Abstract The leafhopper Tambocerus viraktamathi Rao is a newly recorded species in Pakistan. So far, only two species have been identified from the genus Tambocerus Zhang & Webb in Pakistan. Their distinguishing features, along with illustrations, are provided below.

Resumen La chicharrita Tambocerus viraktamathi Rao es una especie recién registrada en Pakistán. Hasta ahora, sólo se han identificado dos especies del género Tambocerus Zhang & Webb en Pakistán. A continuación se presentan sus características distintivas, junto con ilustraciones.

Anesthetics are an indispensable prerequisite for surgical intervention and pharmacological animal studies. The objective of present study was to optimize the dose of ketamine (K) and xylazine (X) along with atropine sulfate (A) in order to achieve surgical tolerance in BALB/c mice. Several doses of ketamine (100, 150, 200 mg/kg) and xylazine (10, 15, 20 mg/kg) were mixed and combination of nine doses (K/X: 100/10, 100/15, 100/20, 150/10, 150/15, 150/20, 200/10,200/15,200/20) were evaluated (n=9 per combination). A constant dose of atropine (0.05 mg/kg) was also used to counter side effect. Time-related parameters were evaluated on the basis of reflexes. KX at dose 200/20 mg/kg produced surgical tolerance in all nine mice with duration 55.00±6.87 minutes. The induction time 0.97±0.09 minutes, sleeping time 90.67±5.81 minutes and immobilization time (102.23±6.83 minutes) were significantly higher than all combination. However, this combination was considered unsafe due to 11 % mortality. While, KX at dose 200/15 mg/kg results in none of the mortality, so was considered as safe. Moreover, this combination produces surgical tolerance in 89 % mice with duration (30.00±7.45 minutes). It was concluded that KX at dose 200/15 mg/kg along with atropine 0.05 mg/kg is safe for performing surgical interventions in BALB/c mice.

In many species, natural pruning is never a satisfactory option if production of clear wood is a management objective. Acacia nilotica is well adapted specie to the arid and semiarid climate of Pakistan and plays an important role in rural economy of the country. Traditional pruning is carried out to maximize the amount of clear-wood production but the effect of this practice on tree growth, still unknown. So a preliminary pruning trial was conducted at two different sites, UAF and PARS, in Faisalabad- Pakistan. All pruning treatments resulted in reduction in diameter growth. However, significant reduction in diameter growth was observed when crown removal was more than 40 %. A taper study was done by taking diameter measurements at different heights. The results revealed that pruning treatments have a significant effect on tapering of the stem. In general, there was a diameter decrease of 1 cm on every 1 m in height.

En muchas especies la poda natural nunca es una opción satisfactoria si se busca la producción de madera libre de nudos. Acacia nilotica es una especie bien adaptada al clima árido y semiárido de Pakistán, y tiene una función importante en la economía rural del país. La poda tradicional se realiza para maximizar la cantidad de madera libre de nudos, pero todavía se desconoce el efecto de esta práctica en el crecimiento del árbol. Por ello, se llevó a cabo una prueba preliminar de podas en dos sitios distintos, UAF y PARS, en Faisalabad, Pakistán. Todos los tratamientos de poda produjeron una reducción en el crecimiento del diámetro. Sin embargo, se observó una reducción significativa en el crecimiento del diámetro cuando se retiró más del 40 % de la copa. Se hizo un estudio de disminución, tomando medidas del diámetro a distintas alturas. Los resultados revelaron que los tratamientos de poda tienen un efecto significativo en la disminución gradual del tronco. En general, hubo una reducción en el diámetro de 1 cm cada 1 m de altura.