Prays oleae (Bernard), its potential predators and biocontrol depend on the structure of the surrounding landscape

Arthropod populations from agricultural fields sometimes depend on the surrounding landscape structure, both composition and configuration, which affects multiple life-history traits of arthropods such as resources for survival, dispersion or death risk (e.g., predation or parasitism). Moreover, the effect of the landscape may vary with the distance to the crop, depending on factors such as the organism requirements and dispersion capabilities. This work addresses the effect of landscape (at five different scales from 250 to 1500 m) on the olive moth (Prays oleae Bernard, a key pest in olive orchards), some of its most relevant natural enemies, and biological control. The two-years study in 15 olive groves in southeastern Madrid, Spain shows that landscape complexity favours control of the olive moth, P. oleae. Simple landscapes favour P. oleae attack to the crop (measured as oviposition of the anthophagous generation) and that egg predation of the carpophagous generation is in some cases enhanced in complex landscapes. Lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) are responsible for egg predation and populations increase in complex landscapes. On the other hand, the role of pirate bugs (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) as a biological control agent of this part of the life cycle of P. oleae was not demonstrated. They respond primarily to Euphyllura olivina (Costa) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) populations and are more abundant in simple landscapes. Most of the significant relationships of pest attack were detected at 750–1000 m radii buffers around the sampled olive groves suggesting that this is the main activity range for adults of P. oleae anthophagous generation. In sum, our results suggest complex configurations of the landscape enhance the biological control of P. oleae through favouring lacewings and egg predation of the carpophagous generation

Renovación de las prácticas de Ecología: Aprendiendo Ecología Acuática

Depto. de Biodiversidad, Ecología y EvoluciónFac. de Ciencias GeológicasFac. de Ciencias BiológicasFALSEsubmitte

Estudio de comunidades de matorral mediterráneo I

Conjunto de guiones de prácticas de Ecología, correspondientes al bloque temático sobre el estudio de comunidades, y material complementario (estadillo y plantilla para la matriz de datos)

Guía Rápida de SPSS v.25 (Prácticas de Ecología)

Guía rápida de SPSS v.25 para usar en las Prácticas de Ecología (Grado en Biología, 3er curso

Papel de los bancos de semillas en pastizales mediterráneos

Tesis doctoral inédita. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Ecología, Fecha de lectura: 26-4-9

Papel de los bancos de semillas en pastizales mediterraneos Variabilidad espacio-temporal y respuestas al abandono del pastoreo

Centro de Informacion y Documentacion Cientifica (CINDOC). C/Joaquin Costa, 22. 28002 Madrid. SPAIN / CINDOC - Centro de Informaciòn y Documentaciòn CientìficaSIGLEESSpai

Influence of the surrounding landscape on olive fruit fly populations

This work reports on the relationship between landscape composition and configuration of land uses and the population density of the olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae, a worldwide key pest of olive trees. The relationship was tested at different distances from the olive fruit fly sampling points, in circular areas with radii ranging from 500 to 2000 m. A significant relationship was found at short distances for the following indices: total number of patches, mean patch size, total length of patch edges, edge density and mean patch edge length. These results indicate that landscape features can affect populations of this phytophagous insect. However, more detailed understanding of the processes underlying this phenomenon is needed to implement measures to manage this important species

Tendencias radiales de la densidad y sus componentes en Pinus nigra Arn. de la Península Ibérica

Las tendencias radiales de la densidad media del anillo y sus componentes: densidades de las maderas inicial y final y textura en Pinus nigra Arn. son ajustadas a las maderas juvenil y madura mediante un modelo cúbico-lineal de regresión segmentada. Este método permite comparar las tendencias radiales y estimar la edad de transición entre las maderas juvenil y madura. La densidad de la madera final y la textura determinan la densidad media del anillo y las peculiares características tecnológicas de la madera de Pinus nigra Arn. No se encuentran efectos significativamente diferentes entre las dos procedencias analizadas (Serranía de Cuenca y Sierras de Cazorla-Segura), pero algunas diferencias entre localidades son relacionadas con los factores genéticos o ambientales. La calidad de estación tiene una influencia más significativa sobre la densidad media del anillo y la textura que sobre las densidades de las maderas inicial y final. Se discute este efecto no reflejado en la bibliografía y se evidencia la importancia de la textura en los patrones radiales y axiales de esta madera

Quantitative evaluation of the spatial resilience to the B. oleae pest in olive grove socio-ecological landscapes at different scales

Spatial resilience quantification can be a useful tool for land planning and management in agricultural systems to predict the appropriate control of disturbances such as pest infections. We proposed an index of spatial resilience based on landscape indicators related to the abundance of the most important pest of Mediterranean olive groves, Bactrocera oleae. The index was applied in two olive regions in Andalusia, Estepa and Sierra de Segura. Additionally, spatial resilience was measured at different spatial scales to verify its capacity as an indicator and to provide appropriate solutions for each type of stakeholder. The spatial scales were: i) circular areas of 1500 m radius that involved farms and a wide area of their spatial context, ii) municipalities, and iii) the entire region (a quality production-designated area). At all scales, the calculated spatial resilience was lower in Estepa than in Sierra de Segura because of the proportion of olive groves in Estepa, the size of their patches, and their spatial connectivity promoting a greater homogeneity of the landscape; additionally, the proportion of scrubland areas and the fragmentation of the landscape were smaller. Finally, we discussed the direct implications of spatial resilience for land planning to favour pest control and indirect implications for the conservation of biodiversity in the framework of a sustainable agricultural production of olive groves. The application of the spatial resilience index would contribute to an objective assessment of the ecological quality of the agricultural landscape, a basic requirement for the perception of environmental subsidies by farmers from different administration

Seed bank dynamics of Mediterranean pastures subjected to mechanical disturbance

Vegetation and buried germinable seeds were examined in Mediterranean pastures differing both in time elapsed since last ploughing and in intensity of disturbance. Densities of buried germinable seeds in the greenhouse were determined from 10 × 10 × 3 cm soil cores taken during the autumn prior to the time of germination. Abundance of pasture species was recorded on the same sites during the following spring.The species composition of the seed bank was very similar to that of the vegetation: 80.9 % similarity (Sorensen's index). The number of species and density of buried seeds ready to germinate increased with suc‐cessional age from 0 to 4 yr and decreased later to a constant level after 9 yr. Regarding disturbance intensity, the highest species numbers are found at intermediate intensities while there is a drastic decrease at high disturbance intensity. The floristic composition of the seedbankwas analyzed through Correspondence Analysis (CA) and Binary Discriminant Analysis (BDA). Seed bank composition reflected both successional stage and intensity of disturbance. Characteristic species of both gradients were identified.Depto. de Biodiversidad, Ecología y EvoluciónFac. de Ciencias BiológicasTRUEpu