No abstract

The reproductive morphology of the eCDnDmically important Argentine stem weevil, Hyperodes bonariensis Kuschel, is described. A methDd for external differentiiatiDn of the sexes is described, and the functional mDrphology Df the genitalia Df both sexes is discussed.

No abstract

Reversing anthropogenic impacts on habitat structure is frequently successful through restoration, but the mechanisms linking habitat change, community reassembly and recovery of ecosystem functioning remain unknown. We test for the influence of edge effects and matrix habitat restoration on the reassembly of dung beetle communities and consequent recovery of dung removal rates across tropical forest edges. Using path modelling, we disentangle the relative importance of community-weighted trait means and functional trait dispersion from total biomass effects on rates of dung removal. Community trait composition and biomass of dung beetle communities responded divergently to edge effects and matrix habitat restoration, yielding opposing effects on dung removal. However, functional dispersion—used in this study as a measure of niche complementarity—did not explain a significant amount of variation in dung removal rates across habitat edges. Instead, we demonstrate that the path to functional recovery of these altered ecosystems depends on the trait-mean composition of reassembling communities, over and above purely biomass-dependent processes that would be expected under neutral theory. These results suggest that any ability to manage functional recovery of ecosystems during habitat restoration will demand knowledge of species' roles in ecosystem processes.

X total of 286 beetle species is reported from the Chatham Is. For each species the following data are given: whether the species is a Chatham Is endemic, also found in mainland New Zealand, or introduced from outside New Zealand; a reference to the first record of the species in the Chatham Is; collecting methods and habitat; distribution outside the Chatham Is; and for the 249 species represented by specimens in the Entomolo~gy Research Muaeum, Lincoln University, distribution on the various islands of the Chathams group, abundance and months of collection. 131 species are newly recorded from the Chatham Is. A brief history of studies of the Ghatham Is beetle fauna is provided. The size of the known fauna on the different islands of the Chathams group does not follow usual species area relationships, probably due to predation, disturbance and forest clearance on the larger islands. The small outer islands of the group are shown to be important sanctuaries for many larger flightless species.Replacement names are proposed for the homonyms Aeschjntelus Waterhouse, 1876 (Bothrideridae) and Cntopt~s brmzcornzs (Broun, 1904) (Curculionidae) .Taxonomic notes are provided for some Chatham Is species.