Bulletin of the Iraq Natural History Museum

The study aims to identify the third instar larvae of fly species (Order : Diptera) feeding on
carcasses (Fishes and Rabbits).
Two families (Calliphoridae and Sarcophagidae), were recorded with highest rate in
Calliphoridae species. The following species had been registered in accordance with their
prevalence respectively; Calliphora vicina Rob.-Desvoidy, Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedmann),
Chrysomy megacephala (Fabricius), Sarcophaga sp. and Lucilia sericata (Meigen). The
highest rate has been registered Calliphora vicina during February, November, December and
January at rate 100%, the larvae of this fly have not been observed during July, August,
September and October.
The highest rate of Chrysomya albiceps during October, whereas it didn’t appear during
February, March, July, November, December and January.
As for the appearance of Ch.megacephala, was highest registered during July, but there
was no incidence of its appearance during February, March, April, November, December and
January.
Sarcophaga sp. had been registered at high rate in summer, the highest rate in August, but
there was no observation during cold month.
Third instar larvae of Lucilia sericata were registered in lowest rate compared with other
species, was highest rate in March, whereas have not been registered during February, May,
July, August, September, October, November, December and January.
This study was concluded the total number of the larvae of these species collected on
carcasses was less in Months of Summer compared than other Months.

For the first time in Iraq, two species of monogenetic tretamtodes of the genus
Dactylogyrus were recorded from gills of Alburnus caeruleus from Tigris river at AlZaafaraniya, south of Baghdad during June 1995. The first species, Dactylogyrus sphyrna is
characterized by having the seventh pair of marginal hooklets almost twice as large as other
marginal hooklets, powerful inner and outer processes of median hooks especially the inner
one which is expanded terminally, one connecting bar and long spirally twisted copulatory
organ. The second species, Daclytogyrus phoxini differs from the first one by having marginal
hooklets of the same size, inner and outer processes of median hooks are not powerful, two
connecting bars present, the second one of them is T shaped and tube of copulatory organ is
curved and C shaped. With the present record, the total number of Dactylogyrus species in
freshwater fishes of Iraq reached 51 species.

When the guard honey bees, Apis mellifera L., form a clump at the hive entrance or on the
flight board, the oriental hornet, Vespa orientails L., either creeps toward the clump or hovers
over it in order to take a bee. Once the hornet creeps, only few bees facing the hornet become
alert, rock their heads and antennae, open their wings, and take a posture of defense. The rest
of the clump stays listless without any signal of concern. However, the clump stays dense and
the defending bees do not detach themselves neither from the rest of the clump nor from each
other. For this reason, it is very difficult for the hornet to grab a bee unless the latter makes a
“mistake” by detaching herself from other adjacent bees. If the hornet grabs such a bee, the
other defending bees will not attack the hornet to free that bee even when the latter is one
centimeter from the others. The defending bees can capture the hornet only when the latter
grabs one of them which stands very close to the others. The hornet seems very “aware” of
such a situation; hence she seldom becomes a captive.
On the other hand, hovering over the clump makes it easier for the hornet to grab a bee.
The hovering puts all the clump, rather than part of it, on alert. If the hornet is persistent,
which is not often the case, then the clump will no longer be dense. The bees will panicly
disperse all over the flight board; hence the hornet can find a detached bee and grabs it easily.
The hornet also waits on wing in front of the hive to capture an outgoing or incoming
flying bee but the latter usually maneuver to escape. Also, foraging bees reduce their activity
during main hours of hornet presence.
Among the main factors reducing the hornet impact are the continuous chasing of hornets
to each other and the non-persistent attempts of the hornets when they attack bee clumps.

Nineteen thrips species recorded in center of Iraq during 1999-2001, four of them was recorded by El-Haidari & Daoud, 1967; Thrips tabaci Lindeman, Retithrips syriacus (Mayet), Parascolothrips prieseri Mound, Anaphthrips sudanensis Trybom. Fifteen species are recorded for the first time in Iraq, Thrips meridionalis (Priesner), Microcephalothrips abdominils(Crawford), Scolothrips pallidus (Beach), Scolothrips sexmaculatus (Pergande), Scritothripsmangiferae Priesner, Frankliniella schultzie Trybom, FrankliniellaunicolorMorgan, Frankliniella Tritici Bagnall, Retithrips aegypticus Marchal, Retithrips javanicusMayet, Taeniothrips gowdeyi (Bagnall),Chirothrips meridionalis Bagnall, Chirothrips mexicanus Crawford, Chirothrips hamatus Trybom, on different plants, with locality and date, all the specimen was keeped in Iraq Nat.Hist. Mus. And buy author.

The Tel Hajar formation in the studied area has been divided into five microfacics units:
1) Fine hiogenic dolomite facies.
2) Sandy rich dolomite facies.
3) Dolomite diagenetic facies.
4) Recrystal1ized wackestone in microfacies.
5) Mudsione facies.
Microfacics reflect shallow marine water with open Circulation in the lower part of the
formation and the environment of the upper is enclosed between upper tide and tide. The most
important diagenesis was recrystallization and spary calcite deposit inside fossils chambers
and pores.

This research includes a detailed morphological description of the Pollenia mesopotamica
sp. nov. in Iraq.
Locality, host plant and data of collection were given.

In the region of the north of Iraq using the method of analyzing thin section microfacies to
38 of rockyslices which were gathered from a place near Aqra city. These slides are divided
into seven microfacies depending on lithologcal component and fossils.
1) Dolostone facies.
2) Recrystallized bioclastic wackestone facies.
3) Bioclastic packstone microfacies
4) Sucrosic dolomite facies.
5) Bioclastic grainstone in microfacies.

The present paper attempts to establish a distinction between Exochomus negripennis (Er.)
and E. quadripustulatus L., depending on the characters of femoral line, male genitalia and
spermatheca.