| 1. |
- Andersson, Mathias H., 1976-
(författare)
-
Man-made structures as habitat for marine faunal assemblages
- 2008
-
Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Artificial reefs are structures placed in the sea to promote marine life. Although constructions such as oil-rigs, wind farms, bridges and pier pilings are built for other purposes, they could be regarded as artificial reefs as they add new surfaces in the oceans, susceptible to colonization by marine organism. One of the most common constructions in the oceans is cylindrical structures of different materials. Most research of artificial reefs has been conducted in tropical and temperate water and experience and conclusions cannot always be applied to colder waters. Man-made constructions are common in northern European seas, however, few studies are presented in the scientific literature on their impact on the marine ecosystem. The aim of this thesis was to study cylindrical structures of different scale and materials, in order to determine their effect on local fish, algae and sessile invertebrate assemblages. These structures were offshore wind turbines, and pillars of different materials (concrete and steel), situated at the Swedish east and west coast, respectively. They add vertical surfaces into the otherwise empty water column, increasing the probability for fish and invertebrate larvae as well as algae spores and propagules to encounter these high structures, compared to low profile natural or other artificial reefs. Fish species usually associated with rocky reefs and algae communities, i.e. the two spotted goby and the goldsinny-wrasse, showed an increase in abundance around the introduced cylindrical structures. Similar effect on fish species were found on both the Swedish east and west coast. The observed increase in fish densities seemed to be caused by added habitat since the pillars and wind turbines provide shelter from predators as well as increased food availability. The latter was either due to the fouling assemblage or change in water movement. The environment created by the introduced structures functions both as nursery and spawning areas since juveniles, adults and gravid fish were recorded in close association with the structures. The fouling community on the vertical surfaces did not resemble the natural assemblages and a difference in recruitment and succession on the pillars of different materials were observed. Further, dissimilar fouling assemblages were observed with other species dominating the assemblages on a fifty year old light-house foundation compared to the seven year old wind turbines, both located in the same area. The sessile filter feeding invertebrates located on the foundations have an advantage in food accessibility towards individuals at the seabed, as the organisms on the foundations are constantly susceptible to the water passing by. In addition, by adding offshore structures in areas previously lacking hard surfaces, non-indigenous species could find new available habitat or the foundations can function as stepping stones into new geographical regions.
|
|
| 2. |
- Andersson, Mathias H., 1976-
(författare)
-
Offshore wind farms - ecological effects of noise and habitat alteration on fish
- 2011
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- There are large gaps in our understanding how fish populations are affected by the anthropogenic noise and the alteration of habitat caused by the construction and operation of offshore wind farms. These issues are of great importance as the construction of offshore wind farms will increase all over the world in the near future. This thesis studies these effects with a focus on fish. The wind turbine foundations function as artificial reefs and are colonized by invertebrates, algae and fish. The epibenthic assemblages are influenced by factors such as hydrographical parameters, time of submergence, distance to natural hard bottom, material and texture (PAPER I, II). Once an epibenthic assemblage has been developed, fish utilize it for different ecosystem services such as food, shelter, and spawning and nursery area. Benthic and semi-pelagic species show a stronger response to the introduced foundation than pelagic species, as it is the bottom habitat that has mainly been altered (PAPER I, II). Pelagic species could be positively affected by the increased food availability - but it takes time and the effect is local. Construction noise like pile driving creates high levels of sound pressure and acoustic particle motion in the water and seabed. This noise induces behavioural reactions in cod (Gadus morhua) and sole (Solea solea). These reactions could occur up to tens of kilometres distance from the source (PAPER III). During power production, the wind turbines generate a broadband noise with a few dominating tones (PAPER IV, V), which are detectable by sound pressure sensitive fish at a distance of several kilometres even though intense shipping occurs in the area. Motion sensitive species will only detect the turbine noise at around a ten meter distance. Sound levels are only high enough to possibly cause a behavioural reaction within meters from a turbine (PAPER IV, V).
|
|
| 3. |
- Audusseau, Hélène, 1986-
(författare)
-
Effect of climate and land use on niche utilization and distribution of nettle-feeding butterflies
- 2015
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Anthropogenic changes in climate and land use are causing a dramatic erosion of biodiversity. To understand this erosion, and predict future transformations of biodiversity, we need to understand better species’ response to these changes at different spatial and temporal scales. Modeling studies have identified correlations between physical parameters of the environment and species’ distribution at large spatial scales. However, this does not accurately characterize the response of a specific species, since this does not account for the constraints arising from the biology of the species. This thesis shall combine knowledge on the biology of species obtained from laboratory experiments with modeling studies. This will allow us (i) to identify life history traits and biotic interactions that influence species’ adaptive potential, and hence, explain possible differences in species’ distribution, and (ii) to consider, not only the ecological but also the evolutionary aspects of species’ response to changes. This integrative approach is likely to improve our predictions on species’ population dynamic in a changing environment.I focus on a community of butterflies in Sweden (Vanessa cardui, Polygonia c-album, Aglais urticae, Aglais io, Araschnia levana) that feeds on the stinging nettle (Urtica dioica). The available knowledge on the biology of these species and their short life cycles, which allow investigations of their response to changes on a short-time scale, make them a good system to study. Among three of these species, I showed great differences in organisms’ response to variation in food nutrient content. This is a potentially important finding considering the increased use of chemical fertilizers. These differences are to a large extent explained by differences among species in their degree of host plant specialization and voltinism (paper II). Thus, life history traits determine the response of species to environmental changes, but are themselves likely to evolve in response to such changes. Climate change, for instance, may alter the phenological synchrony between plant-feeding insects and their host plants, making it necessary for the insects to evolve their host plant range in order to ensure the availability of resources during larval development (paper I & III). The biology of a species, including biotic interactions, helps to explain the observed shift in a species’ distribution and environmental niche that result from climate change. I have shown that the recent establishment of A. levana in southern Sweden has modified the niche of the resident species, A. urticae and A. io (Paper IV). Niche partitioning in this community is likely mediated by parasite-driven apparent competition.
|
|
| 4. |
- Bergström, Anders, 1969-
(författare)
-
Oviposition strategies in butterflies and consequences for conservation
- 2005
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Oviposition strategies are an important component of life history evolution in insects. Oviposition is a complex behaviour, where females must locate suitable habitat patches, locate oviposition sites, evaluate the quality, and finally decide how many eggs to lay. In this thesis, I explore some factors that may influence oviposition strategies in female butterflies. It discusses oviposition strategies from large to fine scales and ends with a discussion on implications for conservation. In paper I we tested for local adaptations in oviposition preference and larval performance in Polyommatus icarus. The result suggests that this species is evolutionary conservative in its utilization of the tested host plants. In the second paper we investigated frequency-dependent host plant choice in Polygonia c-album and showed that females spent significantly more time, and laid more eggs, in patches with high frequency of the preferred host. The influence of nectar sources on host plant choice in P. icarus was tested in paper III, females preferred ovipositing on host plants with flowers and after feeding. In paper IV we investigated oviposition “mistakes” in P. c-album and found differences in discrimination of hosts and non-hosts. Further, we showed that P. c-album butterflies are capable of responding to host quality by increasing clutch sizes on a high ranked host (paper V). Finally, in paper VI I explored how female oviposition behaviour can influence habitat management for a threatened butterfly species, Parnassius mnemosyne, by doing an observational field study on oviposition site preferences. This thesis highlights oviposition as a stepwise process and show that female discrimination is important at a multitude of levels with implications for oviposition strategies.
|
|
| 5. |
|
|
| 6. |
|
|
| 7. |
- Braga, Mariana Pires, 1988-
(författare)
-
Evolution of host repertoires and the diversification of butterflies
- 2019
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- All herbivorous insects are specialized to some extent to their host plants, but the level of specialization varies greatly. Insect-plant coevolution is often invoked to explain the large diversity of herbivorous insects, but the role of specialization during diversification is still controversial. Although well-studied, our understanding of the evolution of species interactions is still improving, and recent theoretical developments have highlighted the role of generalization (via colonization of new hosts) on diversification. In this thesis, various approaches are combined for a detailed study of the origins of macroevolutionary patterns of host use and butterfly diversity. Chapter I provides a mechanistic basis for such patterns through simulations of lineages evolved in silico. By separating the effects of the number of hosts used by a parasite lineage and the diversity of resources they encompass, we found that resource diversity, rather than host range per se, was the main driver of parasite species richness in both simulated and empirical systems. In Chapter II, we combined network and phylogenetic analyses to quantify support for the two main hypothesized drivers of diversification of herbivorous insects. Based on analyses of two butterfly families, Nymphalidae and Pieridae, we found that variability in host use is essential for diversification, while radiation following the colonization of a new host is rare but can produce high diversity. We then reconciled the two alternative hypotheses into a unified process of host-associated diversification where continuous probing of new hosts and retention of the ability to use hosts colonized in the past are the main factors shaping butterfly-plant networks. While network analysis is a powerful tool for investigating patterns of interaction, other methods are necessary to directly test the mechanisms generating the observed patterns. Therefore, in Chapter III we describe a model of host repertoire evolution we developed for Bayesian inference of evolution of host-parasite interactions. The approach was validated with both simulated and empirical data sets. Finally, in Chapter IV we used the method described in Chapter III to explicitly test the predictions made in Chapter II about the evolution of butterfly-plant networks. We found direct evidence for the role of expansion of fundamental host repertoire and phylogenetic conservatism as important drivers of host repertoire evolution. Thus, using three different approaches, we found overall support for the idea that variation in host use accumulated over evolutionary time is essential for butterfly diversification.
|
|
| 8. |
|
|
| 9. |
- Keehnen, Naomi, et al.
(författare)
-
Geographic variation in hemocyte diversity and phagocytic propensity shows a diffuse genomic signature in the green veined white butterfly
- 2024
-
Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Insects rely on their innate immune system to successfully mediate complex interactions with their internal microbiota, as well as the microbes present in the environment. Given the variation in microbes across habitats, the challenges to respond to them is likely to result in local adaptation in the immune system. Here we focus upon phagocytosis, a mechanism by which pathogens and foreign particles are engulfed in order to be contained, killed and processed for antigen presentation. We investigated the phenotypic and genetic variation related to phagocytosis, in two allopatric populations of the butterfly Pieris napi. We found that the populations differ in their hemocyte composition, and overall phagocytic capability, driven by the increased phagocytic propensity of each cell type. However, no evidence for divergence in phagocytosis-related genes was observed, though an enrichment of genes involved in glutamine metabolism was found, which have recently been linked to immune cell differentiation in mammals.
|
|
| 10. |
- Keehnen, Naomi L. P., et al.
(författare)
-
The consequences of surviving infection across the metamorphic boundary : tradeoff insights from RNAseq and life history measures
- 2024
-
Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The broad diversity of insect life has been shaped, in part, by pathogen pressure, yet the influence of injury and infection during critical periods of development is understudied. During development, insects undergo metamorphosis, wherein the organism experiences a dramatic shift in their overall morphology, and physiology. In temperate zones, metamorphosis is often directly followed by a developmental arrest called diapause, for which the insect needs to acquire enough energy reserves before the onset of winter. We investigated the long-term effects of injury and infection using two bacteria in the butterfly Pieris napi, revealing that the negative consequences of bacterial infection carry across the metamorphic boundary. Initial direct effects of infection were weight loss and slower development, as well as an increased mortality at higher infection levels. The detrimental effects were stronger in the gram-positive Micrococcus luteus compared to gram-negative Escherichia coli. Transcriptome-wide differences between the two bacteria were already observed in the gene expression profile of the first 24 hours after infection. Larvae infected with M. luteus showed a strong suppression of all non-immunity related processes, with several types of immune responses being activated. The impact of these transcriptomic changes, a tradeoff between homeostasis and immune response, were visible in the life history data, wherein individuals infected with M. luteus had the highest mortality rate, along with the lowest pupal weight, developmental rate and adult weight of all the treatments. Overall, we find that the cost of infection and wounding in the final larval instar carries over the metamorphic boundary, and is expected to negatively affect their lifetime fitness.
|
|
