Spatio-temporal dynamic and global change effects on ant communities of small Mediterranean islands and islets

International audienc

Species and functional responses of ants to inter-row tillage and vegetation in organic Mediterranean vineyards

International audienc

Return of a native Mediterranean ant community after Carpobrotus removal on a small island

International audienc

Spontaneous flowering vegetation favours hoverflies and parasitoid wasps in apple orchards but has low cascading effects on biological pest control

International audienceFloral resources support several ecosystem services in agroecosystems, such as pollination or biological control. Many beneficial organisms feed on nectar or pollen for an important part of their life cycle. Providing adequate and sufficient floral resources through the conservation of spontaneous flowering vegetation may be a strategy to improve biological pest control. However, the role of spontaneous flowering plant species has mainly been evaluated in the recruitment of natural enemies. Cascading effects on pest regulation and damage reduction are rarely studied. Here we evaluated the effect of spontaneous flowering vegetation on pest regulation in 18 Mediterranean apple orchards. We focused on two main apple pests, Cydia pomonella and Dysaphis plantaginea, and on two groups of their natural enemies depending on floral resources: hoverflies and parasitoid wasps. We combined generalised linear mixed models and piecewise structural equation models to test for direct and indirect effects of spontaneous flowering plant species on beneficial insects (hoverflies, parasitoid wasps, wild bees and honeybees) and on pest regulation. We also tested for potential negative interactions between honeybees and hoverflies, parasitoid wasps or wild bees. There was a positive and significant effect of insect-pollinated flowers on hoverflies, parasitoid wasps and bees, but small cascading effects on D. plantaginea or C. pomonella density and associated damage. There was no significant relationship between honeybees and hoverflies, parasitoid wasps or wild bees. The reduction of D. plantaginea infestation was partially mediated by hoverfly abundance. Furthermore, we observed effects of spontaneous flowering vegetation on pest regulation and damage reduction independent of hoverfly and parasitoid wasp abundances. These results highlight the importance of conserving floral resources to support biological control of apple pests. Further studies are needed to better understand interactions between spontaneous flowering vegetation and crop management practices to promote sustainable pest regulation strategies

Conhecendo a UFRGS

A clínica de Fisioterapia da Escola de Educação Física da UFRGS foi inaugurada em 2012 com o objetivo de proporcionar aos estudantes do curso de fisioterapia um espaço de prática e aprendizado. O atendimento é aberto à comunidade em geral e abrange as áreas neurofuncional, ortopedia, traumatologia desportiva, saúde do homem e da mulher e cardiovascular

Mixed responses of ant communities to the eradication of black rats and iceplants on a small Mediterranean island

International audienceEradication of invasive alien species (IAS) is often proposed to restore invaded ecosystems, with information on subsequent ecosystem recovery key to conservation policies. Although ants perform major ecological functions in the ecosystem, their response to IAS eradication has received relatively little monitoring. This study investigated ant response to iceplant (Carpobrotus spp.) and black rat (Rattus rattus) eradications on the small Mediterranean island of Bagaud (Var, France). Ant communities were monitored over a ten-year period, including two years before eradications, at six diferent sites: two invaded by iceplants, two under high rat pressure, and two native vegetation sites without intervention. We found inter-annual variations in ant communities but no before-after eradication trend at both native vegetation and rat eradication sites. However, there was a clear increase in ant species richness and abundance score after the iceplant eradication. A core of common Mediterranean species, including Pheidole pallidula, Messor bouvieri, and Plagiolepis pygmaea, increased their foraging activity after the removal. As xerophilous and thermophilous species they would beneft from the return of native vegetation with possibly warmer and dryer microclimatic conditions, but also from habitat and resource diversifcation. The trend was even stronger on the denser and thicker iceplant eradication patch. Our results emphasize the relevance of implementing ant monitoring to evaluate the efectiveness of such restoration and conservation strategies

Dynamique fonctionnelle des assemblages d'arthropodes épigés suite à l'éradication simultanée de deux espèces invasives sur l'île de Bagaud (réserve intégrale du Parc national de Port-Cros)

International audienc

Dynamique fonctionnelle des communautés d'Arthropodes suite à l'éradication simultanée de deux espèces invasives sur l'île de Bagaud (réserve biologique intégrale du Parc national de Port-Cros)

International audienc