The harlequin ladybird beetle Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) has invaded and established in Slovakia. Following unintentional introduction in 2008, the spread of the alien coccinellid was very fast. By the end of 2009, it was recorded across the whole country, and by the end of 2012 it was widely distributed and common in various habitats, particularly gardens, orchards and urban...

Bioassays were conducted to study the effectiveness of selected chemicals to prevent the multicolored Asian lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis (Pallas), from overwintering in buildings. We discovered that certain monoterpenoids elicited avoidance in adults toward treated Þlter paper within a petri dish bioassay at 1.0 mg/cm. Camphor and menthol were the most effective of the monoterpenoids tested. ...

Within populations, the amount of environmental and genetic variation present may differ greatly among traits measured at multiple times over ontogeny. Brief periods of food deprivation are often followed by a period of accelerated (compensatory) growth. Early laboratory studies likewise reported a contraction of genetic variance in size as maturation approached. However, studies of wild popula...

The main function of small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) as molecular chaperones is to protect proteins from denaturation under adverse conditions. Molecular and physiological data were used to examine the sHSPs underlying cold-hardiness in Harmonia axyridis. Complementary DNA sequences were obtained for six H. axyridis sHSPs based on its transcriptome, and the expression of the genes coding for ...

Bottlenecks in population size reduce genetic diversity and increase inbreeding, which can lead to inbreeding depression. It is thus puzzling how introduced species, which typically pass through bottlenecks, become such successful invaders. However, under certain theoretical conditions, bottlenecks of intermediate size can actually purge the alleles that cause inbreeding depression. Although th...

The harlequin ladybird, Harmonia axyridis, is a valuable asset in integrated pest management (IPM); however, issues related to low-temperature storage and transportation have resulted low hatching rate, while the use of pesticides may lead non-target effects against this natural enemy during field application. Fluctuating thermal regimes (FTR) been shown be beneficial storage, type concentratio...

Ladybug taint (also known as ladybird taint) is a relatively recently recognized fault that has been identified in wines from wide range of terroirs. Alkyl-methoxypyrazines—particularly 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine—have determined the causal compounds, and these are introduced into grape must during processing, when specific species vineyard-dwelling Coccinellidae incorporated harvested fruit....

Hesperomyces virescens Thaxter (Laboulbeniales: Laboulbeniaceae) is a parasitic fungus that infects lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) via horizontal transmission between adults at overwintering and feeding sites. The differential behavior of male and female hosts could have profound effects on intensity of infection and positioning of fungus on the host's integument. The influence of hos...

The imported Harmonia axyridis ladybug infests homes in northern West Virginia from fall through spring, causing allergic disease. Retrospective single-practice chart reviews were performed: (1) all skin prick tests (1400 included ladybug) in a community allergy practice over 4 years and (2) clinical analysis of 400 randomly chosen patients. The usual adult aeroallergen skin test panel included...