Thrips are important agricultural pests and accurate identification is important for their effective management. In order to determine species, however, they need to be mounted on slides and the traditional process is time-consuming. The aim of this paper is to describe a simple and fast method to prepare temporary slides for the routine identification of thrips, which is not dependent on their colour and hardness. Four species of thrips of different colours were used in the preparations: Frankliniella occidentalis (yellow with brown tergal markings), Frankliniella schultzei (entirely brown), Haplothrips gowdeyii (dark brown to carmine) and Caliothrips phaseoli (brown to black). Slides of each species were prepared using three different methods: traditional (3 days), simplified (6 h) and fast method (10 min). The thrips on the resulting slides were observed under a microscope and important structures used in their identification were compared. The quality of the slides prepared using the traditional method was superior to those prepared using the other two methods if only the transparency and general position of the insects on the slides were considered. The transparency of the slides prepared using the simplified method was also good, but only for the pale coloured species (yellow and grey-brown). The fast method, on the other hand, was very efficient for routine identification since it resulted in slides of sufficient quality for identifying species regardless of their colour. It is important, however, to stress that the fast method is only suitable for preparing temporary slides for routine identification and is not a substitute for the traditional method of preparing permanent slides., Luís C.P. Silveira, Marcelo M. Haro., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The rook (Corvus frugilegus) is widely distributed in the Western Palaearctic and is generally regarded as a pest species of agriculture and at airfields. In this study we describe a schematic eye model for the rook. Digital photographs of the intact enucleated eye gave the gross dimensions. The lens and the cornea of the rook’s schematic eye were found to have an almost equal refractive power of Fl 59.53 D and Fc 62.63 D. The rook’s schematic eye has an axial length of 14.50mm and a total power of F 108.86 D. The eye shape is similar to the ‘flat’ eye type. The calculated f-number² value of 3.63 indicates that the rook’s eye is well adapted to high light levels and is not suitable for night vision.