Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Data For "Linking Previous Experiences To Behavior And Health In The Honey Bee (Apis Mellifera)"", Rebecca R. Westwick, Clare C. Rittschof, Gavin P. Brackett, Cameron E. Brown, Bethany J. Ison, Zainulabbeudin Syed, Anna M. Foose

Entomology Research Data

An organism’s ability to respond to changing conditions can be vital to its success. Indeed, plasticity is a common feature of living organisms. Much of the research in this area, though, has focused on effects caused by environmental conditions. What has received relatively less attention is how social experiences and broader features of an organism’s social environment can lead to long-lasting changes in health and behavior. This knowledge gap exists despite the well-documented existence of health and behavioral effects after social interactions in certain taxa such as humans.

Social insects such as honey bees provide an excellent opportunity to better …

Understanding The Effects Of Age, Environmental Conditions, And Placement On Cockroach Gel Bait Performance, Isabelle Lucero

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

Cockroach baits are one of the most effective tools used for German cockroach (Blattella germanica L.) control. This is due in part to the number of cockroach baits on the market with various matrix compositions and active ingredients, aiding in the control of resistant (physiologically and behaviorally) cockroach populations through bait rotation. However, it remains unclear how cockroach gel baits perform over time and under different environmental conditions. Therefore, we aged six cockroach gel baits for varying times (24 hours, one month, three months, six months) and at three relative humidities (15%, 40%, and 80%), and tested their performance …

Linking Previous Experiences To Behavior And Health In The Honey Bee (Apis Mellifera), Rebecca R. Westwick

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

An organism’s ability to respond to changing conditions can be vital to its success. Indeed, plasticity is a common feature of living organisms. Much of the research in this area, though, has focused on effects caused by environmental conditions. What has received relatively less attention is how social experiences and broader features of an organism’s social environment can lead to long-lasting changes in health and behavior. This knowledge gap exists despite the well-documented existence of health and behavioral effects after social interactions in certain taxa such as humans.

Social insects such as honey bees provide an excellent opportunity to better …

Irreproducibility In Searches Of Scientific Literature: A Comparative Analysis, Gábor Pozsgai, Gábor L. Lövei, Liette Vasseur, Geoff Gurr, Péter Batáry, János Korponai, Nick A. Littlewood, Jian Liu, Arnold Móra, John J. Obrycki, Olivia Reynolds, Jenni A. Stockan, Heather Vanvolkenburg, Jie Zhang, Wenwu Zhou, Minsheng You

Entomology Faculty Publications

1. Repeatability is the cornerstone of science, and it is particularly important for systematic reviews. However, little is known on how researchers’ choice of database, and search platform influence the repeatability of systematic reviews. Here, we aim to unveil how the computer environment and the location where the search was initiated from influence hit results.
2. We present a comparative analysis of time-synchronized searches at different institutional locations in the world and evaluate the consistency of hits obtained within each of the search terms using different search platforms.
3. We revealed a large variation among search platforms and showed that PubMed and Scopus …

The Social Behavior Of Pine Sawflies In The Genus Neodiprion, John W. Terbot Ii

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

Group living is found across the animal kingdom ranging from temporary mating aggregations to complex, eusocial lifestyles. A particularly common form of group living found among insects are larval or nymphal herds. This lifestyle consists of immature insects living together and results in several proposed costs and benefits. Benefits of this lifestyle include improved ability to regulate a group’s microenvironment, more efficient use of their host, and the ability to engage in collective predator defenses. Offsetting these benefits are costs resulting from living in close proximity to conspecifics which include increased competition, greater visibility to predators, and heightened disease risks. …

Comparison Of Native And Non-Native Predator Consumption Rates And Prey Avoidance Behavior In North America And Europe, Ayse Gül Ünlü, John J. Obrycki, Roman Bucher

Entomology Faculty Publications

Novel predator–prey interactions can contribute to the invasion success of non-native predators. For example, native prey can fail to recognize and avoid non-native predators due to a lack of co-evolutionary history and cue dissimilarity with native predators. This might result in a competitive advantage for non-native predators. Numerous lady beetle species were globally redistributed as biological control agents against aphids, resulting in novel predator–prey interactions. Here, we investigated the strength of avoidance behavior of the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) toward chemical cues of native lady beetles and non-native Asian Harmonia axyridis and European Coccinella septempunctata and Hippodamia variegata …

Reproductive Compatibility Among Populations And Host‐Associated Lineages Of The Common Bed Bug (Cimex Lectularius L.), Zachary C. Devries, Richard G. Santangelo, Warren Booth, Christopher G. Lawrence, Ondřej Balvín, Tomáš Bartonička, Coby Schal

Entomology Faculty Publications

As populations differentiate across geographic or host‐association barriers, interpopulation fertility is often a measure of the extent of incipient speciation. The bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., was recently found to form two host‐associated lineages within Europe: one found with humans (human‐associated, HA) and the other found with bats (bat‐associated, BA). No unequivocal evidence of contemporary gene flow between these lineages has been found; however, it is unclear whether this is due to an inability to produce viable “hybrid” offspring. To address this question and determine the extent of compatibility between host‐associated lineages, we set up mating crosses among populations of …

Predicting Patterns Of Gene Family Evolution In Taxa With Similar Ecological Niches, Kim Vertacnik

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

To fully understand the genetic basis of adaptation, we need to know its predictability—the extent to which specific selective pressures and contexts can yield corresponding genetic changes. In particular, the repeated colonization of similar, specialized environments by different taxa is ideal for assessing the frequency of reoccurring changes in the same genes or functions. But compared to a growing body of literature on the convergent evolution of individual genes, far less is known about the repeatability of gene family evolution, where families (defined here as groups of genes that share sequence and functional similarity from common ancestry) can expand (gain …

Trade-Offs Shape Carotenoid-Based Color Variation In Redheaded Pine Sawfly (Neodiprion Lecontei) Larvae, Maranda Gaines

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

Carotenoids serve various ecological roles in animals including coloration, immune responses, and vision. Carotenoid-derived coloration is greatly emphasized in the literature, particularly relating to mate choice and aposematic warning. However, the trade-offs between the color and non-color functions of carotenoids are not thoroughly explored. In the redheaded pine sawfly (Neodiprion lecontei), some larval populations have yellow pigmentation, using carotenoids derived from their diets for aposematic warning coloration. Other larval populations are white in color, having genetically lost the ability to produce the yellow pigment. Because carotenoids are essential to life functions in both the yellow and white populations, we aim …

Patterns Of Authorship In Ecology And Evolution: First, Last, And Corresponding Authorship Vary With Gender And Geography, Charles W. Fox, Josiah P. Ritchey, C. E. Timothy Paine

Entomology Faculty Publications

The position of an author on the byline of a paper affects the inferences readers make about their contributions to the research. We examine gender differences in authorship in the ecology literature using two datasets: submissions to six journals between 2010 and 2015 (regardless of whether they were accepted), and manuscripts published by 151 journals between 2009 and 2015. Women were less likely to be last (i.e., “senior”) authors (averaging ~23% across journals, years, and datasets) and sole authors (~24%), but more likely to be first author (~38%), relative to their overall frequency of authorship (~31%). However, the proportion of …

Japanese Beetles’ Feeding On Milkweed Flowers May Compromise Efforts To Restore Monarch Butterfly Habitat, Adam M. Baker, Daniel A. Potter

Entomology Faculty Publications

The eastern North American migratory population of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) is in serious decline. Habitat restoration, including adding millions of host plants to compensate for loss of milkweed in US cropland, is a key part of the international conservation strategy to return this iconic butterfly to sustainable status. We report here that Popillia japonica, a polyphagous, invasive beetle, aggregates and feeds on flowers of Asclepias syriaca, the monarch’s most important larval food plant, reducing fruiting and seed set by >90% and extensively damaging milkweed umbels in the field. The beetle’s ongoing incursion into the monarch’s …

Cloning And Characterization Of A Pyrethroid Pesticide Decomposing Esterase Gene, Est3385, From Rhodopseudomonas Palustris Psb-S, Xiangwen Luo, Deyong Zhang, Xuguo Zhou, Jiao Du, Songbai Zhang, Yong Liu

Entomology Faculty Publications

Full length open reading frame of pyrethroid detoxification gene, Est3385, contains 963 nucleotides. This gene was identified and cloned based on the genome sequence of Rhodopseudomonas palustris PSB-S available at the GneBank. The predicted amino acid sequence of Est3385 shared moderate identities (30–46%) with the known homologous esterases. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that Est3385 was a member in the esterase family I. Recombinant Est3385 was heterologous expressed in E. coli, purified and characterized for its substrate specificity, kinetics and stability under various conditions. The optimal temperature and pH for Est3385 were 35 °C and 6.0, respectively. This enzyme could …

Advancing Behavioural Genomics By Considering Timescale, Clare C. Rittschof, Kimberly A. Hughes

Entomology Faculty Publications

Animal behavioural traits often covary with gene expression, pointing towards a genomic constraint on organismal responses to environmental cues. This pattern highlights a gap in our understanding of the time course of environmentally responsive gene expression, and moreover, how these dynamics are regulated. Advances in behavioural genomics explore how gene expression dynamics are correlated with behavioural traits that range from stable to highly labile. We consider the idea that certain genomic regulatory mechanisms may predict the timescale of an environmental effect on behaviour. This temporally minded approach could inform both organismal and evolutionary questions ranging from the remediation of early …

A Model Species For Agricultural Pest Genomics: The Genome Of The Colorado Potato Beetle, Leptinotarsa Decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), Sean D. Schoville, Yolanda H. Chen, Martin N. Andersson, Joshua B. Benoit, Anita Bhandari, Julia H. Bowsher, Kristian Brevik, Kaat Cappelle, Mei-Ju M. Chen, Anna K. Childers, Christopher Childers, Olivier Christiaens, Justin Clements, Elise M. Didion, Elena N. Elpidina, Patamarerk Engsontia, Markus Friedrich, Inmaculada García-Robles, Richard A. Gibbs, Chandan Goswami, Alessandro Grapputo, Kristina Gruden, Marcin Grynberg, Bernard Henrissat, Emily C. Jennings, Jeffery W. Jones, Megha Kalsi, Sher A. Khan, Abhishek Kumar, Fei Li, Vincent Lombard, Subba Reddy Palli, June-Sun Yoon

Entomology Faculty Publications

The Colorado potato beetle is one of the most challenging agricultural pests to manage. It has shown a spectacular ability to adapt to a variety of solanaceaeous plants and variable climates during its global invasion, and, notably, to rapidly evolve insecticide resistance. To examine evidence of rapid evolutionary change, and to understand the genetic basis of herbivory and insecticide resistance, we tested for structural and functional genomic changes relative to other arthropod species using genome sequencing, transcriptomics, and community annotation. Two factors that might facilitate rapid evolutionary change include transposable elements, which comprise at least 17% of the genome and …

Mitochondrial Phylogenomics Of Hemiptera Reveals Adaptive Innovations Driving The Diversification Of True Bugs, Hu Li, John Moeller Leavengood Jr., Eric G. Chapman, Daniel Burkhardt, Fan Song, Pei Jiang, Jinpeng Liu, Xuguo Zhou, Wanzhi Cai

Entomology Faculty Publications

Hemiptera, the largest non-holometabolous order of insects, represents approximately 7% of metazoan diversity. With extraordinary life histories and highly specialized morphological adaptations, hemipterans have exploited diverse habitats and food sources through approximately 300 Myr of evolution. To elucidate the phylogeny and evolutionary history of Hemiptera, we carried out the most comprehensive mitogenomics analysis on the richest taxon sampling to date covering all the suborders and infraorders, including 34 newly sequenced and 94 published mitogenomes. With optimized branch length and sequence heterogeneity, Bayesian analyses using a site-heterogeneous mixture model resolved the higher-level hemipteran phylogeny as (Sternorrhyncha, (Auchenorrhyncha, (Coleorrhyncha, Heteroptera))). Ancestral character …

Natural Enemies Partially Compensate For Warming Induced Excess Herbivory In An Organic Growth System, Orsolya Beleznai, Jamin Dreyer, Zoltán Tóth, Ferenc Samu

Entomology Faculty Publications

Predators can limit prey abundance and/or levels of activity. The magnitudes of these effects are contingent on predator and prey traits that may change with environmental conditions. Aberrant thermal regimes could disrupt pest suppression through asymmetric effects, e.g. heat-sensitive predator vs. heat-tolerant prey. To explore potential effects of warming on suppressing pests and controlling herbivory in a vegetable crop, we performed laboratory experiments exposing an important pest species to two spider predator species at different temperatures. Heat tolerance was characterised by the critical thermal maxima parameter (CTM50) of the cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata), wolf spider (Tigrosa helluo …

Life-Shortening Wolbachia Infection Reduces Population Growth Of Aedes Aegypti, Eunho Suh, David R. Mercer, Stephen L. Dobson

Entomology Faculty Publications

Wolbachia bacteria are being introduced into natural populations of vector mosquitoes, with the goal of reducing the transmission of human diseases such as Zika and dengue fever. The successful establishment of Wolbachia infection is largely dependent on the effects of Wolbachia infection to host fitness, but the effects of Wolbachia infection on the individual life-history traits of immature mosquitoes can vary. Here, the effects of life-shortening Wolbachia (wMelPop) on population growth of infected individuals were evaluated by measuring larval survival, developmental time and adult size of Aedes aegypti in intra- (infected or uninfected only) and inter-group (mixed with …

A Window Of Opportunity: Subdominant Predators Can Use Suboptimal Prey, Kelly A. Jackson, Joshua S. Mccord, Jennifer A. White

Entomology Faculty Publications

Introduced species have been linked to declines of native species through mechanisms including intraguild predation and exploitative competition. However, coexistence among species may be promoted by niche partitioning if native species can use resources that the invasive species cannot. Previous research has shown that some strains of the aphid Aphis craccivora are toxic to a competitively dominant invasive lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis. Our objective was to investigate whether these aphids might be an exploitable resource for other, subdominant, lady beetle species. We compared larval development rate, survival, and adult weight of five lady beetle species in no-choice experiments with …

Social Buffering In A Eusocial Invertebrate: Termite Soldiers Reduce The Lethal Impact Of Competitor Cues On Workers, Li Tian, Evan L. Preisser, Kenneth F. Haynes, Xuguo Zhou

Entomology Faculty Publications

While the impact of predator‐induced stress on prey has received considerable attention, there has been far less research into the effect of competitors. Cues from aggressive competitors should be particularly likely to evoke behavioral and/or physiological responses, since they may be indicative of both direct (interference) and indirect (exploitative) threats. The danger posed by such competitors, and the “fear” they evoke, should be reduced at lower competitor densities and by the presence of individual conspecifics specialized for defense. We assessed how Reticulitermes flavipes termite workers and soldiers were affected by cues from conspecific nestmates, conspecific non‐nestmates, and the heterospecific competitor …

Recruitment Of Reviewers Is Becoming Harder At Some Journals: A Test Of The Influence Of Reviewer Fatigue At Six Journals In Ecology And Evolution, Charles W. Fox, Arianne Y. K. Albert, Timothy H. Vines

Entomology Faculty Publications

Background: It is commonly reported by editors that it has become harder to recruit reviewers for peer review and that this is because individuals are being asked to review too often and are experiencing reviewer fatigue. However, evidence supporting these arguments is largely anecdotal.

Main body: We examine responses of individuals to review invitations for six journals in ecology and evolution. The proportion of invitations that lead to a submitted review has been decreasing steadily over 13 years (2003–2015) for four of the six journals examined, with a cumulative effect that has been quite substantial (average decline from 56% of …

Examining The Role Of Host Use On Divergence In The Redheaded Pine Sawfly, Neodiprion Lecontei, Across Multiple Spatial Scales, Robin Kimberly Bagley

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

Phytophagous insects make up over one quarter of described species on Earth, and this incredible diversity seems directly linked to feeding on plants. Comparative studies of sister groups have shown shifts to herbivory are consistently associated with increased species diversity in insects, but the reasons for this diversification remain unclear. While other explanations, such as decreased extinction rates or influences on population structure, exist, one prominent hypothesis suggests shifts and subsequent adaptation to novel host plants can lead to the evolution of reproductive barriers.

Given their extreme specialization on host plants in the genus Pinus and intimate, life-long association with …

Genome Of The Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anoplophora Glabripennis), A Globally Significant Invasive Species, Reveals Key Functional And Evolutionary Innovations At The Beetle-Plant Interface, Duane D. Mckenna, Erin D. Scully, Yannick Pauchet, Kelli Hoover, Roy Kirsch, Scott M. Geib, Robert F. Mitchell, Robert M. Waterhouse, Seung-Joon Ahn, Deanna Arsala, Joshua B. Benoit, Heath Blackmon, Tiffany Bledsoe, Julia H. Bowsher, André Busch, Bernarda Calla, Hsu Chao, Anna K. Childers, Christopher Childers, Dave J. Clarke, Lorna Cohen, Jeffery P. Demuth, Huyen Dinh, Harshavardhan Doddapaneni, Amanda Dolan, Jian J. Duan, Shannon Dugan, Markus Friedrich, Karl M. Glastad, Michael A. D. Goodisman, Stephanie Haddad, Yi Han, Daniel S. T. Hughes, Panagiotis Ioannidis, J. Spencer Johnston, Jeffery W. Jones, Leslie A. Kuhn, David R. Lance, Chien-Yueh Lee, Sandra L. Lee, Han Lin, Jeremy A. Lynch, Armin P. Moczek, Shwetha C. Murali, Donna M. Muzny, David R. Nelson, Subba R. Palli, Kristen A. Panfilio, Dan Pers, Monica F. Poelchau, Honghu Quan, Jiaxin Qu, Ann M. Ray, Joseph P. Rinehart, Hugh M. Robertson, Richard Roehrdanz, Andrew J. Rosendale, Seunggwan Shin, Christian Silva, Alex S. Torson, Iris M. Vargas Jentzsch, John H. Werren, Kim C. Worley, George Yocum, Evgeny M. Zdobnov, Richard A. Gibbs, Stephen Richards

Entomology Faculty Publications

Background: Relatively little is known about the genomic basis and evolution of wood-feeding in beetles. We undertook genome sequencing and annotation, gene expression assays, studies of plant cell wall degrading enzymes, and other functional and comparative studies of the Asian longhorned beetle, Anoplophora glabripennis, a globally significant invasive species capable of inflicting severe feeding damage on many important tree species. Complementary studies of genes encoding enzymes involved in digestion of woody plant tissues or detoxification of plant allelochemicals were undertaken with the genomes of 14 additional insects, including the newly sequenced emerald ash borer and bull-headed dung beetle.

Results: …

Multiple Lines Of Evidence From Mitochondrial Genomes Resolve Phylogenetic Relationships Of Parasitic Wasps In Braconidae, Qian Li, Shu-Jun Wei, Pu Tang, Qiong Wu, Min Shi, Michael J. Sharkey, Xue-Xin Chen

Entomology Faculty Publications

The rapid increase in the number of mitochondrial genomes in public databases provides opportunities for insect phylogenetic studies; but it also provides challenges because of gene rearrangements and variable substitution rates among both lineages and sites. Typically, phylogenetic studies use mitochondrial sequence data but exclude other features of the mitochondrial genome from analyses. Here, we undertook large-scale sequencing of mitochondrial genomes from a worldwide collection of specimens belonging to Braconidae, one of the largest families of Metazoa. The strand-asymmetry of base composition in the mitochondrial genomes of braconids is reversed, providing evidence for monophyly of the Braconidae. We have reconstructed …

Influence Of Structural Disturbance On Stream Function And Macroinvertebrate Communities In Upper Coastal Plain Headwater Streams, Richard Andrew Biemiller

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

Freshwater is a resource under threat due to anthropogenic actions. Stream restoration is a common method for mitigating disturbance. Inconsistent methodologies used for evaluating restorations have drawn criticism. Limited use of baseline data for guiding stream restoration activities is of particular concern. This study was developed to elucidate metrics that differentiate reference and disturbed sites in Upper Coastal Plain streams. This information could improve resource use and successes of restorations. Structural and functional variables were examined in 10 reference and 10 streams that meet the traditional definition of disturbance and would be restoration priorities. Disturbed streams were classified into two …

Grassland Sustainability In Kentucky: Case Studies Quantifying The Effects Of Climate Change On Slug Herbivory In Pastures And Different Home Lawn Systems On Turf Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Daniel Adam Weber

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Grasslands comprise the greatest biome by land area, are sensitive to environmental factors affected by climate change, and can impact future climate change through their ability to store and release greenhouse gasses (GHGs). I performed two studies: 1) evaluated the effects of increased temperature and precipitation on slug herbivory/abundance and pasture forage production; 2) quantified different homeowner lawn system effects on soil-to-atmosphere GHG emissions. Climate change will likely affect pasture forage production, with implications for slug herbivory and abundance. I found little evidence that slugs have or will have significant effects on pasture production or plant community. Warming altered the …

Exploring The Links Between Seasonal Variation And Spider Foraging, Thomas Edward Dantas Whitney

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

According to optimal foraging theory, generalist predators, such as spiders, are thought to feed indiscriminately on prey according to its availability, especially when food is scarce. In contrast, generalists can display selective feeding decisions under regimes of high prey abundance, but few studies have tracked changes in prey choice on a seasonal basis under open field conditions. Additionally, adaptations to surviving winter have been largely ignored in the research of foraging behavior. To elucidate this, I monitored prey availability and collected common forest-dwelling wolf spiders for molecular gut-content analysis, in parallel for 18 months, to assess the temporal changes occurring …

Selective Utilization Of Microhabitats By Web-Building Spiders, Kelton D. Welch

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

Natural enemies are members of complex ecological communities, and their ability to contribute to the biological control of pest organisms is strongly influenced by a convoluted network of ecological interactions with many other organisms within these communities. Researchers must develop an understanding of the mechanisms that shape trophic webs to predict and promote top-down effects of predators. The behavior of predators can have a strong influence on their potential as biological control agents.

Web-building spiders are a useful example organism for the study of natural enemy behavior because of the experimentally tractable nature of their foraging behavior. Specifically, patterns in …

Natural Selection On Body Size Is Mediated By Multiple Interacting Factors: A Comparison Of Beetle Populations Varying Naturally And Experimentally In Body Size, Angela R. Amarillo-Suárez, R Craig Stillwell, Charles W. Fox

Entomology Faculty Publications

Body size varies considerably among species and among populations within species, exhibiting many repeatable patterns. However, which sources of selection generate geographic patterns, and which components of fitness mediate evolution of body size, are not well understood. For many animals, resource quality and intraspecific competition may mediate selection on body size producing large-scale geographic patterns. In two sequential experiments, we examine how variation in larval competition and resource quality (seed size) affects the fitness consequences of variation in body size in a scramble-competing seed-feeding beetle, Stator limbatus. Specifically, we compared fitness components among three natural populations of S. limbatus …