This book provides comprehensive and concise knowledge about Diptera, an order of insects that has both useful and harmful aspects for humans, animals, plants, and the environment. Insects of this order act as agricultural pests as well as vectors of diseases and carriers of microorganisms. Chapters cover such topics as characteristics of different types of Dipteran insects including fruit flies, mosquitos, and midges, and strategies to control insect populations to combat the spread of human and animal diseases such as dengue, trypanosomosis, and others.
Advance praise for Flies Stephen A. Marshall has delivered one of the most beautiful and useful accounts of insect life ever written. -- Edward O. Wilson, Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University Meticulously researched and illustrated with more than 2000 color photographs taken by the author, Flies is a landmark reference book that will be indispensable to any naturalist, biologist or entomologist. Most photographs in this encyclopedic reference were taken in the field and show the insects in their natural environment. All of the world's fly families are included, with photographic coverage spanning the range from common deer flies and fruit flies through to deadly tsetse flies and malaria mosquitoes, with thousands of spectacular species such as exotic stalk eyed flies, giant robber flies and hedgehog flies in between. Flies is broken up into three parts: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies; Diversity; and Identifying and Studying Flies. The 20 pages of profusely illustrated keys linked to the unprecedented photographic coverage of the world's fly families and subfamilies enable the reader to identify most flies quickly and accurately, and to readily access information about each family as well as hundreds of distinctive genera and species. Flies includes: Part 1: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies Chapter 1 -- Life Histories of Flies Chapter 2 -- Flies, Plants and Fungi Chapter 3 -- Flies and Vertebrates Chapter 4 -- Flies and Invertebrates Part 2: Diversity Chapter 5 -- Origins and Distribution of the Diptera Chapter 6 -- The Lower Diptera Chapter 7 -- The Lower Brachycera and Empidoidea Chapter 8 -- The Higher Brachycera or Cyclorrhapha Part 3: Identifying and Studying Flies Chapter 9 -- Collecting, Preserving and Rearing Flies Chapter 10 -- Identifying Fly Families
The forensic entomologist turns a dispassionate, analytic eye on scenes from which most people would recoil--human corpses in various stages of decay, usually the remains of people who have met a premature end through accident or mayhem. To Lee Goff and his fellow forensic entomologists, each body recovered at a crime scene is an ecosystem, a unique microenvironment colonized in succession by a diverse array of flies, beetles, mites, spiders, and other arthropods: some using the body to provision their young, some feeding directly on the tissues and by-products of decay, and still others preying on the scavengers. Using actual cases on which he has consulted, Goff shows how knowledge of these insects and their habits allows forensic entomologists to furnish investigators with crucial evidence about crimes. Even when a body has been reduced to a skeleton, insect evidence can often provide the only available estimate of the postmortem interval, or time elapsed since death, as well as clues to whether the body has been moved from the original crime scene, and whether drugs have contributed to the death. An experienced forensic investigator who regularly advises law enforcement agencies in the United States and abroad, Goff is uniquely qualified to tell the fascinating if unsettling story of the development and practice of forensic entomology.
Tachinid flies (Diptera) are very potential biocontrol agents of several insect pests. Therefore, they are widely used in biological pest management at global scenario. The book contain following topics: 1. General Introduction 2. Review of Literature 3. Collection and Preservation of Tachinids 4. Taxonomy of Tachinids: 12 species are newly described, 8 species are redescribed with their photographs, host records and crop associations. 5.Abundance and Distribution of Tachinids 6. Summary, Conclusion and Bibliography This book will be stimulatory and helpful to teachers, students, farmers, environmentalists and scientists in the field of pest management. .
Ecofriendly Pest Management for Food Security explores the broad range of opportunity and challenges afforded by Integrated Pest Management systems. The book focuses on the insect resistance that has developed as a result of pest control chemicals, and how new methods of environmentally complementary pest control can be used to suppress harmful organisms while protecting the soil, plants, and air around them. As the world's population continues its rapid increase, this book addresses the production of cereals, vegetables, fruits, and other foods and their subsequent demand increase. Traditional means of food crop production face proven limitations and increasing research is turning to alternative means of crop growth and protection. - Addresses environmentally focused pest control with specific attention to its role in food security and sustainability. - Includes a range of pest management methods, from natural enemies to biomolecules. - Written by experts with extensive real-world experience.
Insects are the most diverse group of life on Earth and their history extends well into the Paleozoic, making them among the oldest of terrestrial animal lineages. They are critical to the well being of ecosystems from the equator to the poles, and are inexorably tied to the well being of our world. Whether beneficial or malignant, insects wield an overwhelming influence on our health, economy, and security. It is little wonder that insects so consistently appear in our cultures, religions, and mythologies. Given such realities, it is vital that we gain a better understanding and appreciation of Nature’s ‘inordinate fondness’. Indeed, there is considerable wisdom to be found in the study of these marvels of evolution, and what better way to understand their present and future than to peer back into their distant past. Here presented are some of the results of the 6th International Congress on Fossil Insects, Arthropods and Amber (FossilX3) held in Byblos, Lebanon in April, 2013. In the tradition of previous congresses, researchers from around the world gathered to discuss the latest developments and to build new co-operative endeavours. Recognizing that the future of our science is one of interdisciplinary collaboration, these meetings steadily grow in importance, and proceedings such as this reveal the latest hypotheses and conclusions, while inspiring others toward newer and greater goals.
Prepare to be AmAZed! on this wild ride through Australia’s biodiversity from A to Z! Go on an amazing scientific journey through 100 topics inspired by the specimens and stories from CSIRO’s National Research Collections Australia. This book is filled with fabulous facts about plants, animals, microbes and the scientists who study them. Find out how new species get their names and discover an orchid that grows underground, identify a fly that looks like a bee, and explore strange fish that live in the deep sea. AmAZed! CSIRO’s A to Z of Biodiversity covers Australia’s natural wonders and impressive discoveries for each letter of the alphabet, accompanied by engaging photos and illustrations. Get ready to encounter the Lost Shark, the phenomena of sea sparkle and zombie worms!
