De speurneus van een sluipwesp

Sluipwespen zijn de bekendste biologische bestrijders. Met gewone wespen hebben deze diertjes niets te maken. Het zijn kleine, tengere insecten die heel goed zijn in het opsporen van hun slachtoffers. Die slachtoffers - of beter gezegd, gastheren waar zij hun eitjes in kunnen leggen - zijn meestal de goed gecamoufleerde eitjes of rupsen van vlinders. Eigenlijk is het een wonder dat de sluipwespen die slachtoffers zo goed weten te vinden op de oneindige akkers. Bij het zoeken naar eitjes en rupsen maken sluipwespen vooral gebruik van hun reukvermogen. De planten waarvan ze eten produceren een kenmerkende geur die alleen wordt afgegeven als er insecten van de plant eten. De geuren die een plant produceert bij insectenvraat zijn vaak specifiek voor de soort of zelfs de leeftijd van de rups die op de plant zit. Een sluipwesp kan dus van een afstand ruiken welke gastheer er op een plant te vinden i

Disentangling above-and belowground neighbor effects on the growth, chemistry, and arthropod community on a focal plant

Abstract. Neighboring plants can influence arthropods on a focal plant, and this can result in associational resistance or associational susceptibility. These effects can be mediated by above-and belowground interactions between the neighbor and focal plant, but determining the relative contribution of the above-and belowground effects remains an open challenge. We performed a common garden experiment with a design that enabled us to disentangle the above-and belowground effects of five different plant species on the growth and chemistry of the focal plant ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris), and the arthropod community associated with this plant. Aboveground effects of different neighboring plant species were more important for the growth and quality of J. vulgaris and for the arthropod abundance on this plant than belowground effects of neighbors. This remained true when only indirect neighbor effects (via affecting the biomass or quality of the focal plant) were considered. The aboveground neighbor effects on arthropod abundance on the focal plant were strongly negative. However, the magnitude of the effect depended on the identity of the neighboring species, and herbivore abundance on the focal plant was higher when surrounded by conspecific than when surrounded by heterospecific plants. We also observed interactions between above-and belowground neighbor effects, indicating that these effects may be nonadditive. We conclude that above-and belowground associational effects are not equally strong, and that neighbor effects on plant-arthropod interactions occur predominantly aboveground

Green LED as an Effective Light Source for Curing Acrylate-Based Dental Resins in Combination with Irgacure 784

Low intensity green light emitting diodes (LED) were shown to be an effective light source to induce the photopolymerization of an acrylate-based photocurable dental restorative resin mixture of bisphenol A glycerolate dimethacrylate (BisGMA), triethylene glycol dimethacrylate (TEGDMA), and diurethane dimethacrylate (UDMA), in combination with fluorinated diaryl titanocene (Irgacure 784). Dental matrices were prepared by the LED light source at different intensities. The mechanical properties, such as Vickers microhardness, compressive strength, diametric tensile strength, flexural strength, and E-modulus of the created samples, were investigated. The kinetics of the photopolymerization was followed by Raman spectroscopy and conversion values were determined. It was found that, despite its narrow-emission range centered at a wavelength of 531 nm, the green LED light source is suitable for the preparation of dental matrices with good mechanical properties and high conversion values

Testing the paradox of enrichment along a land use gradient in a multitrophic aboveground and belowground community

In the light of ongoing land use changes, it is important to understand how multitrophic communities perform at different land use intensities. The paradox of enrichment predicts that fertilization leads to destabilization and extinction of predator-prey systems. We tested this prediction for a land use intensity gradient from natural to highly fertilized agricultural ecosystems. We included multiple aboveground and belowground trophic levels and land use-dependent searching efficiencies of insects. To overcome logistic constraints of field experiments, we used a successfully validated simulation model to investigate plant responses to removal of herbivores and their enemies. Consistent with our predictions, instability measured by herbivore-induced plant mortality increased with increasing land use intensity. Simultaneously, the balance between herbivores and natural enemies turned increasingly towards herbivore dominance and natural enemy failure. Under natural conditions, there were more frequently significant effects of belowground herbivores and their natural enemies on plant performance, whereas there were more aboveground effects in agroecosystems. This result was partly due to the “boom-bust” behavior of the shoot herbivore population. Plant responses to herbivore or natural enemy removal were much more abrupt than the imposed smooth land use intensity gradient. This may be due to the presence of multiple trophic levels aboveground and belowground. Our model suggests that destabilization and extinction are more likely to occur in agroecosystems than in natural communities, but the shape of the relationship is nonlinear under the influence of multiple trophic interactions.

Effects of pollen species composition on the foraging behaviour and offspring performance of the mason bee Osmia bicornis (L.)

The effects of floral species composition on offspring performance of solitary bees are rarely studied under conditions where foraging behaviour of mothers is allowed to play a role. In a semi-field experiment, we restricted foraging choices of the polylectic mason bee Osmia bicornis L. to flower species belonging to plant families presumably used to different extent: Borago officinalis L. (Boraginaceae), Centaurea cyanus L. (Asteraceae) and Brassica napus L. (Brassicaceae). We quantified the foraging behaviour and brood cell production by mother bees, and compared the quality of offspring in pure and mixed flower species stands. Offspring survival in pure stands was expected to reflect the mothers’ foraging preferences in the mixed stand. Pure stands of B. napus supported highest offspring survival, body mass and fraction of females produced. Offspring survival on C. cyanus and B. officinalis was very low. Larval mortality occurred earlier in brood cells provided with B. officinalis pollen than in brood cells provided with C. cyanus pollen suggesting different effects of pollen quality on early larval and later development. The time spent on different foraging activities correlated with lifetime reproductive output. However, in mixed stands, the proportion of time the bees were foraging on the different flower species did not differ significantly. Foraging behaviour may therefore not generally be a good proxy for the quality of floral resources for offspring production. Our results suggest that resources collected from one plant species may influence the usefulness of resources from another plant species. Bees may therefore overcome potentially deleterious effects of the suboptimal resources by mixing low- and high-quality resources. This may help generalist bees, such as O. bicornis, to cope with an unpredictable environment

Effects of pollen species composition on the foraging behaviour and offspring performance of the mason bee Osmia bicornis (L.)

The effects of floral species composition on offspring performance of solitary bees are rarely studied under conditions where foraging behaviour of mothers is allowed to play a role. In a semi-field experiment, we restricted foraging choices of the polylectic mason bee Osmia bicornis L. to flower species belonging to plant families presumably used to different extent: Borago officinalis L. (Boraginaceae), Centaurea cyanus L. (Asteraceae) and Brassica napus L. (Brassicaceae). We quantified the foraging behaviour and brood cell production by mother bees, and compared the quality of offspring in pure and mixed flower species stands. Offspring survival in pure stands was expected to reflect the mothers’ foraging preferences in the mixed stand. Pure stands of B. napus supported highest offspring survival, body mass and fraction of females produced. Offspring survival on C. cyanus and B. officinalis was very low. Larval mortality occurred earlier in brood cells provided with B. officinalis pollen than in brood cells provided with C. cyanus pollen suggesting different effects of pollen quality on early larval and later development. The time spent on different foraging activities correlated with lifetime reproductive output. However, in mixed stands, the proportion of time the bees were foraging on the different flower species did not differ significantly. Foraging behaviour may therefore not generally be a good proxy for the quality of floral resources for offspring production. Our results suggest that resources collected from one plant species may influence the usefulness of resources from another plant species. Bees may therefore overcome potentially deleterious effects of the suboptimal resources by mixing low- and high-quality resources. This may help generalist bees, such as O. bicornis, to cope with an unpredictable environment

Jasmonic acid-induced volatiles of Brassica oleracea attract parasitoids: effects of time and dose, and comparison with induction by herbivores

Caterpillar feeding induces direct and indirect defences in brassicaceous plants. This study focused on the role of the octadecanoid pathway in induced indirect defence in Brassica oleracea. The effect of induction by exogenous application of jasmonic acid (JA) on the responses of Brussels sprouts plants and on host-location behaviour of associated parasitoid wasps was studied. Feeding by the biting–chewing herbivores Pieris rapae and Plutella xylostella resulted in significantly increased endogenous levels of JA, a central component in the octadecanoid signalling pathway that mediates induced plant defence. The levels of the intermediate 12-oxophyto-dienoic acid (OPDA) were significantly induced only after P. rapae feeding. Three species of parasitoid wasps, Cotesia glomerata, C. rubecula, and Diadegma semiclausum, differing in host range and host specificity, were tested for their behavioural responses to volatiles from herbivore-induced, JA-induced, and non-induced plants. All three species were attracted to volatiles from JA-induced plants compared with control plants; however, they preferred volatiles from herbivore-induced plants over volatiles from JA-induced plants. Attraction of C. glomerata depended on both timing and dose of JA application. JA-induced plants produced larger quantities of volatiles than herbivore-induced and control plants, indicating that not only quantity, but also quality of the volatile blend is important in the host-location behaviour of the wasps

Effects of soil nutrients on the sequestration of plant defence chemicals by the specialist insect herbivore, Danaus plexippus

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110863/1/een12168.pd