Common cabbage resistance mechanisms against the diamondback moth: still an open book?

Despite the extensive research on host plant resistance of Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata (common cabbage) against Plutella xylostella L. (diamondback moth), knowledge of the resistance mechanisms involved remains incomplete. While robust evidence exists for the physical (antixenosis) mechanisms believed to cause resistance in glossy-leaved breeding lines, the one mechanism proposed in the literature to date (polar leaf extracts causing antibiosis) at best only explains a part of the resistance observed in two partially-resistant normal-bloom breeding lines in the field and the evidence is suggestive rather than direct.
Evidence from other host plant resistance studies involving P. xylostella is discussed and the other possible mechanisms are considered with the aim of providing a context for further investigations on host plant resistance mechanisms against P. xylostella.     

小菜蛾幼虫对不同寄主的取食嗜好性及其适宜性

对不同寄主种类、不同寄主形态和不同寄主饲喂的小菜蛾(Plutella xylostella)幼虫之间的取食嗜好性比较试验表明,小菜蛾幼虫优先取食大白菜、萝卜或菜心幼苗,其次为油菜和甘蓝幼苗,在大白菜与油菜幼苗之间的取食选择比例是93.33%和6.67％;在甘蓝与菜心幼苗之间的取食选择比例是16.67%和83.33%.小菜蛾幼虫的取食嗜好性受饲喂寄主种类的影响,偏食大白菜或菜心幼苗.小菜蛾幼虫选择寄主取食的次序与寄主体内可溶性糖或淀粉含量没有明显关系,但与两者的相对量呈一定的负相关.取食大白菜或菜心幼苗的小菜蛾生长良好,单头取食达0.583～0.637 cm², 单头体重达2.07～2.18 mg, 与取食甘蓝或油菜幼苗的幼虫在取食量、个体发育方面有明显差异.小菜蛾幼虫也喜好取食已经被虫危害过的幼苗.     

茚虫威在红火蚁工蚁间的横向接触传导效应

[背景]红火蚁是我国重要的外来入侵害虫。利用其相互清洁和交哺行为等社会性昆虫特有的生活习性,使杀虫剂在巢群内传导,可以达到全巢药剂控制的目的。然而,有关茚虫威在红火蚁巢群内的传导效应尚未见有详细报道。[方法]采用供药蚁/受药蚁模型,研究了药剂剂量、供药蚁—受药蚁比例、处理时间对茚虫威在红火蚁工蚁间横向传毒的影响。[结果]剂量越高,受药蚁的死亡率越高,25 ng·头-1处理组受药蚁死亡率为14.1%～70.0%,而50 ng·头-1处理组的受药蚁死亡率最高可达100%;供药蚁—受药蚁比例显著影响茚虫威的传毒,比例为1∶1时,50、100、250、500 ng·头-1处理组受药蚁死亡率可达100%;随着时间延长,受药蚁的死亡率升高,但在12 h后,供药蚁死亡率最高仅为8.0%,表明茚虫威具缓效特性。[结论与意义]本研究明确了在红火蚁工蚁间茚虫威横向传毒的剂量、时间和供药蚁—受药蚁比例的效应,为应用该药剂提供了依据。     

不同浓度茚虫威对红火蚁的防治效果

为探索适合防治红火蚁的茚虫威浓度,利用丙酮溶解茚虫威原药,使用雾化手段与载体和配方其他试剂充分混合,干燥后保存,进行野外试验测定其防治红火蚁的药效。结果表明,研制的0.025%茚虫威饵剂综合防治效果达85.30%,0.05%茚虫威饵剂达100%,0.1%茚虫威饵剂达100%。3个浓度的茚虫威饵剂拥有良好的防治红火蚁药效,0.05%浓度最适合研制红火蚁饵剂。     

Omnivory and stability in freshwater habitats: Does theory match reality?

1. Omnivory, feeding at more than one trophic level, is a prevalent feature of freshwater ecosystems. Understanding where and when omnivory is important, its relevance for sustaining diversity, and the effect it may have on ecosystem responses to disturbances, are necessary for effective management of freshwater ecosystems.
2. The many theoretical predictions of the effects of omnivory are often contradictory, and empirical studies aimed at understanding omnivory have been difficult and contingent on a number of factors. Here, I synthesise theoretical evidence to generate five predictions of where omnivory will be most important in freshwater ecosystems, how it is maintained and the effect it will have on communities.
3. First, theory indicates that, while strong omnivorous interactions are destabilising, weak omnivorous interactions usually enhance stability. Therefore, mechanisms which decrease the strength of omnivorous interactions should favour their occurrence and increase stability of food webs. Secondly, omnivorous interactions which are theoretically unstable may be found in stable food webs due to stabilising features of the web as a whole. Thirdly, omnivory is likely to persist primarily at intermediate productivity levels and be more common in disturbed environments. Fourthly, omnivory is likely to decrease the strength of trophic cascades. Finally, omnivores should generally make more successful invaders.
4. These predictions are important for effective freshwater management because actions which decrease the strength of omnivorous interactions, such as maintaining habitat refuges for consumers (e.g. woody debris and aquatic plants), may be essential for sustaining biodiversity. In addition, if omnivores make better invaders, effective invasion management may benefit from focussing resources on omnivorous invaders to limit their spread and impact.
5. Overall, this synthesis of theoretical and empirical studies indicates that, while their predictions may be frequently at odds, with deeper investigation they are largely reconcilable and can be used to make practical suggestions for the careful management of omnivory in freshwater food webs.

     

红火蚁及其重要近似种的鉴别

介绍了红火蚁及其重要近似种的分类特征和分布,以及火蚁属中国已知种类,还提供了上述种类的鉴别检索表。     

Population genetics and history of the introduced fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), in Australia

Abstract  The red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta , a damaging invasive pest, was discovered in February 2001 in Brisbane, Australia at two sites, Fisherman Islands and suburban Richlands-Wacol. Using four microsatellite loci and the protein marker Gp-9 , we compared the two infestations with each other, and with potential source populations in North and South America to better understand the history of their introduction to Brisbane. Based on an analysis of molecular variance, as well as a maximum likelihood tree of colonies from the two Australian sites, we found that the two sites were genetically distinct and were almost certainly introduced separately. All of the colonies at Fisherman Islands were monogynous, headed by a single queen, while the Richlands-Wacol site had a mixture of single-queen monogynous and multiple-queen polygynous colonies. However, the monogynous and polygynous colonies at the Richlands-Wacol site were not genetically distinct from each other, and probably constitute a single, mixed introduction. Based on allele frequencies at the microsatellite loci, and Gp-9 , both Australian infestations were more similar to North American populations than to South American, though the Fisherman Islands infestation was intermediate, making it difficult to assign. Thus, there has been one introduction from either a North or South American monogynous population at Fisherman Islands, and one introduction from a mixed monogynous/polygynous North American population at Richlands-Wacol. These findings have implications for the control of the current infestations, as well as for the quarantine regulations necessary to prevent additional introductions to Australia.     

Food web structure and habitat loss

In this paper we explore simple food web models to study how metacommunity structure affects species response to habitat loss. We find that patch abundances and extinction thresholds vary according to the kind of food web. Second, for intermediate species, a slight decrease in the exploration cost of the better competitor has a strong effect on the extinction threshold of the poorer competitor. When predicting extinction risk one should consider not only the amount of habitat destroyed, but also the structure of the food web in which species are embedded. Both direct and indirect interactions are critical for predicting the consequences of habitat destruction.     

Effects of Brassica oleracea waxblooms on predation and attachment by Hippodamia convergens

Four mutations that reduce waxbloom in Brassica oleracea L. were examined for their effects on predation, mobility, and adhesion to the plant surface by the general predator Hippodamia convergens (Guérin-Menéville) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). The mutations reduce waxbloom to different degrees, but all produce a glossy phenotype. Plants tested were inbred lines, near isogenic lines, or segregating F₂ populations, depending on the mutation. In an experiment on caged leaves, predation of Plutella xylostella L. larvae by H. convergens adult females was significantly greater on glossy types as compared with normal-wax or wild-type counterparts. Although the trend was the same for each mutation, individual comparisons between glossy and normal-wax lines or segregants were only significant for two of them, those producing mutant alleles gl_a and gl_d. Individual H. convergens were observed to spend more time walking on leaf edges and less time walking on leaf surfaces of normal-wax plants than glossy plants. Hippodamia convergens also obtained better adhesion to the surfaces of glossy plants than to normal-wax plants when tested using a centrifugal device. Two of the mutations produced similarly strong effects on predation, behaviour, and adhesion by H. convergens. These two are the same previously determined by us to provide the strongest similar effects on another generalist predator, Chrysoperla plorabunda (Fitch). The results indicate that waxbloom variation in nature could affect herbivore populations through its effects on generalist predators.     

红火蚁的危害及其防治

一种非常危险的入侵性害虫——红火蚁近年在我国台湾和香港登陆,对中国大陆和亚洲其他地区构成严重威胁。本文介绍了红火蚁的危害以及对红火蚁的防治方法。     

入侵红火蚁对脊椎动物的影响研究进展

红火蚁(Solenopsis invicta)具有扩散迅速、攻击性强等特点,常对入侵地区造成巨大的生态危害。虽然很多文献报道了红火蚁对无脊椎动物的影响,但红火蚁对脊椎动物影响的研究较少,也缺乏系统的总结。综述了红火蚁对不同脊椎动物类群的影响和主要的研究方法(野外调查、案例分析、实验室评估、比较分析和人工移除红火蚁),以及脊椎动物对红火蚁的行为和生理防御机制。一般而言,红火蚁常以腹部末端的螯针攻击其他动物并释放毒液,可直接捕食、伤害各种脊椎动物的卵、幼体和成体,并影响动物的行为。此外,红火蚁可降低生境内无脊椎动物的丰度,间接影响捕食者的种群数量。尽管红火蚁是陆生生物,但鱼类可能取食掉落在水面的有翅繁殖蚁而中毒,且漂浮于水面的红火蚁蚁筏也可能对鱼类造成威胁。由于两栖类动物通常体型较小,运动能力较弱,且皮肤缺乏角质层与鳞片毛发等结构的保护,极易受到红火蚁的攻击和伤害。对于鸟类和爬行类,红火蚁主要捕食卵和幼体,并干扰成体的筑巢和育幼行为,降低其繁殖成功率。此外,红火蚁对小型哺乳动物的觅食行为和种群数量均可造成负面影响,并可蛰刺伤害牛羊等家畜,对畜牧业造成巨大的经济损失。一些动物对红火蚁具有行为防御,如用附肢蹬掉体表的红火蚁,或避免取食或接触红火蚁。此外,一些动物能对红火蚁的毒素产生抗体,或调整体内荷尔蒙水平以应对红火蚁的攻击。然而,仍不清楚这些行为和生理反应是否普遍存在于其他脊椎动物,以及能在多大程度上保护其免受红火蚁伤害。值得注意的是,几乎所有的相关研究都是由国外研究者完成的,建议我国学者更多的关注红火蚁对我国经济物种、珍稀动物和食蚁物种的影响。     

Predation, behavior, and attachment by Chrysoperla plorabunda larvae on Brassica oleracea with different surface waxblooms

Predation by Chrysoperla plorabunda (Fitch) (Chrysopidae) first instars on Plutella xylostella (L.) (Plutellidae) neonates was measured on nine Brassica oleracea L. types with different surface wax crystal morphology. Forty-eight-hour survival of P. xylostella caged on leaves was significantly reduced by C. plorabunda on plants expressing glossy mutations that reduce surface waxbloom, but not on plants with normal waxbloom. During 5-min observations, C. plorabunda spent more time walking and less time scrambling (moving the legs with no locomotion) on glossy types than on the normal-wax types. Adhesive force produced by C. plorabunda on plant surfaces was 20 to 200-fold greater on glossy types than on normal-wax types. All the glossy types provided an advantage to C. plorabunda over normal-wax types by increasing the force of attachment to the leaf suface by the larvae, which in turn increased time allocated to walking, leading to greater predation of P. xylostella larvae. Among glossy and normal wax types together, attachment force and time allocated to walking were significantly correlated with predation by C. plorabunda. Within glossy or normal-wax types, however, these correlations were not significant. Neither time allocated to walking, nor attachment to the leaf surface was a predictor of predation by C. plorabunda within glossy or normal-wax types. Although diverse mechanisms therefore contribute to differences in predation, the results show that reduction in waxbloom can substantially affect the mobility and effectiveness of this generalist predator.     

Eradication of Solenopsis invicta by pyriproxyfen at the Shihmen Reservoir in northern Taiwan

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of eradicating the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, in the hot, humid and rainy conditions of northern Taiwan. Thirteen hectares of the Shihmen Reservoir have been infected with these ants, with a total of 1 578 mounds. Pyriproxyfen was applied at a rate of 2 kg/hectare each season, for a total of four seasons. Surveys using visual examination, bait traps, as well as the population index method showed that the brood, the reproductive ants, and the worker ants within the nests were all significantly reduced 1 month after the first application of pyriproxyfen. Four months after the initial application there were no more brood or reproductive ants. After 8 months there were no longer any active mounds left, and 12 months later there were no more worker ants. After monitoring for 1 more year, it was ascertained that the red imported fire ants were eradicated. The percentages of decrease after 2, 4 and 6 months of treatment were 57.4%, 80.5%, and 98.2%, respectively.