Ovipositor length of threeApocrypta species: Effect on oviposition behavior and correlation with syconial thickness

We investigated oviposition behavior in three non-pollinating fig wasps: the sympatric speciesApocrypta bakeri Joseph onFicus hispida L.,A. westwoodi Grandi onF. racemosa L., andApocrypta sp. onF. semicordata Buch.-Ham. The oviposition behavior differs significantly between one pair of species (A. bakeri andA. westwoodi) and the other species (Apocrypta sp. onF. semicordata).A. bakeri andA. westwoodi were similar in the following aspects: the posture of the abdomen and the action of the hind legs before penetration, and the bending ovipositor sheath during penetration. In contrast, the oviposition behavior ofApocrypta sp. is quite different. This difference can be explained by the significant correlation between ovipositor length and syconial thickness.Apocrypta sp. has a shorter ovipositor than the two other species, which correlates with the thinner syconial wall of its host figF. semicordata. It is deduced that the ovipositor length adapts to the syconial thickness and induces the oviposition behavior in the different species to diverge. For all threeApocrypta species, the midleg length and hindleg length are significantly correlated with their ovipositor lengths. This may be explained as due to the fact that body movement adjusting the hindlegs and midlegs up and down, or forward and backward, is also influenced by the ovipositor length.     

昆虫神经肽类激素的研究及应用前景

由昆虫脑神经内分泌细胞分泌的神经肽类激素 ,咽侧体活化激素 (allatotropin ,AT)和咽侧体抑制激素 (al latostatin ,AS) ,分别刺激或抑制咽侧体的保幼激素的生物合成 ,从而控制昆虫的生长、发育和变态。利用昆虫神经内分泌的失调 ,使其体内激素水平失调 ,来达到控制害虫的目的。     

O3对日光温室黄瓜病虫害的防治效果

通过室内与大田试验，明确O3对日光温室黄瓜病虫害的防治效果。研究结果表明，在病害发生初期，用O3发生器隔天施放O3，每天施放3次，每次40min，间隔20min，O3浓度维持约1mg／kg，施放后7天，对黄瓜霜霉病、白粉病、细菌性角斑病及灰霉病防治效果分别为63．4％、53．6％、68．7％和65．0％。室内施放O3 60s，间隔20min，持续12h，对温室白粉虱、南美斑潜蝇成虫杀伤力为100％。O3对黄瓜植株安全，但随着黄瓜生育期的推进，对O3的忍受能力依次减弱。苗期忍耐O3最大浓度为1～2mg／kg，结果期0．4～1mg/kg，后期0．2～0．4mg／kg。O3防治黄瓜病虫害新技术具有安全、有效、方便、无二次污染等特点，尤其在黄瓜定植前对棚室进行大剂量消毒，可不留死角，且有效地解决了硫磺等药物消毒所造成棚内一些设施的破坏及对生态环境污染的难题，具有广阔的推广应用前景。     

棉酚和单宁酸对棉铃虫幼虫生长和消化生理的影响

作者利用昆虫人工饲料测试了棉酚和单宁酸对棉铃虫幼虫生长、营养指标以及中肠主要蛋白酶活力的影响。结果表明,棉酚和单宁酸均能显著地抑制幼虫的生长,但二者之间无交互作用,其中单宁酸的作用较棉酚强。含3％棉酚或单宁酸的人工饲料,饲喂4龄幼虫48h后,可引起幼虫近似消化率减小和食物转化率增大,但食物利用率无显著变化。棉酚在离体条件下对类胰蛋白酶和类胰凝乳蛋白酶活力有不同程度的抑制作用,但在活体条件下,上述酶活力无显著变化,仅有中肠总蛋白酶活力下降。单宁酸在离体条件下对类胰蛋白酶有抑制作用,而对类胰凝乳蛋白酶活力无作用:在活体条件下,仅总蛋白酶活力和弱碱性类胰蛋白酶活力显著下降。由此可知,棉酚和单宁酸对棉铃虫的生长抑制作用与幼虫中肠蛋白酶活力和食物消化率的降低有关。     

农业外来生物入侵种研究现状与发展趋势

目前国际上对外来生物入侵种的研究主要在个体水平上研究外来种对新环境的进化与适应,本地种对生物入侵后发生的进化调整;种群和群落水平上研究外来种的定居、潜伏、竞争和暴发;生态系统水平上研究生境的可入侵性和外来种对生态系统结构和功能的影响等几个方面。风险分析标准化与定量化、检疫鉴定快速化、除害技术安全化、信息管理全球化是全世界对外来物种入侵管理与科研的焦点问题。本文依据外来物种入侵的形成和扩散暴发过程,提出了超前预防和综合管理等未来需要解决的关键问题。     

Influence of the root endophyte Piriformospora indica on the plant water relations,gas exchange and growth of Chenopodium quinoa at limited water availability

This study aimed to evaluate the ability of Piriformospora indica to colonize the root of Chenopodium quinoa and to verify whether this endosymbiont can improve the growth, performance and drought resistance of this species. The study delivered, for the first time, evidence for successful colonization of P. indica in quinoa. Hence, pot experiment was conducted in the greenhouse, where inoculated and non‐inoculated plants were subjected to ample (40%–50% WHC) and deficit (15%–20%WHC) irrigation treatments. Drought adversely influenced the plant growth, leading to decline the total plant biomass by 74%. This was linked to an impaired photosynthetic activity (caused by lower g_s and C_i/C_a ratio; stomatal limitation of photosynthesis) and a higher risk of ROS production (enhanced ETR/A_gross ratio). P. indica colonization improved quinoa plant growth, with total biomass increased by 8% (controls) and 76% (drought‐stressed plants), confirming the growth‐promoting activity of P. indica. Fungal colonization seems to diminish drought‐induced growth hindrance, likely, through an improved water balance, reflected by the higher leaf ψ_w and g_s. Additionally, stomatal limitation of photosynthesis was alleviated (indicated by enhanced C_i/C_a ratio and A_net), so that the threat of oxidative stress was minimized (decreased ETR/A_gross). These results infer that symbiosis with P. indica could negate some of the detrimental effects of drought on quinoa growth, a highly desired feature, in particular at low water availability.     

Impact of soil engineering by two contrasting species of earthworms on their dispersal rates

By burrowing galleries and producing casts, earthworms are constantly changing the structure and properties of the soils in which they are living. These changes modify the costs and benefits for earthworms to stay in the environment they modify. In this paper, we measured experimentally how dispersal behaviour of endogeic and anecic earthworms responds to the cumulative changes they made in soil characteristics. The influence of earthworm activities on dispersal was studied in standardised mesocosms by comparing the influence of soils modified or not modified by earthworm activities on earthworm dispersal rates.The cumulative use of the soil by the earthworms strongly modified soil physical properties. The height of the soil decreased over time and the amount of aggregates smaller than 2 mm decreased in contrast to aggregates larger than 5 mm that increased. We found that: (i) earthworm activities significantly modified soil physical properties (such as bulk density, soil strength and soil aggregation) and decreased significantly the dispersal rates of the endogeic species, whatever the species that modified the soil; (ii) the decreasing in the dispersal proportion of the endogeic species suggests that the cost of engineering activities may be higher than the one of dispersal; (iii) the dispersal of the anecic species appeared to be not influenced by its own activities (intra-specific influences) or by the activities of the endogeic species (inter-specific influences). Overall these results suggest that the endogeic species is involved in a process of niche construction, which evolved jointly with its dispersal strategy.     

Shifts in microbial diversity through land use intensity as drivers of carbon mineralization in soil

Land use practices alter the biomass and structure of soil microbial communities. However, the impact of land management intensity on soil microbial diversity (i.e. richness and evenness) and consequences for functioning is still poorly understood. Here, we addressed this question by coupling molecular characterization of microbial diversity with measurements of carbon (C) mineralization in soils obtained from three locations across Europe, each representing a gradient of land management intensity under different soil and environmental conditions. Bacterial and fungal diversity were characterized by high throughput sequencing of ribosomal genes. Carbon cycling activities (i.e., mineralization of autochthonous soil organic matter, mineralization of allochthonous plant residues) were measured by quantifying ¹²C- and ¹³C-CO₂ release after soils had been amended, or not, with ¹³C-labelled wheat residues. Variation partitioning analysis was used to rank biological and physicochemical soil parameters according to their relative contribution to these activities. Across all three locations, microbial diversity was greatest at intermediate levels of land use intensity, indicating that optimal management of soil microbial diversity might not be achieved under the least intensive agriculture. Microbial richness was the best predictor of the C-cycling activities, with bacterial and fungal richness explaining 32.2 and 17% of the intensity of autochthonous soil organic matter mineralization; and fungal richness explaining 77% of the intensity of wheat residues mineralization. Altogether, our results provide evidence that there is scope for improvement in soil management to enhance microbial biodiversity and optimize C transformations mediated by microbial communities in soil.