Abstract.-Dehesas are typical Mediterranean habitats for extensive livestock raising. Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) may act as bioindicators in dehesas, but they are still poorly known in this habitat type. With the purpose of the present study, hoverfly diversity was surveyed in Campanarios de Azaba, a typical oak dehesa in Salamanca province, Spain. A total of 41 species were recorded, including Eumerus azabense sp. nov. This new species was found to belong to the Eumerus tricolor group, both in morphological and genetic terms, and clearly separated (DNA characters) from the similar Eumerus niveitibia, which is redescribed here. Genetic monophyly of the E. tricolor group is confirmed in the present paper. An updated hoverfly checklist of Salamanca province is provided (152 sp.) with indication of the 56 species recorded in Campanarios de Azaba. Obtained results address the importance of dehesa biodiversity, which includes species new to science.

The vector‐borne bacterium Xylella fastidiosa(Wells and Raju) causes several serious diseases to plants. Recently, different subspecies of X. fastidiosa were reported in some European countries. The risk of the bacterium’s spread on the entire European territory is very high; therefore, it has been added into the priority pest list (2019/1702/EU Regulation). The main purposes of this work were to verify the presence of potential vectors in areas at a high risk of introduction in Tuscany and to ascertain the presence of X. fastidiosa in these insect vectors. Over 4,000 Auchenorrhyncha were collected and analysed from 2015 to 2019. Among the xylem sap-feeder putative vectors, most of the insects collected belonged to the family Aphrophoridae, but also many species of leafhopper were identified. Overall, in Tuscany four species were the most represented: Philaenus spumarius(L.), Cicadella viridis(L.), Synophropsis lauri (Horvath) and Neophilaenus campestris(Fallen).In 2018 an outbreak of X. fastidiosa subsp. multiplex was reported in Monte Argentario (Grosseto province, Tuscany). In 2019 X. fastidiosa subspecies multiplex ST 87 was detected in seven P. spumarius and three N. campestris collected from the infected area.

Spittlebugs are xylem-sap feeding insects that can exploit a nutrient-poor diet, thanks to mutualistic endosymbionts residing in various organs of their body. Although obligate symbioses in some spittlebug species have been quite well studied, little is known about their facultative endosymbionts, especially those inhabiting the gut. Recently, the role played by spittlebugs as vectors of the phytopathogenetic bacterium Xylella fastidiosa aroused attention to this insect group, boosting investigations aimed at developing effective yet sustainable control strategies. Since spittlebug nymphs are currently the main target of applied control, the composition of gut bacterial community of the juveniles of Philaenus spumarius and Lepyronia coleoptrata was investigated using molecular techniques. Moreover, bacteria associated with their froth, sampled from different host plants, were studied. Results revealed that Sodalis and Rickettsia bacteria are the predominant taxa in the gut of P. spumarius and L. coleoptrata nymphs, respectively, while Rhodococcus was found in both species. Our investigations also highlighted the presence of recurring bacteria in the froth. Furthermore, the foam hosted several bacterial species depending on the host plant, the insect species, or on soil contaminant. Overall, first findings showed that nymphs harbor a large and diverse bacterial community in their gut and froth, providing new accounts to the knowledge on facultative symbionts of spittlebugs.

The dried fruit beetle (Carpophilus hemipterus) is considered a key pest of dates, infesting fruits both in the field and during storage. Control measures against the species rely on the use of chemicals or heat treatments based on sunlight, hot air or radio frequency (RF) applications. Previous investigations that have aimed to define control procedures for a total disinfestation using RF treatments with different exposure durations have shown the typical behavior of adults in some trials, which, under the influence of temperature increases, started to escape from infested fruits. We focused on the application of different RF voltage-time combinations to induce the emigration of C. hemipterus adults from dates in order to produce a complete disinfestation. The results showed that the application of 2500 V RF for 8–10 min to infested dates resulted in nearly 100% of adults escaping from fruits, thereby cleaning the commodity with low or no mortality inside and outside the dates. These achievements provide a new strategy for controlling key insect pests of dates that could be applied at an industrial scale, allowing for the quick disinfestation of fruits without affecting the fruit with harmful substances, such as residues from chemical treatments, and without unwanted side effects on date quality.

The use of molecular tools to identify insect pests is a critical issue, especially when rapid and reliable tests are required. We proposed a protocol based on qPCR with SYBR Green technology to identify Philaenus italosignus (Hemiptera, Aphrophoridae). The species is one of the three spittlebugs able to transmit Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca ST53 in Italy, together with Philaenus spumarius and Neophilaenus campestris. Although less common than the other two species, its identification is key to verifying which role it can play when locally abundant. The proposed assay shows analytical specificity being inclusive with different populations of the target species and exclusive with non-target taxa, either taxonomically related or not. Moreover, it shows analytical sensibility, repeatability, and reproducibility, resulting in an excellent candidate for an official diagnostic method. The molecular test can discriminate P. italosignus from all non-target species, including the congeneric P. spumarius.