54 research outputs found
Trees Wanted—Dead or Alive! Host Selection and Population Dynamics in Tree-Killing Bark Beetles
Bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae,
Scolytinae) feed and breed in dead or severely weakened
host trees. When their population densities are high, some species aggregate on
healthy host trees so that their defences may be exhausted and the inner bark
successfully colonized, killing the tree in the process. Here we investigate
under what conditions participating with unrelated conspecifics in risky mass
attacks on living trees is an adaptive strategy, and what this can tell us about
bark beetle outbreak dynamics. We find that the outcome of individual host
selection may deviate from the ideal free distribution in a way that facilitates
the emergence of tree-killing (aggressive) behavior, and that any heritability
on traits governing aggressiveness seems likely to exist in a state of flux or
cycles consistent with variability observed in natural populations. This may
have implications for how economically and ecologically important species
respond to environmental changes in climate and landscape (forest) structure.
The population dynamics emerging from individual behavior are complex, capable
of switching between “endemic” and “epidemic” regimes
spontaneously or following changes in host availability or resistance. Model
predictions are compared to empirical observations, and we identify some factors
determining the occurrence and self-limitation of epidemics
Pheromones and Other Semiochemicals for Monitoring Rare and Endangered Species
As global biodiversity declines, biodiversity and conservation have become ever more important research topics. Research in chemical ecology for conservation purposes has not adapted to address this need. During the last 10-15 years, only a few insect pheromones have been developed for biodiversity and conservation studies, including the identification and application of pheromones specifically for population monitoring. These investigations, supplemented with our knowledge from decades of studying pest insects, demonstrate that monitoring with pheromones and other semiochemicals can be applied widely for conservation of rare and threatened insects. Here, I summarize ongoing conservation research, and outline potential applications of chemical ecology and pheromone-based monitoring to studies of insect biodiversity and conservation research. Such applications include monitoring of insect population dynamics and distribution changes, including delineation of current ranges, the tracking of range expansions and contractions, and determination of their underlying causes. Sensitive and selective monitoring systems can further elucidate the importance of insect dispersal and landscape movements for conservation. Pheromone-based monitoring of indicator species will also be useful in identifying biodiversity hotspots, and in characterizing general changes in biodiversity in response to landscape, climatic, or other environmental changes
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