Stink bugs are key pests around the world. The principal method for managing these pests is the use of broad-spectrum insecticides. However, disrupting sexual communication could also be a biorational alternative for pest management. In this study, pure tone vibrations, mechanically transmitted to plants, were tested for their potential to disrupt the reproductive behavior of the neotropical brown stink bug, Euschistus heros. This species is one of the main pests in soybean production in Brazil. Three experimental procedures were developed using artificial pure tone vibrations (20-200 Hz), which were played back and mechanically transmitted to plants as background noise. In Test 1, the impact of pure tones on the emission of male and female vibratory signals was analyzed. In Test 2, reproductive behavior was monitored in the presence of background noise, and in Test 3, long-term effects (24 h) of noise on reproductive success were evaluated. Results showed that pure tone vibrations of 75-200 Hz increased the proportion of females that spontaneously emitted signal while inhibiting the signaling and searching of males for females. It reduced copulation of 94.2-100% compared to control pairs. In long-term experiments, background noise delayed and slightly reduced mating frequency by 24.7%. Females exposed to background noise had reduced fecundity and fertility. This study demonstrates the potential of mechanical vibrations as a mating-disrupting tactic for stink bug management. Keywords Substrate-borne signals • Interference • Background noise • Animal communication • Biorational control Key message • The effect of background noise on substrate-borne vibratory communication, mating, and copulation of the brown stink bug E. heros was investigated. • Abiotic noise disrupts insect communication. • Frequencies of 75-200 Hz reduced communication and copulation of this stink bug and also female fecundity and fertility. • Interference noise is a potential mating disruption strategy for biorational management of stink bugs.

Fifth-instars of the cicada species Dorisiana drewseni (Stål), Dorisiana viridis (Olivier), Fidicina mannifera (Fabricius), Fidicinoides pronoe (Walker) and Carineta fasciculata (Germar) are described and illustrated. Moreover, a key to the nymphs of these species along with Quesada gigas (Olivier) is also provided.

-In this work, the nymphs of Quesada gigas (Olivier) are described and illustrated. A key for the recognition of its five nymphal instars is also provided. Specimens were collected in coffee plantations in São Sebastião do Paraíso, Monte Santo de Minas and Patrimônio (State of Minas Gerais); Franca and Casa Branca (State of São Paulo). They are preserved in alcohol 80% and deposited at the collection of the Departamento de Fitossanidade da Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias da Universidade do Estado de São Paulo (FCAV/UNESP) in Jaboticabal. The characters analyzed were: antenna, wing buds, fore legs, apex of the meso and metathoracic tibiae and abdominal apex of male/ female. A formula was adopted to indicate the number and sequence of the teeth of the prothoracic femur. Q. gigas nymphs present the following formula: first instar: 2-1-0, the second: 2-1-3, the third: 2-1-5, the fourth: 2-1-6 and the fifth instar: 2-2-8. First number refers to the sum of posterior and acessory teeth, the second one refers to the number of intermediate teeth and the third refers to the teeth of femoral comb. The structures of the prothoracic femur are reliable morphological characters that can be used to identify and determine the cicada nymph instars.KEY WORDS: Cicadoidea, cicada, Coffea arabica, identification, morphology RESUMO -Neste trabalho, as ninfas de Quesada gigas (Olivier) são descritas e ilustradas. Uma chave para o reconhecimento dos cinco ínstares ninfais é também apresentada. Foram analisados exemplares coletados em cafezais dos municípios de São Sebastião do Paraíso, Monte Santo de Minas e Patrimônio (Minas Gerais), Franca e Casa Branca (São Paulo). As amostras encontram-se preservadas em álcool a 80% e depositadas na Coleção Entomológica do Departamento de Fitossanidade da FCAV-UNESP, Câmpus de Jaboticabal. Os caracteres analisados foram: antenas, tecas alares, perna anterior, ápice da tíbia meso e metatorácicas e ápice abdominal do macho/fêmea. Foi adotada uma fórmula para indicar a configuração que é apresentada pelas estruturas presentes no fêmur anterior. Ninfas de Q. gigas de primeiro ínstar apresentam fórmula femoral 2-1-0, de segundo ínstar 2-1-3, de terceiro ínstar 2-1-5, de quarto ínstar 2-1-6 e as de quinto ínstar 2-2-8. O primeiro número refere-se à somatória dos dentes posteriores e dentes acessórios, o segundo ao número de dentes intermediários e o terceiro aos dentes do pente femoral. As estruturas apresentadas pelo fêmur protorácico constituem caracteres morfológicos adequados para a identificação dos ínstares ninfais de cigarras.

The genus Fidicinoides Boulard & Martinelli is characterized by its partially exposed timbal, not totally covered by the meta-scutellar plate as occurs in Fidicina Amyot & Serville, and has an extensive geographic distribution in Central and South America. In this work a new species for the genus is described. Fidicinoides sarutaiensis Santos, Martinelli & Maccagnan sp. n. is a medium-sized cicada, with the collected and studied specimens associated with coffee (Coffee arabica L.), in the municipality of Sarutaiá, in the southeast region of São Paulo state. The species F. glauca (Goding, 1925) and F. viridifemur (Walker, 1850) are transferred to Dorisiana. An identification key for the Fidicinoides species of Brazil is also proposed.

The Cerrado is a savanna formation predominantly located in the central Brazilian plateau; this vegetation is rich in bryophytes. This study analyzes bryophyte diversity, composition and distribution among various Cerrado vegetation types (Gallery Forest, Deciduous Forest, Rupestrian Cerrado and Rupestrian Fields) and substrates in the Área de Proteção Ambiental Morro do Macaco, from municipality of Iporá, Goiás state, in Central-West Brazil. The collection was performed in four plots of 20m x 20m, in each vegetation types, from August to December 2010, the data were analyzed with the Shannon-Wiener (H') and Simpson diversity index and the floristic similarity with UPGMA. We found 37 species, with 28 to Bryophyta and nine to Marchantiophyta. Trichostomum brachydontium Bruch is a new record to the Brazilian Midwest and an endemic species (Archidium oblongifolium Peralta et al.) occurs in the study area. The forested areas were the richest in species number and the substrate most colonized was soil. The results extend the information about the Cerrado bryophytes, increasing the knowledge of their taxonomic diversity and ecology.