The interspecific competition between Humulus scandens and Alternanthera philoxeroides

Bioinvasion has become a serious environmental problem in the world in general and is considered the second biggest threat to biodiversity. Alternanthera philoxeroides is widely distributed and causes the most serious threat to biodiversity in China. The traditional physical or biological control methods are not effective in controlling the invasion and extension of A. philoxeroides. In the present paper, some physiological characteristics of Humulus scandens and A. philoxeroides were investigated in the field and laboratory. The results showed that H. scandens is more competitive than A. philoxeroides, the competitive rate (CR) of H. scandens against A. philoxeroides was 9.834. Additionally, the leaf, stem, and root biomass of A. philoxeroides decreased significantly when the two species co-occurred. Thus, the invasive abilities of these two invasive plants are different and H. scandens strongly inhibited the growth of A. philoxeroides. Moreover, as an annual herb, H. scandens can be easily eliminated by harvesting before its seeds mature. The result suggests that sowing seeds of H. scandens in the habitats invaded by A. philoxeroides could be an ideal biological control method.     

种间竞争在实蝇入侵中的作用

实蝇是一类危害热带、亚热带水果蔬菜的重要害虫.调查表明,实蝇由入侵引起的种间竞争,一个突出现象就足实蝇种间的入侵具有显著的等级特征,种间竞争性替代具有强烈的方向性,其竞争作用可导致入侵实蝇种群的火绝或者数量的巨大改变.目前有关实蝇种问竞争的等级性模式既未得到进一步研究验证,也未明确其中隐含的作用机制.深入研究实蝇种间竞争的作用机制为检疫性实蝇的风险评估和管理提供参考,同时也为认识农林害虫群落的演替规律提供理论依据.     

Predators induce egg retention in prey

To prevent predation on their eggs, prey often avoid patches occupied by predators. As a result, they need to delay oviposition until they reach predator-free patches. Because many species allocate energy to egg production in a continuous fashion, it is not clear what kind of mechanism prey use to delay oviposition. We used females of the phytoseiid mite Neoseiulus cucumeris to study these mechanisms. Females were placed in patches with pollen, a food source they use for egg production, and they were exposed to another phytoseiid mite, Iphiseius degenerans, which is an intraguild predator of N. cucumeris juveniles. We found that the oviposition of N. cucumeris females on patches with the predator was lower than on patches without the predator. Cues left by the intraguild predator were not sufficient to elicit such behaviour. Females of N. cucumeris reduced oviposition when exposed to the predator by retaining the egg inside their body, resulting in a lower developmental rate once these eggs were laid. Hence, females are capable of retaining eggs, but the development of these eggs continues inside the mother’s body. In this way, females gain some time to search for less risky oviposition sites.     

浙江天台山甜槠种内与种间竞争研究

采用Hegyi的单木竞争指数模型对天台山的甜槠种内、种间的竞争强度进行定量分析。结果表明 ,甜槠种内竞争强度随着林木径级的增大而逐渐减小 ,种内竞争较之与其伴生树种间的竞争剧烈。甜槠种内、种间竞争强度的顺序为 :甜楮 >木荷 >马尾松 >尾叶冬青 >虎皮楠 >短柄木包 >珍珠栗。竞争木对对象木的竞争强度与对象木的个体大小服从幂函数关系 ,竞争强度和对象木个体的大小呈极显著的负相关关系。当甜槠胸径达到 30cm后 ,竞争强度变化不明显 ,说明此时该生态系统已基本达到稳定状态。     

食物、捕食及种间竞争对东方田鼠(Microtus fortis)种群攻击行为的作用

在野外围栏条件下,采用重复的2×2×2析因实验设计,测定食物、捕食和竞争物种黑线姬鼠对东方田鼠攻击行为作用的格局。东方田鼠各处理种群攻击水平与其种群密度的相关甚为复杂,与Chitty多态行为假设的预测不一致。东方田鼠双冲突个体间的攻击水平与其体重的相关不显著,而与冲突个体的体重差异则呈显著的负相关,体重差异越大,冲突个体间的攻击水平越低。雄体攻击水平与其繁殖特征无显著的相关关系,而雌体间攻击水平则受繁殖状态的影响,动情雌体间的攻击水平显著地高于非动情雌体。体重差异和食物对雄体的攻击行为具有极显著的独立作用,捕食和种间竞争对雄体攻击行为的独立作用不显著,而捕食与种间竞争交互作用对雄体攻击行为的效应则达到显著水平。体重差异、食物、捕食和种间竞争对动情雌体的攻击水平均有极显著的独立作用,3类外部因子交互作用的效应达到极显著水平;而3类外部因子交互作用对非动情雌体攻击行为的效应则不显著。结果检验了外部因子食物、捕食、种间竞争对田鼠类动物种群攻击行为具有独立和累加的整合效应的假设。     

马尾松-木荷不同比例混交林种内和种间竞争强度

分析不同比例组成的马尾松(Pinus massoniana)-木荷(Schima superba)混交林树木间的竞争关系,可为营造种间关系协调的马尾松混交林提供参考依据.以马尾松-木荷混交林为研究对象,根据其混交比例分别类型Ⅰ(对照,10马)、类型Ⅱ(8马2木)、类型Ⅲ(7马3木)、类型Ⅳ(6马4木)4种类型设置标准地...     

Ritualized behavior during competition for food between two formicinae

Summary Polyrhachis laboriosa andCamponotus brutus are two syntopic ants of the African equatorial forest. Although they occupy two different ecological niches (nesting area, diet, rhythms of activity), they are in competition for the exploitation of large permanent food sources. C. brutus, which is nocturnal, changed its rhythm of activity in the presence of large permanent food sources to exploit it day and night, whileP. laboriosa, diurnal, did not change its rhythm of activity. Encounters between workers of the two species at the food source always resulted in duels, even though several other workers were present. When attacked byC. brutus, P. laboriosa workers showed a novel flee-return strategy (fleeing over a 20-cm distance and returning to the source) instead of escaping definitively from the source and displayed ritualized behavior (i.e., fleeing, raising the gaster, flexing the gaster). These types of behavior appeasedC. brutus workers and enabledP. laboriosa to avoid overt aggression and to exploit the source in spite of the presence of a competitor. C. brutus also exhibited ritualized behavior during the duels (i.e., back-and-forth jerking of the body, series of light bites on a leg).C. brutus intimidatedP. laboriosa rather than really attacking it. This ritualization, used at an interspecific level, may be the result of a coevolutionary process or the effect of learning that certain types of behavior are beneficial. In any case, both species benefit from the possibility of exploiting large permanent food sources through confrontations that never lead to overt aggression.     

Studies on the interspecific competition between Helisoma duryi (wetherby) and Biomphalaria camerunensis (boettger). Size-weight relationships and laboratory competition experiments

Biological control of the intermediate hosts of schistosomiasis by means of the introduction of a competitor snail Helisoma duryi has been suggested. In the present laboratory studies the allometric size-weight relationships of H. duryi and Biomphalaria camerunensis were investigated in order to get a tool for estimating the biomass and dry-weight of snails.Competition experiments were conducted and the results showed a marked inhibition of growth and reproduction of B. camerunensis. No conclusions about the competitive interactions were drawn from the present results but experiments are established to elucidate these mechanisms.     

Role of interspecific competition in the coexistence ofApodemus argenteus andA. speciosus (Rodentia: Muridae)

Reciprocal-removal experiments with two replicates were conducted to test for the role of interspecific competition in the coexistence ofApodemus argenteus andA. speciosus. Population density, rate of appearance of new (unmarked) individuals, reproduction, survival rate and habitat use were monitored during pre- and removal periods. In both removal experiments, the removal ofA. argenteus had little effect onA. speciosus, while that ofA. speciosus affected several population characteristics ofA. argenteus. Namely, the removal ofA. speciosus shifted the distribution ofA. argenteus to the habitat with a denser shrub cover in one experiment. Also, the removal increased the population densities and appearance rates of new individuals ofA. argenteus in another experiment. Interspecific interactions between the two species appeared to be a one-way action fromA. speciosus toA. argenteus. In removal periods in both experiments, the rates of appearance of new individuals in each species were the highest on the grid where that species was removed. These results suggest that, though interspecific competition occurred between the two species, intraspecific competition had greater effects than interspecific competition on the abundance and habitat use ofA. argenteus andA. speciosus. This implies that the fundamental niches ofA. argenteus andA. speciosus differ potentially, which may play an important role in the coexistence of the two species.     

Phenotypic responses of lacustrine brook charr in relation to the intensity of interspecific competition

We investigated the structure of interindividual variations in the diet of brook charr (Salvelinus fontinalis) based on stomach contents data of 3776 charr captured in 69 lakes of the Canadian Shield (Québec, Canada); 29 of these contained allopatric brook charr populations, 24 contained brook charr and creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus) and 16 contained brook charr and white sucker (Catostomus commersoni). In any given lake, some of the charr fed almost exclusively on benthic organisms (benthic specialists, i.e., mean percent weight of benthic prey >90%), others, almost exclusively on pelagic prey (pelagic specialists, i.e., mean percent weight of benthic prey <10%), and a lesser proportion were generalist feeders (i.e. mean percent weight of benthic prey between 10 and 90%). The proportion of benthic and pelagic specialists were respectively 41.3 and 18% in allopatric brook charr populations. These proportions fit remarkably well with those based on interindividual preferences in spatial distribution, identified through radio-telemetry in another study done in two lakes of the same area. The proportion of benthic specialists was related to competition for benthic organisms with creek chub and white sucker. The effect of white sucker on brook charr diet was more pronounced than that of creek chub: the proportion of benthic specialists among brook charr decreased from 41.3% in allopatry to 19.7% in sympatry with creek chub, and to 9.9% in sympatry with white sucker. Other response variables of brook charr populations also indicate that white sucker is a stronger competitor than creek chub in this system. Because sucker and chub were introduced in these lakes during the last century, phenotypic responses of brook charr to interspecific competition appear to be rapid. Furthermore, in addition to providing a strong field support to the current hypothesis that polymorphism is promoted by arelaxation of interspecific competition, our results also indicate that phenotypic response of brook charr (i.e. the proportion of each form in a given lake) is related to the intensity of this competition.     

The potential for interspecific competition between two abundant defoliators on oak: leaf damage and habitat quality

Abstract. 1. The pedunculate oak, Quercus robur L., suffers high annual levels of spring defoliation in Wytham Woods, Oxon. The two major defoliators, Tortrix viridana L. and Operophtera brumata L., sometimes reach high enough densities to completely defoliate trees.
2. Experiments with larvae of both species enclosed on oak trees in Wytham Woods suggest considerable potential for intra- and interspecific competition between T. viridana and O. brumata.
3. T. viridana and O. brumata consume equivalent amounts of leaf tissue per unit caterpillar density. Despite this, O. brumata is the superior competitor, measured by mortality during the larval feeding period.
4. Evidence is presented that T. viridana larvae depend upon the protected microclimate of leaf rolls to maintain water balance, and that leaf damage may disrupt the construction of, and microclimate within, leaf rolls. O. brumata may therefore be competitively superior because it indirectly interferes with the water balance of T. viridana.
5. The importance of interspecific competition in the dynamics of T. viridana and O. brumata populations is discussed. Stochastic mortality factors acting on first instar larvae of both species probably make intense competition a rare event.     

Intra- and interspecific competition and host race formation in the apple maggot fly,Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Intra- and interspecific resource competition are potentially important factors affecting host plant use by phytophagous insects. In particular, escape from competitors could mediate a successful host shift by compensating for decreased feeding performance on a new plant. Here, we examine the question of host plant-dependent competition for apple (Malus pumila)- and hawthorn (Crataegus mollis)-infesting larvae of the apple maggot fly, Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae) at a field site near Grant, Michigan, USA. Interspecific competition from tortricid (Cydia pomonella, Grapholita prunivora, and Grapholita packardi) and agonoxenid (subfamily Blastodacninae) caterpillars and a curculionid weevil (Conotrachelus crataegi) was much stronger for R. pomonella larvae infesting the ancestral host hawthorn than the derived host apple. Egg to pupal survivorship was estimated as 52.8% for fly larvae infesting hawthorn fruit without caterpillars and weevils compared to only 27.3% for larvae in harthorns with interspecific insects. Survivorship was essentially the same between fly larvae infesting apples in the presence (44.8%) or absence (42.6%) of interspecific insects. Intraspecific competition among maggots was also stronger in hawthorns than apples. The order or time that a larva exited a hawthorn fruit was a significant determinant of its pupal mass, with earlier emerging larvae being heavier than later emerging larvae. This was not the case for larvae in apples, as the order or time that a larva exited an apple fruit had relatively little influence on its pupal mass. Our findings suggest that decreased performance related to host plant chemistry/nutrition may restrict host range expansion and race formation in R. pomonella to those plants where biotic/ecological factors (i.e. escape from competitors and parasitoids) adequately balance the survivorship equation. This balance permits stable fly populations to persist on novel plants, setting the stage for the evolution of host specialization under certain mitigating conditions (e.g. when mating is host specific and host-associated fitness trade-offs exist).     

Argentine ant foraging activity and interspecific competition in complete vs. queenless and broodless colonies

Introduction experiments may prove useful in understanding the mechanisms underlying the successful establishment of invasive ant species into new areas. These manipulative introductions could be particularly helpful in exploring the interactions between invasive species and the local fauna and flora. However, the inherent risk of accidental establishment in such experiments poses unacceptable ethical concerns. Some of the worst invasive species are tramp ant species, which can adversely affect biodiversity and community structure after establishment. We conducted laboratory and field experiments investigating a safe methodology for carrying out introduction experiments using the sterile workers of the invasive Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, as a model. We found no difference in foraging rate between worker-only colonies of L. humile and complete colonies, containing queens, workers and brood. Worker-only L. humile colonies showed the same exploitative and interference ability as complete colonies in bait dominance trials with the odorous house ant, Tapinoma sessile, in both laboratory and field trials. We suggest that for those invasive ant species with sterile workers, worker-only colonies may be substituted for complete colonies in short-term field experiments in new areas. Received 18 January 2007; revised 19 June 2007; accepted 22 June 2007.     

Effects of interspecific competition on development and reproduction in two giant water bugs,Diplonychus japonicus vuillefroy andDiplonychus major esaki (Hemiptera: Belostomatidae)

We studied the interpecific competition between 2 species of predatory aquatic bugs, Diplonychus japonicus and D. major by conducting a field experiment. We set up 3 types of experimental plots in the paddy fields where D. major predominated. The two plots contained single species of either D. japonicus or D. major, respectively, and one plot had both species in equal number. We compared the development and the reproductive performance between plots in each species. In D. japonicus, the number of eggs and early instar nymphs were significantly smaller in the plots containing both species than in the monospecific plots. However, the numbers of late instar nymphs and newly emerged adults were not significantly different between plots. The proportions of starved nymphs in both plots were larger than those in the D. japonicus's natural habitats. The final densities of adults in both plots were lower than those in the natural habitats. These results suggest that lower density of D. japonicus in these paddy fields is due to the lack of available food for nymphs rather than the effects of interspecific competition with D. major. In D. major, significant differences were not found in the number of eggs, each instar nymphs and adults. These results suggest that the effects of interspecific competition did not affect the reproductive performance of D. major.     

Current status of Agrilus hyperici (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) released in Australia in 1940 for the control of St John's wort: Lessons for insect introductions

The root‐borer Agrilus hyperici was established successfully in Australia in 1940 for the biological control of the weed Hypericum perforatum. It failed to spread widely, however, and surveys in 1980 found that it survived in only one area; near Mudgee in New South Wales. Two isolated populations were found here, both restricted to sheltered creek systems. The distribution of the larger population, at Piambong, was confined to an area of about 10 km². In 1981–82, 76.8% of plants in the core of this area showed damage by larvae to their roots. Although the level of attack was lower than that known from southern Europe, survivorship patterns from larva to adult were similar, confirming A. hyperici to be a ’K‐selected’ insect. The population declined significantly following a severe drought in 1982. Consideration of the early history of their introductions coupled with knowledge of their biologies suggest that strong competition by Chrysolina spp., strongly ‘r‐selected’ insects introduced at the same time, may have restricted the development of A. hyperici. The danger of co‐releasing insects with different life‐history strategies is discussed.     

Interspecific competition between Diadegma semiclausum Hellen (Hym., Ichneumonidae) and Cotesia plutellae (Kurdjumov) (Hym., Braconidae) in parasitizing Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lep., Plutellidea)

Abstract:  Interspecific competition between Diadegma semiclausum and Cotesia plutellae was investigated at 25°C in the laboratory, by exposing the third instar larvae of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella to both species together, either species alone or by exposing the host larvae already parasitized by one species, at different intervals, to the other. When host larvae were exposed simultaneously to two species in one arena, parasitism rates of the host by each species were not reduced by the presence of the other species; joint parasitism rate by two species was not significantly higher than that by either parasitoid alone. Both parasitoids could lay eggs into the host larvae which had previously been parasitized by the other species, leading to the occurrence of multiparasitized hosts. When host larvae were parasitized first by D. semiclausum and then being followed within 1–2 h by exposing to C. plutellae , or vice versa, ensuing parasitoid cocoons from the multiparasitized host larvae were nearly all C. plutellae . When host larvae were parasitized initially by C. plutellae and then being followed by D. semiclausum two or more days later, all parasitoids ensued from the multiparasitized hosts were C. plutellae . In contrast, when host larvae were parasitized initially by D. semiclausum and then being followed by C. plutellae two or more days later, most host larvae could not survive to prepupae and most of the ensuing parasitoid adults from the surviving hosts were D. semiclausum . Dissections of host larvae at various time intervals after parasitization by the two parasitoids showed that development of both parasitoids in multiparasitized hosts were somewhat arrested, and that the first instar larvae of C. plutellae could initiate a physical attack on the larvae of D. semiclausum and remove the latter.     

Influence of habitat and temperature on dispersal behaviour of two pteromalid parasitoids of houseflies during an inundative release at a dairy barn

1. About 11,000 each of Muscidifurax raptor Girault and Saunders and Urolepis rufipes (Ashmead) were released weekly for 7 weeks at a commercial dairy farm in central New York state, U.S.A. Dispersal behaviour was monitored by parasitism rates of house fly, Musca domestica L., pupae placed in sentinel bags. 2. M. raptor, which was released inside the barn, parasitized fly pupae both inside and outside, and it achieved highest rates of parasitism in indoor straw calf-bedding and in outdoor manure and silage. 3. U. rufipes, which was released outside the barn, did not attack pupae inside the barn, and its highest rates of parasitism occurred in outdoor manure and silage. 4. M. raptor appeared to be more effective than U. rufipes in parasitizing pupae located at sites where natural fly-breeding occurred. 5. Interspecific competition did not appear to explain these distribution patterns. 6. There was no significant trend in parasitism by M. raptor as a function of distance from the release station. Furthermore, high rates of parasitism near open doorways and at an outdoor site 30 m away suggests that M. raptor dispersed throughout the barn and its immediate surroundings. 7. Air temperature was positively correlated to flight activity, but not to parasitization activity in natural fly-breeding substrates.