Despite the release of approximately 6,500 Aphidius colemani Vierick and Diaeretiella rapae (McIntosh) parasitoids as biological control agents for a variety of aphids on Guam and Saipan in 1998, no long-term establishment on either island was observed. However, the aphidiid parasitoids Lipolexis oregmae Gahan and Lysiphlebus testaceipes Cresson were found parasitizing Aphis gossypii Glover on a variety of crops in follow-up surveys in the years immediately following the initial aphidiid releases. The presence of L. oregmae is apparently the result of a fortuitous introduction, while the presence of L. testaceipes likely resulted from a previous introduction as an aphid biological control agent. Aphidiid surveys conducted on Guam and Saipan from 2016 through 2018 again found L. oregmae parasitizing A. gossypii, Aphis craccivora Koch and Cerataphis sp, and L. testaceipes infesting A. gossypii, Aphis (Toxoptera) citricidus (Kirkaldy), and Hysteroneura setariae (Thomas) on a variety of host plants. No A. colemani or D. rapae were found in any collections made from any island. The genotype of aphidiid parasitoids has largely been ignored in past biological control studies on aphids and should be considered when matching the natural enemy to the targeted aphid species.

Abstract— We surveyed the terrestrial gastropods of Alupat Island, a small uninhabited islet located in Hagåtña Bay, Guam. In three days of examining vegetation, leaf litter, and soil, we found 13 species of molluscs representing ten genera and eight families, all previously known from the main islands of the Marianas. We did not find any members of the family Partulidae, of conservation concern across the tropical Pacific. However, neither did we encounter the invasive flatworm Platydemus manokwari De Beauchamp, which is currently eliminating native snails in the Marianas and elsewhere. Hence, we suggest that Alupat Island might serve as a sanctuary for transplanting populations of Guam's most endangered snails should a thorough survey confirm the absence of flatworms.

 

Sumåria— Manmanespiha ham akaleha' siha gi iya Alupat nu i díkike' yan disetto na isla gi i Bakånan Hagåtña gi iya Guåhan. Despues di tres na ha'åni, manmanespiha ham gi i halomtåno' yan kånton tåsi ya en sedda' tresse na klåsen akaleha'. Ti en sedda' i akaleha' nu i mafa'nána'an Partulidae. Put úttemo, ti manmanodda' ham ulo' Platydemas nu i ginen Sanlagu ni' manóchocho akaleha' siha gi iya Guåhan yan todu bånda gi i Pasifiku. Puedi ha' i humuyong-ña u fama'deskansåyan akaleha' siha i iya Alupat yanggen magåhet na tåya' ulo' siha gi i isla.

A pot experiment was conducted to determine the influence of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Glomus aggregatum and four levels of water application on early stage of growth and nutrient uptake of corn seedlings (Zea mays L.) in a calcareous soil (Lithic Ustorthents). Mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased dry biomass of shoots and roots, leaf width, chlorophyll contents, and uptake of minerals N, P, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn, B, Cu, and Zn regardless of irrigation level. Water treatments influenced leaf width, dry biomass of shoots and roots, and mineral uptake of N, P, K, Mg, Ca, Mn, and Zn, but not chlorophyll content and uptake of Fe, B, and Cu. Nonmycorrhizal plants with the lowest water exhibited the least plant growth.

The grey reef shark, Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos, is a coastal-pelagic schooling shark often associated with deeper areas near coral reefs, atoll passes and lagoons with strong tidal flow. Currently listed as “near threatened” by the UCIN, grey reef sharks, as with many other shark species, are considered to be in rapid decline. Here I report observations of high-density aggregations of young grey reef sharks at a small and relatively shallow continental seamount South-West of the Marianas island of Guam. Juvenile grey reef sharks were found to be 9.3 and 5.6 times higher in abundance on the observed sea mount compared to the surrounding seamounts over successive years. Grey reef shark pupping grounds have not previously been reported in the Marianas archipelago potentially identifying this locality as a rare suitable habitat for grey sharks to reproduce. A discussion of the physical characteristics of the sea-mount and a comparison between these observations and the established criteria for shark nurseries is presented.

In 1966, Alan Raymond Olsen (1946 - 2018) told a psychologist working for the newly formed Peace Corps that a particular Rorschach “ink blot” test looked like an amblypygid. The psychologist was likely confused upon hearing a reference to this obscure order of arachnids, but luckily they approved Olsen to join the first class of Peace Corps volunteers sent to Micronesia. Olsen soon found himself in a village in Palau’s Ngatpang State where almost no one understood any English, all electricity was from a diesel generator, and Palauans had not yet widely started to use chairs in their houses. He would spend much of his three years in Palau teaching English and learning about the organisms and environments of Babeldaob. Olsen split his Peace Corps days between Ngatpang and Ngerchelong States, where he met future collaborators and supervisors, including Faustina Rehuher and the late Demei Otobed, as well as his future wife Angelina Smaserui. 

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