| 1. |
- Albrectsen, Benedicte R., 1960-, et al.
(författare)
-
Nutrient addition extends flowering display, which gets tracked by seed predators, but not by their parasitoids
- 2008
-
Ingår i: Oikos. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0030-1299 .- 1600-0706. ; 117, s. 473-480
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although phenological matching between two and three trophic interactions has received some attention, it has largely been disregarded in explaining the lack of strong cascade dynamics in terrestrial systems. We studied the response of the specialist seed predator, Paroxyna plantaginis (Tephritidae) and associated generalist parasitoids (Chalcidoidea) to controlled fertilisation of individuals of naturally growing Tripolium vulgare (Asteraceae) on four island populations (Skeppsvik Archipelago, Sweden). We consistently found evidence of nutrient limitation: fertilised plants increased their biomass, produced more capitula (the oviposition units for tephritid flies), were more at risk of attack by the tephritids, and puparia were heavier in fertilised plants. During some parts of the season tephritids became more heavily parasitized, supporting the presence of cascade dynamics, however net parasitism over season decreased in response to nutrient addition. We found no evidence that capitulum size complicated parasitoid access to the tephritids, however the extended bud production prolonged the flowering season. Thus, tephritids utilized the surplus production of capitula throughout the entire season, while parasitoids did not expand their oviposition time window accordingly. Implications for top down regulation and cascade dynamics in the system are discussed.
|
|
| 2. |
- Crutsinger, G M, et al.
(författare)
-
Ecosystem retrogression leads to increased insect abundance and herbivory across an island chronosequence
- 2008
-
Ingår i: Functional Ecology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0269-8463 .- 1365-2435. ; 22:5, s. 816-823
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- 1. Ecosystem retrogression, the decline-phase of ecosystem development, occurs during the long-term absence of catastrophic disturbance. It usually involves increased nutrient limitation over time, and leads to reductions in primary productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling.2. As a consequence, retrogression can alter the quality and abundance of host plants as food resources, but little is known about how these changes influence herbivore densities and foliage consumption.3. In this study, we used a 5000-year-old chronosequence of forested islands in northern Sweden on which retrogression occurs in the absence of lightning-induced wildfire. We asked whether retrogression affected the abundance and herbivory of a dominant herbivorous weevil (Deporaus betulae) and the quality and productivity of a dominant host-tree, mountain birch (Betula pubescens).4. Betula pubescens trees on retrogressed islands were less productive and produced smaller, tougher leaves that were lower in nutrients and higher in secondary metabolites than did those trees on earlier-successional islands.5. Despite the lower density and what ecologists might perceive as poorer quality of host plants, we observed several-fold higher weevil abundance and damage on retrogressed islands. This suggests that weevils might prefer the poorer quality leaves with higher secondary metabolites that occur on nutrient stressed host trees.6. Our results show that ecosystem retrogression increases susceptibility of B. pubescens trees to attack by herbivorous weevils.7. Our study provides evidence that ecosystem retrogression and associated shifts in the quantity and quality of available resources can operate as an important driver of abundance of a dominant insect herbivore.
|
|
| 3. |
- Fritz, Robert S., et al.
(författare)
-
Fitness and genetic architecture of parent and hybrid willows in common gardens
- 2006
-
Ingår i: Evolution. - : Society for the Study of Evolution. - 0014-3820 .- 1558-5646. ; 60:6, s. 1215-1227
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Models of hybrid zone dynamics incorporate different patterns of hybrid fitness relative to parental species fitness. An important but understudied source of variation underlying these fitness differences is the environment. We investigated the performance of two willow species and their F1, F2, and backcross hybrids using a common‐garden experiment with six replicated gardens that differed in soil moisture. Aboveground biomass, catkin production, seed production per catkin, and seed germination rate were significantly different among genetic classes. For aboveground biomass and catkin production, hybrids generally had intermediate or inferior performance compared to parent species. Salix eriocephala had the highest performance for all performance measures, but in two gardens F1 plants had superior or equal performance for aboveground biomass and female catkin production. Salix eriocephala and backcrosses to S. eriocephala had the highest numbers of filled seeds per catkin and the highest estimates of total fitness in all gardens. Measures of filled seeds per catkin and germination rate tend to support the model of endogenous hybrid unfitness, and these two measures had major effects on estimates of total seed production per catkin. We also estimated how the two willow species differ genetically in these fitness measures using line cross analysis. We found a complex genetic architecture underlying the fitness differences between species that involved additive, dominance, and epistatic genetic effects for all fitness measures. The environment was important in the expression of these genetic differences, because the type of epistasis differed among the gardens for aboveground biomass and for female catkin production. These findings suggest that fine‐scale environmental variation can have a significant impact on hybrid fitness in hybrid zones where parents and hybrids are widely interspersed.
|
|
