昆虫社会行为的进化与生态适应

一、引言昆虫社会行为的进化涉及两大问题:(1)社会行为的起源和进化过程;(2)社会行为的适应意义。这两个问题都曾使达尔文感到困惑。达尔文曾详尽地描述过蜜蜂复杂的造巢行     

Insects in biodiversity conservation: some perspectives and directives

The Insecta is the most speciose class in the Animal Kingdom. The insect-plant relationship is the dominant biotic interaction, yet plants have many times the biomass of all animals together. The functional significance of insects is enormous, owing to the large numbers of individuals and great intra-and interspecific variety. Lack of human appreciation of importance, coupled with the general disregard and dislike of insects, is an enormous perception impediment to their conservation. This impediment coupled with the taxonomic impediment (at most only about 7–10% of insects are scientifically described) must be overcome for realistic biodiversity conservation. As it is not possible to know all the species relative to the rate at which they are becoming extinet, it is essential to conserve as many biotopes and landscapes as possible. These would be for typical species and communities, as well as for endemic sinks. It is also essential to preserve speciesdynamo areas as an insurance for future biodiversity. Preserved areas must also be linked by movement and gene-flow corridors as much as possible. Recognition, functional importance, taxic uniqueness, typicalness, genetic variation and important behavioural traits place much more emphasis on qualitative biodiversity conservation than on quantitative approaches. Ecological entomologists play a significant double role, suppressing noxious populations on crops, livestock and other products, while at the same time identifying and using beneficial species. There are well-known inherent and environmental risks with many traditional control methods and high risks with the use of genetically engineered biopesticide baculoviruses. Preservation technologies, where individuals are held in suspended animation, must be developed soon. However, such technologies, as with restoration activities such as site restoration, captive breeding, reintroductions and translocations, all require considerable knowledge and economic iput to be predictably successful. Ecological restoration involves so many biotic and abiotic interactions in even the simplest of communities, that predictiveness under all potential conditions is virtually unattainable. Instead, there should be strong focus on the preservation and conservation of as many, and as large as possible, pristine and near-pristine unique and typical landscapes as soon as possible.     

昆虫的化学感觉机理

昆虫是通过化学感觉器与其周围环境中的大量化学信息发生联系的。通过特定的化学感觉机制 ,昆虫可感知来自种内和种间 ,以及无机环境中的各种化学信息 ,并由此而作出相应的行为反应 ,从而为其自身寻找适宜的食物、配偶以及生存与繁殖场所 (如躲避天敌、避免或减少竞争等等 ) ,达到最大的繁殖成功。阐明昆虫的化学感觉机理 ,不仅可在理论上进一步加深对昆虫与植物、昆虫与昆虫相互关系的了解 ,而且可在实践上为开发害虫治理的新途径提供理论指导。本文将根据目前的最新研究成果 ,主要就昆虫的化学感觉机理 ,包括嗅觉和味觉机理作一综述 ,以期…     

昆虫资源利用及其产业化进展

主要从食用昆虫、饲用昆虫、药用昆虫、工业原料昆虫、传粉昆虫、观赏娱乐昆虫、天敌昆虫、环保昆虫以及昆虫生物反应器和昆虫在仿生学上的应用等方面全面综述了昆虫资源的利用及其产业化进展.     

昆虫的NF-kB信号通路

昆虫NF-kB信号通路由toll和imd两条通路组成,通过转录因子NF-kB作用于靶标基因kB位点,而调节抗菌活性物质的表达。大量实验表明它能够被细菌、真菌和病毒的侵染所激活,在昆虫体液免疫中发挥着主要作用。现就昆虫的NF-kB信号通路的主要信号元件等进行综述。     

四川王朗国家级自然保护区昆虫生物多样性初步研究

根据植被类型与海拔的变化,在王朗自然保护区选择了5个不同生境作为监测点.分别于2007年7、8、10月,2008年4月,对选定的监测对象进行采集,共采集标本24 876头,1000余种,隶属于3目7科,其中优势种群为尺蛾科、夜蛾科、姬蜂科、步甲科,其个体总数分别占69.51%、23.23%、5.03%、1.9%;鳃金龟科、叩头甲科以及瓢甲科仅占了0.33%.利用物种丰富度指数(S)、多样性指数(H′)、均匀度指数(J)对不同的群落进行统计,发现各监测对象的多样性随着时间与空间的变化呈现出不同的变化趋势.     

Kinetics of ultrasonic degradation and polymerisation degree distribution of sonochemically degraded chitosans

The process of physical degradation by means of the ultrasonic action towards chitosans with mole fraction of 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-β- -glucopyranose units (the degree of N-acetylation, F_A) in the range of 0.10≤F_A≤0.28, and the weight average polymerisation degree in the range of has been investigated. The decrease of as well as changes in the distribution of the degree of polymerisation (P) has been determined as a function of time, F_A, temperature, concentration of chitosan solution and concentration of acetic acid in the solution. The use of low-power ultrasound emitter allowed to establish that in the case of chitosan (binary heteropolysaccharide) the general rate parameter (k) increased with F_A. This can be explained by the relatively stronger aggregation of macromolecules with higher F_A, which results in size increase of macromolecular individuals and hence in their higher susceptibility to ultrasonic action. It was also observed that k decreased with chitosan concentration and temperature. The value of limiting degree of polimerisation (x_e) was found to be influenced by structural parameters of chitosan chains (F_A, aggregation). The increase of acetic acid concentration caused the increase in the k value, what indicated accelerating effect of ultrasound towards acidic hydrolysis of chitosan. The shape of the P curve of sonochemically degraded chitosans are in good correlation with the mid-point breakage concept of degradation accepted in sonochemical degradation of polymers.     

Colonization Patterns of Insects Breeding in Wood-Decaying Fungi

Many insects dependent on dead wood are considered threatened by modern forestry. This may partly be due to substrate patches being too widely scattered to be effectively colonized. We studied how rates of colonization by insect species breeding in polypore fruiting bodies are affected by interpatch distance and habitat matrix characteristics. In field experiments, fruiting bodies of Fomitopsis pinicola and Fomes fomentarius were put out at different distances from natural sources of insects. The anobiid beetles Dorcatoma spp. were the most successful colonizers of distant patches, and they readily flew over open fields. Cis beetles were less successful colonizers, despite their generally higher abundance. We hypothesize that the Dorcatoma spp. are inferior competitors, but superior colonizers of distant resources compared with Cis spp. The flies Leucophenga quinquemaculata (Drosophilidae) and Medetera impigra (Dolichopodidae) appeared to be more affected by distance than the beetles studied in their colonization of fungal fruiting bodies. Lower rates of parasitism were recorded on distant patches, and parasitoids appeared more affected by distance than their hosts. Most of the insect species studied can probably persist in the managed forest landscape if suitable breeding substrate is created continuously on a 1 km² scale.     

Corpse Management in Social Insects

Undertaking behavior is an essential adaptation to social life that is critical for colony hygiene in enclosed nests. Social insects dispose of dead individuals in various fashions to prevent further contact between corpses and living members in a colony. Focusing on three groups of eusocial insects (bees, ants, and termites) in two phylogenetically distant orders (Hymenoptera and Isoptera), we review mechanisms of death recognition, convergent and divergent behavioral responses toward dead individuals, and undertaking task allocation from the perspective of division of labor. Distinctly different solutions (e.g., corpse removal, burial and cannibalism) have evolved, independently, in the holometabolous hymenopterans and hemimetabolous isopterans toward the same problem of corpse management. In addition, issues which can lead to a better understanding of the roles that undertaking behavior has played in the evolution of eusociality are discussed.     

Insects on the brink of a major discontinuity

Population surges and local extinctions are not uncommon among insects. In response to climatic changes in the past, insects have often shifted their ranges. This long-term range shifting and the vagaries of short-term weather makes reserve selection unrealistically rigid for many species. Although some insect species are surviving in reserves, others have disappeared from such small areas because of adverse weather. In contrast, many other insects depend on localized disturbance for survival. In response to anthropogenic disturbance, some native insects have become more abundant and widespread, such as Orthoptera in response to grazing and burning, and some Odonata in response to aquatic weeds and water impoundment. The effect of some exotic invasive insects on some native ecosystems is of major concern. Human-induced insect population crashes and species extinctions are becoming more common and widespread, and exacerbated by the synergistic effect of the various local impacts with global changes. A major insect population and species extinction discontinuity is beginning to take place. Yet, there is also an increase in range and abundance of some other insects. The world is becoming increasingly species-poorer and more homogenous in its insect fauna.     

河南芝麻授粉昆虫初步调查

为了清楚了解芝麻花授粉昆虫种类、昆虫的授粉规律和授粉时间,2009年对河南省平舆县高杨店乡的13个样点芝麻花授粉昆虫进行调查,采集到授粉昆虫标本65份.经过整理鉴定,芝麻花授粉昆虫共计5目14科25种.其中,蜜蜂占授粉昆虫的92%,是大田芝麻主要的授粉昆虫.蜜蜂授粉出勤高峰出现在8:00～8:50和18:00～18:50.     

Protease Inhibitors in Improvement of Plant Resistance to Pathogens and Insects

This review concerns the possibility of using plant inhibitors of proteolytic enzymes to improve plant resistance to insects and phytopathogens. The main argument in favor of this approach is that protease inhibitors are widespread in plant tissues and highly active with respect to various proteases of insects, bacteria, and fungi. Genetic engineering yields promising results in the field, as recent studies demonstrate. The main drawbacks of the approach and ways to improve its efficiency are discussed. Still, the approach has several advantages over the standard methods and is ecologically safe.__________Translated from Molekulyarnaya Biologiya, Vol. 39, No. 4, 2005, pp. 702–708.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Dunaevsky, Elpidina, Vinokurov, Belozersky.     

Complete Nutrient Content of Four Species of Feeder Insects

A variety of insects are commonly fed to captive insectivores but detailed nutritional analyses are only available for the most commonly fed species. Soldier fly larvae, Turkestan cockroach nymphs, tebo worms, and adult house flies were analyzed for moisture, protein, fat, ash, acid detergent fiber, neutral detergent fiber, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, and selected carotenoids. The acid detergent fiber was analyzed for amino acids to estimate chitin content. Nutrient content varied widely between the four insect species. Ranges for the macronutrients were as follows: moisture (60.2–74.8%), crude protein (15.5–19.7%), crude fat (1.9%–29.4%), acid detergent fiber (1.4–3.0%), neutral detergent fiber (2.6–3.8%), and ash (0.8–3.5%). Energy content ranged from a low of 918 kcal/kg for house flies to 2,977 kcal/kg for tebo worms. The chitin content of these four species ranged from 6.7 to 21.0 mg/kg. The nutrients most likely to be deficient when these species of insects are used as food for insectivores are vitamin A, vitamin D, calcium, vitamin E, thiamine, iodine, and vitamin B₁₂. The number of nutrients deficient vs. the NRC requirements for rats on an energy basis by insect species was as follows: soldier fly larvae (3), tebo worms (15), Turkestan cockroach nymphs (5), and adult house flies (6). These data are valuable in helping assess the nutrient intake of captive insectivores and in developing gut‐loading diets to improve the nutrient intake of captive insectivores. Zoo Biol. 32:27‐36, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

部分具翅昆虫后胸足基骨片的分化与系统发育

从12目具翅昆虫中选出16个代表种,对其后足基骨片的形态特征在不同类群中的衍变进行分析比较,据此构建反映下列初步进化关系的系统树:[Ephemeroptera+(Odonata+Neoptera)]+[Plecoptera+(Megaloptera+Neuroptera+(Orthoptera+(Hemiptera+(...     

Insects on isolated colonies of common rock-rose Helianthemum chamaecistus

ABSTRACT.

• 1 A study was made of the insect species present on twenty-eight colonies of H.chamaecistus Mill, in 1978 ranging in size (cover) from 0.4 m² to about 6500 m² and separated from nearest large neighbours by distances up to 6.5 km. Twenty-three insect species were collected of which nine or ten were more or less monophagous.
• 2 There was a clear relationship between species richness and size of host colony. Sites with less than 30 m² of rock-rose, about 67% of those in the study area, were likely to have less than half of the monophagous species. Distance to neighbouring colonies did not contribute significantly to species richness.
• 3 The consistency of results from year to year was examined at five sites re-sampled in 1979. The 1978 data were also used to compare‘expected’and observed faunas at five new sites sampled in 1979 based upon the species-area relationship and the relative frequency of species at known sites.
• 4 Insect dispersal was examined using a suction trap placed near the largest rock-rose site. Colonization of new sites was studied by experimental outplanting of pot-grown plants.
• 5 These direct observations, and the monitoring of fourteen sites for 5 years, suggested that colonization and interchange of faunas were rare events. The experimental introduction of one to five species at four sites showed in several cases that the sites were suitable for the species, and that introduction could significantly enhance a site's complement.

     

综论稻田生态系中性昆虫的意义及其调控

１　中性昆虫的概念及田间动态１．１　概念的提出吴进才等在对稻田节肢动物群落营养物种的系统调查中发现,稻田生态系中,既非害虫又非天敌的一类昆虫占整个节肢动物群落丰盛度的２０％～６５％［７,８］。生态学理论认为,系统中没有孤立存在的物种［１２］。数量庞大的这一昆虫类群在稻田生态系统中有何意义？与稻田害虫的发生有何联系？现有文献还少有涉及。吴进才等［７］、郭玉杰等［１］提出了中性昆虫的概念,用于指称传统植物保护学中的既非害虫又非天敌的一类昆虫,并就其田间动态及在食物网中的作用进行了系统调查、研究和讨论…     

植物蛋白酶抑制剂在植物抗虫与抗病中的作用

综述了植物蛋白酶抑制剂抗虫与抗病作用的研究进展.蛋白酶抑制剂广泛存在于植物体内,与植物抗虫抗病密切相关.植物蛋白酶抑制剂能抑制昆虫肠道蛋白酶,使昆虫生长发育缓慢,甚至死亡.但取食蛋白酶抑制剂后,昆虫能迅速分泌对抑制剂不敏感的蛋白酶,而使蛋白酶抑制剂无效.食物蛋白的含量和质量也影响植物蛋白酶抑制剂的抗虫效果.病原菌的感染能诱导植物产生蛋白酶抑制剂,诱导产生的蛋白酶抑制剂能抑制病原菌的生长.     

The Conservation of Saproxylic Insects in Tropical Forests: A Research Agenda

Invariably, insects are overlooked when tropical forest management issues are discussed, because there are so many species, they are taxonomically intractable and so poorly known. Often people take the view that if you look after the vegetation and vertebrates, the insects will look after themselves. This may be true for some functional groups, but for saproxylic insects, this seems unlikely. Their study deserves high priority, since they are dependent on the very resource – wood – whose removal from the ecosystem is the usual object of forest management. Given the current international effort to develop 'criteria and indicators' to monitor sustainable forest management for biodiversity values, there is a window of opportunity for sound ecological research on saproxylic insects to influence the formulation of forest policy such that their needs can be taken into account. There is already a large body of knowledge on temperate and boreal region saproxylic insects, and on the effects that logging has on them, but knowledge of the tropical forest situation lags far behind. This paper proposes a research agenda to enable the needs of saproxylic insects to be taken into account in natural forest management in the tropics. Basic questions, such as whether logging has so far had an impact on tropical saproxylic insects, and whether there are workable sampling techniques to investigate this, still remain to be addressed and deserve high priority. The links between the responses of saproxylic insects and more 'charismatic' study species need to be investigated. We also need to know whether there is a correlation between the intensity of logging and the response of saproxylic insects, and, critically, whether we would be justified in measuring some surrogate aspects of forest structure (as potential habitat for saproxylic insects) rather than the saproxylic insects themselves, and modelling this to determine likely impacts of different management regimes. We consider such an ambitious research agenda as justified given the scale of impact that forest use and management is likely to have on tropical forest insects in the future.     

Occurrence of Erwinia amylovora on Insects in a Fire Blight Orchard

In order to screen for natural dissemination of fire blight under field conditions, insects were caught in an experimental orchard and assayed on semi-selective agar plates and by BIO-polymerase chain reaction for their contamination with Erwinia amylovora , the causative agent of the bacterial disease. The pathogen was detected on 15 out of 348 insects collected (4.3%). The insects contaminated with E. amylovora have different living habits and belong to four different orders (Homoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera) and at least eight insect families (Aphididae, Psyllidae, Coccinellidae, Curculionidae, Ichneumonidae, Formicidae, Apidae, and Muscidae) and to other Brachycera. After contact of insects with E. amylovora , the pathogen could survive at least 5 days in/on the green lacewing ( Chrysoperla carnea ) and 12 days on aphids ( Aphis pomi ).     

Serial Sectioning of Insects with Hard Exoskeleton by Dissolution of the Exocuticle

The method reported here was designed to produce paraffin serial sections as thin as 5 Mm of insects or other arthropods with a hard cuticle. Heads and abdomens of Apis mellifera, Eristalomyia tenax and Tenebrio molitor were fixed with Schaffer's liquid, dehydrated with 80% ethanol, 90% ethanol, two changes of 100% isopropanol (2 hr each) and 12 hr in a 1:1 mixture of paraffin (58 C melting point) at 60 C. They were molded in paraffin after 12 hr of infiltration under a partial vacuum at 60 C. Large body openings of objects were sealed with paraffin to prevent infiltration of solvents.

Thereafter, the outer paraffin was removed manually and with xylene (15 min); the cuticle was rehydrated with 100% isopropanol and 100% ethanol (15 min each). The objects were then treated with Sputofluol (Merck; a mixture of NaOH and NaCIO) until they became white or their colorless endocuticle was stainable with aniline blue WS (C.I. 42755) after rinsing in a 50% acetic acid solution (v/v). They were then dehydrated with 100% ethanol and 100% isopropanol (15 min each) and subsequently re-embedded in paraffin. They were molded, sectioned, stained and mounted as usual.