Impacts of a native parasitic plant on an introduced and a native host species: implications for the control of an invasive weed

Background and Aims: While invasive species may escape from natural enemies in thenew range, the establishment of novel biotic interactions withspecies native to the invaded range can determine their success.Biological control of plant populations can be achieved by manipulationof a species' enemies in the invaded range. Interactions weretherefore investigated between a native parasitic plant andan invasive legume in Mediterranean-type woodlands of SouthAustralia. Methods: The effects of the native stem parasite, Cassytha pubescens,on the introduced host, Cytisus scoparius, and a co-occurringnative host, Leptospermum myrsinoides, were compared. The hypothesisthat the parasitic plant would have a greater impact on theintroduced host than the native host was tested. In a fieldstudy, photosynthesis, growth and survival of hosts and parasitewere examined. Key Results: As predicted, Cassytha had greater impacts on the introducedhost than the native host. Dead Cytisus were associated withdense Cassytha infections but mortality of Leptospermum wasnot correlated with parasite infection. Cassytha infection reducedthe photosynthetic rates of both hosts. Infected Cytisus showedslower recovery of photosystem II efficiency, lower transpirationrates and reduced photosynthetic biomass in comparison withuninfected plants. Parasite photosynthetic rates and growthrates were higher when growing on the introduced host Cytisus,than on Leptospermum. Conclusions: Infection by a native parasitic plant had strong negative effectson the physiology and above-ground biomass allocation of anintroduced species and was correlated with increased plant mortality.The greater impact of the parasite on the introduced host maybe due to either the greater resources that this host providesor increased resistance to infection by the native host. Thisdisparity of effects between introduced host and native hostindicates the potential for Cassytha to be exploited as a controltool.     

云贵鹅耳枥群落乔木种群生态位初探

木文应用Ｌｅｖｉｎ公式和王刚改进公式分别计测了贵阳喀斯特山地云贵鹅耳枥群落中乔木种群的生态位宽度和生态位重叠,并对这些种群的生态位关系及其对群落结构和动态的影响进行了分析。     

Germination and regeneration mechanisms in Mediterranean degenerate forests

Abstract. Germination and developmental behaviour during juvenile stages are of importance in relation to succession mechanisms acting on plant communities. This is particularly so in the Mediterranean region, where the climatic summer drought causes stress. We investigated and compared germination and development of four tree species in two parts of the French Mediterranean region where the original dominant tree species (Quercus pubescens) has been largely replaced by Quercus ilex in the southern part, and Castanea sativa in the northern part. Observed differences in germination rates and developmental behaviour, especially shootroot ratio and the role of water supply, suggest that other species may eventually replace the current dominant species.     

ent-Pimarane Diterpenes from the Aerial Parts of Siegesbeckia pubescens

Five new ent-pimarane diterpenes ( 1 – 5 ) and five known analogs ( 6 – 10 ) were isolated from the aerial parts of Siegesbeckia pubescens. Their structures, including absolute configurations, were determined by comprehensive spectroscopic methods especially 1D and 2D NMR and quantum chemical electronic circular dichroism calculations. All the isolated compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxicity against human BT549, A549 and H157 cancer cell lines. Among them, compounds 1 and 2 showed mild cytotoxicity against lung cancer cell lines H157 with IC₅₀ values of 16.35±2.59 and 18.86±4.83 μM, respectively.     

Poleward increase in feeding efficiency of leafminer Stigmella lapponica (Lepidoptera: Nepticulidae) in a latitudinal gradient crossing a boreal forest zone

Damage to plant communities imposed by insect herbivores generally decreases from low to high latitudes. This decrease is routinely attributed to declines in herbivore abundance and/or diversity, whereas latitudinal changes in per capita food consumption remain virtually unknown. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the lifetime food consumption by a herbivore individual decreases from low to high latitudes due to a temperature-driven decrease in metabolic expenses. From 2016 to 2019, we explored latitudinal changes in multiple characteristics of linear (gallery) mines made by larvae of the pygmy moth, Stigmella lapponica, in leaves of downy birch, Betula pubescens. The mined leaves were larger than intact leaves at the southern end of our latitudinal gradient (at 60°N) but smaller than intact leaves at its northern end (at 69°N), suggesting that female oviposition preference changes with latitude. No latitudinal changes were observed in larval size, mine length or area, and in per capita food consumption, but the larval feeding efficiency (quantified as the ratio between larval size and mine size) increased with latitude. Consequently, S. lapponica larvae consumed less foliar biomass at higher latitudes than at lower latitudes to reach the same size. Based on space-for-time substitution, we suggest that climate warming will increase metabolic expenses of insect herbivores with uncertain consequences for plant–herbivore interactions.     

Stamens are not essential as an attractant for pollinators in females of cryptically dioecious Thalictrum pubescens Pursch. (Ranunculaceae)

 It has been hypothesized that females of some dioecious species maintain stamens that produce sterile pollen as a means of attracting pollinators to promote greater seed set. However, this hypothesis has rarely been tested. This paper examines the role of pollinators in the maintenance of sterile stamens in the cryptically dioecious species, Thalictrum pubescens. Wind was found to contribute to pollination; branches of female T. pubescens enclosed in cheesecloth to exclude insects but not wind were still able to set seed. Therefore, females may not need the stamens for pollination. In 1994, insects were found to discriminate against emasculated female flowers, but this discrimination did not lead to a significant difference in either the amount of pollen received or seed set. In 1995, emasculation was combined with the addition of pollen to determine if emasculated females were pollen limited. No significant effect of pollen addition or emasculation was found. Emasculated branches in the pollen-addition treatment appeared to have slightly lower seed set than non-emasculated branches that received pollen, indicating that the slight reduction in seed set was caused by emasculation rather than pollen limitation. Since stamens do not appear to be maintained as pollinator attractants, other explanations, such as genetic constraints, must be investigated. Received: 4 February 1997 / Revision accepted: 20 May 1997     

Weibull分布参数辨识改进及对浙江毛竹林胸径年龄分布的测度

非线性模型迭代参数初始值的选取及拟合的结果能否可用非常重要且一直是一个难题.传统的方法只是凭感觉偿试不进行定量评估,对于用阻尼最小二乘进行拟合只注重精度高低,没有从理论上研究和分析评价得出的结果能否可用.为了克服这一不足,使参数选取较好,阻尼最小二乘得出结果可用.利用非线性回归原理在这两方面做了探讨,提出了二个判别指标：β^T＜1,β^N＜1,分析了每一指标在参数不同状态的控制作用,并在Weibull分布函数参数辨识中做了应用.针对目前毛竹林林分结构规律研究的不足,利用浙江省230个毛竹林样地资料研究了省域尺度的毛竹林胸径分布规律,经SPSS软件中的P-P图检验与柯尔莫哥洛夫检验,表明毛竹林胸径结构服从Weibull分布;再经对Weibull分布模型拟合求解与作图对比,结果显示Weibull分布能很好地描述毛竹林胸径分布规律.利用Weibull分布三参数与林分特征因子间的相关关系,经分析研究,导出了一个改进的二元分布模型,用该二元分布模型很好地测度了浙江省毛竹林胸径和年龄分布规律,最后得到了浙江省毛竹林株数按胸径年龄分布的理论频数.     

毛竹林节肢动物群落的组成与结构

通过对福建三明和沙县23块毛竹林试验标准地节肢动物群落1a的系统调查,结果表明:竹冠层节肢动物隶属于3纲、21目、124科、332种,林下层节肢动物隶属于3纲、22目、130科、349种。竹冠层和林下层类群分别有92.77%和94.54%的物种为稀有种或偶见种,林下层类群种-丰盛度关系符合对数正态分布。二类群目或功能集团的科、物种的数量分布相近,个体数量分布差异大。竹冠层类群以蜱螨目和同翅目为主,林下层类群以蜘蛛目、膜翅目、同翅目和双翅目为主。前者的科、物种以及个体数的益害比分别为1∶1.18、1∶0.83和1∶4.62,后者为1∶0.91、1∶0.85和1∶0.55。竹冠层类群的物种多样性和均匀度均显著低于林下层类群,植食性集团多样性在林下层类群各功能集团中最高,在竹冠层类群中则最低。群落和功能集团各参数对二类群多样性的影响均以相应类群总体的均匀度最大,功能集团因子中均以相应类群蜘蛛类的均匀度最大。人为排除群落优势种后,二类群的多样性均显著增加,但林下层类群增加的幅度显著低于竹冠层类群。植食性和中性集团作为空间食物种类资源能显著促进群落容纳较多天敌物种,天敌对二集团的空间数量跟随效应强,二集团与天敌的多样性之间相互促进。