistics and sequential sampling models were developed according to Green (1970). Results revealed feeding of five species of aphids on barley including greenbug, Schizaphia graminum, rose-grain aphid, Metopolophium dirhodum, the English grain aphid, Sitobion avenae,corn leaf aphid, R. maidis and bird cherry-oat aphid, R. padi. Corn leaf aphid was more abundant during the season with 93.8%, 94.2% and 93.2% of aphids collected in 2015, 2016 and 2017, respectively. Low populations density of the other four species was observed every three years. Spatial distribution type of corn leaf aphid in barley field was determined as cumulative (b = 1.45). Sample size required in models with precision levels of 0.1 and 0.25 at mean aphid densities observed in the barley field (1.02 - 44.32 aphids per tiller) was 70 -524 and 11-84 tillers, respectively. In conclusion, sequential sampling model developed at the precision level of 0.1 was evaluated time consuming due to large sample size required, but the model at pest management precision level (0.25) was recommended for monitoring leaf corn aphid in barley fields.

In this research، population fluctuation of canola aphids and their natural enemies were investigated during 2007-2008. Random samples of 50 plants were taken twice a week. Mustard aphid (Lipaphis erysimi Kalt.)، green peach aphid (Myzus persicae Sulzer) and cabbage aphid (Brevicoryne brassicae L.) were recorded on canola. However،the mustard aphid with relative frequency of 79% was dominant. The cabbage aphid and green peach aphid ranked second and third with relative frequencies of 12% and 9% respectively. The mustard aphid appeared in mid December، the green peach aphid in late December-early January and the cabbage aphid in mid February. The mustard aphid and green peach aphid peaked in middle of March and cabbage aphid peaked in late of March، then after their number decreased in late April. Predatory species Coccinella septempunctata L.، Episyrphus balteatus De Geer and Chrysoperla carneaStephens with the relative frequencies of 69%، 24% and 7% were collected on canola respectively. Coccinellids، syrphids and chrysopids peaked in middle of March، late of March and in middle of April، respectively. PrasitoidDiaeretiella rapae Mclntosh and two hyperparasitoids Pachyneuron aphidis Bouche and Aphidencyrtus aphidovorus Mayr were obtained from mummies. The highest percent of the parasitism was 32% in late March، early April and the average precent of parasitism was 13%.