Note: A new pest,Liriomyza trifolii, on cotton in the Büyük Menderes Valley, Turkey
The study was conducted to evaluateLiriomyza trifolii (Burgess) in the cotton fields of the Büyük Menderes Valley, Turkey, from 1999 to 2000. Leaves were sampled weekly from the middle of June to the middle of August and kept in the laboratory to observe emerging leafminers. Leafminers were initially found on cotton leaves from 35 to 66 days after sowing. The numbers of larval mines varied from one to four per leaf. The largest number of infested leaves was observed in Aydın (Center), where 18.8% and 17.7% of the sampled leaves were infested in 1999 and 2000, respectively. We conclude thatL. trifolii is a potential pest in the cotton fields of Turkey and more research is needed.
Feeding, oviposition and survival of Liriomyza trifolii (Diptera: Agromyzidae) on Bt and non-Bt cottons
Abstract The effects of Bt transgenic cottons (Bt-I expressing cry1Ac and Bt-II expressing cry1Ab and cry2Ab or cry1Ab and cry1Fa) and non-Bt cottons on feeding, oviposition and longevity of adults, and development and survival of Liriomyza trifolii larvae were studied under laboratory conditions; and infestation on four Bt and two non-Bt cotton traits were investigated under field conditions. Laboratory choice and no-choice tests showed that L. trifolii adults were capable of distinguishing between Bt cottons and non-Bt cottons. In a choice test on younger plants (4–5 leaves), the adults were found more often and made more feeding punctures (FP) on non-Bt cottons than on Bt cottons. On older plants (8–9 leaves), adults made the most FP on non-Bt cotton followed by those on Bt-II cottons and the least on Bt-I cotton. The females oviposited more eggs (6.7 eggs per leaf) on non-Bt cotton than on Bt-I (1.7 eggs per leaf) and Bt-II (0.8 eggs per leaf) cottons on younger plants and oviposited similar numbers of eggs (0.7–1.3 eggs per leaf) on non-Bt and Bt cottons on older plants. In a no-choice test, the females also fed more FP on non-Bt cottons than on Bt cottons on both younger and older plants. The females oviposited more eggs (15.6 eggs per leaf) on non-Bt cotton than on Bt-I (8.2 eggs per leaf) and Bt-II (6.5 eggs per leaf) cottons on younger plants and similar numbers of eggs (2.5–3.3 eggs per leaf) on non-Bt and Bt cottons on older plants. Larval and puparial survivals were not different among Bt and non-Bt cottons. The occurrence and damage of leafminers on cottons in the field showed that L. trifolii infested more plants and leaves and had more mines on non-Bt cotton than on Bt cottons.
Instrumentation and Automated Photometric Titration Procedure for Total Acidity Determination in Red Wine Employing a Multicommuted Flow System
An automated procedure for photometric titration of red wine and associated instrumentation is described. The procedure was based on the flow-batch approach implemented employing multicommutation. The photometric detection was carried out using a homemade LED-based photometer. The mixing device, LED, and photodetector were attached to the titration chamber in order to form a compact and small-sized unit. The flow system comprised an automatic injector and three-way solenoid valves, which were controlled by a microcomputer through an electronic interface card. The software, written in Quick BASIC 4.5, was designed with abilities to accomplish all steps of the titration procedure including data acquisition and real-time processing to decide about the course of titration in the following step and so forth, until the titration endpoint was reached. The usefulness of the proposed titration system was demonstrated by analyzing red wine samples. When results were compared with those obtained using the AOAC reference method, no significant difference was observed at the 95% confidence level. A relative standard deviation of ca  2% (n=9 ) was obtained when processing a typical red wine sample containing 7.3 gl -1 total acidity expressed as tartaric acid.