Physiological influences on wood-destroying insects of wood compounds and substances produced by microorganisms

Summary Wood-destroying insects react to and depend regarding their nutrition on compounds contained in wood or produced by microorganisms in wood. This relation is a complex matter in the biology of the insects and the chemistry of wood and of the metabolism of woodinhabiting microorganisms. Results on the reaction of Coleoptera and Isoptera to attractive or repellent compounds in wood species or substances produced by fungi in wood are reviewed with emphasis to differences among various insect species. Nutrition of wood-destroying insects depends on nitrogen compounds of the wood; the content of nitrogen can be increased by the presence of fungi. Existing results on the relation between microorganisms and insects are also summarized including toxicity or parasitic influence of part of the microorganisms on insects. The survey may stimulate further investigations which are necessary for better knowledge of the complex interrelations.Prepared for the Convention of the International Academy of Wood Science at Raleigh (S.-Carol., USA) in March 1971.     

Zur Repellentwirkung von Königskerzen auf Hausmäuse

Zusammenfassung Nach einer Mitteilung aus dem Ende des 18. Jahrhunderts sollen sich in Blüte stehende Pflanzen vonVerbascum thapsus als Mittel zur Vertreibung vonMus musculus undRattus norvegicus eignen. Eine Nachprüfung dieser Empfehlung mitV. thapsus, lychnitis undthapsiforme anMus verlief negativ.

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Summary At the end of the eighteenth centuryGoeze reports about the action ofVerbascum thapsus as a repellent againstMus musculus andRattus norvegicus. A revision of this information withV. thapsus, lychnitis andthapsiforme andMus musculus as test animals does not confirm his findings.

     

Medicinal and aromatic plants in agroforestry systems

Agroforestry Systems - A large number of people in developing countries have traditionally depended on products derived from plants, especially from forests, for curing human and livestock...     

Tapered conduits can buffer hydraulic conductance from path-length effects

The model of West, Brown and Enquist showed that total hydraulic resistance in trees can be independent of path length, provided that vascular conduits taper sufficiently. This model assumes that the tree branch network is volume-filling, so that segment lengths increase exponentially from tree top to base. We show that partial buffering of hydraulic resistance from path-length effects can occur even for moderate tapering, and that this effect is stronger when segment lengths are fixed. Still needed are measurements of tracheary size and hydraulic resistance designed to test this model, which shows how hydraulic limitation of tree height growth may be mitigated.     

Ergebnisse einer Probebekämpfung verwilderter Haustauben

Zusammenfassung Bei einer Probebek?mpfung verwilderter Haustauben an 7 verschiedenen ?rtlichkeiten von West-Berlin wurden 418 Tiere get?tet, von denen anschlie?end durch Sektion Geschlecht und Alter festgestellt wurde. Bei den Jungtauben war das Geschlechtsverh?ltnis fast ausgeglichen, w?hrend unter den alten Tauben die M?nnchen stark in der überzahl waren. Diese einseitige Verschiebung der Geschlechtsproportion beruht vornehmlich darauf, da? z. Zt. der Bek?mpfung noch viele Weibchen auf ihren Nestern sa?en und nicht zur Futterstelle gekommen waren. Das verschiedene Verhalten der einzelnen Taubenschw?rme w?hrend der Fütterung wird beschrieben.

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Summary A campaign against feral pigeons on 7 public places in Berlin-West has had a result of 418 dead animals. The carcasses were sexed and aged. In the entire sample each sex of the young pigeons was represented in a fairly eaqual proportion. Among the mature pigeons the males dominated considerably. This is a result of the breeding behaviour in so far, as during the control measures early in the morning the doves were still sitting on their nests and did not appear on the feeding places. The different behaviour of the flocks during their feeding was discussed.

     

Die Wirksamkeit von Isomeren des Hexachlorcyclohexans gegen holzzerstörende Käferlarven

Zusammenfassung Es wurde die Giftwirknng der α-, β-, γ- und δ-Isomeren des Hexachlorcyclohexans gegenüber Eilarven des Hausbockk?fers (Hylotrupes bajulus L.) und mittelgro?en Larven des Gew?hnlichen Nagek?fers (Anobium punctatum De Geer) bestimmt. Gegenüber beiden Larvenarten erwies sich das λ-Isomere erwartnngsgema? als der bei weitem wirksamste Stoff. Danach folgt, je nach den Versuchsbedingungen um den Faktor 10 bis 20100 schlechter, unerwartet das α-Isomere. Das δ- und noch ausgepr?gter das β-Isomere sind bedeutend weniger wirksam. Der Unterschied gegenüber dem γ-Isomeren liegt für Hausbock-Eilarven in der Gro?enordnung von 1500 und 80000; für Anobien-Larven ist er mit < 500 geringer. Das Ergebnis mit dem α-Isomeren ist beachtenswert.

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Summary The toxicity of the α-, β-, γ-, and δ-isomers of hexachlorocyclohexane towards egg-larvae of the Old House Borer (Hylotrupes bajulus L.) and medium-sized larvae of the Common Furniture Beetle (Anobium punctatum De Geer) was determined. As was to be expected, the γ-,isomer proved by far most effective against both species of larvae. Then, unexpectedly, the α-isomer follows, inferior by the factor 10 to 2000 according to the testing conditions. The δ- and, even more distinctly, the β-isomer show a considerably smaller efficiency. The difference to the γ-isomer amounts to a relation of 1500 and 80000 withHylotrupes egg-larvae; it is smaller (<500) withAnobium larvae. The result obtained with the α-isomer is remarkable.

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Résumé L'effet toxique des α-, β-, γ-, et δ-isomères du chlorocyclo-hexane contre des ovule-larves desHylotrupes bajulus L. et contre des larves de moyenne grandeur del'Anobium punctatum De Geer fut déterminé. Comme supposé, le γ-isomère était bien la plus efficace substance. Inattendu, le α-isomère, suit, selon les conditions d'essai plus mauvaises du facteur 10 à 2000. Le δ-isomè re et plus distinctement le β-isomère sont efficaces beaucoup moins. La différence entre ces derniers et les γ-isomères est de 1500 et 80000 pour des larves deHylotrupes bajulus L.; elle e'st moindre (< 500) pour des larves del'Anobium punctatum De Geer.

     

Characteristics of monoclonal antibodies against Piscirickettsia salmonis

A panel of 28 monoclonal antibodies against Piscirickettsia salmonis was produced using a purified fraction of the bacterium. To determine their specificity to the pathogen, the antibodies were assayed by ELISA and indirect immunofluorescence microscopy. Six monoclonal antibodies were selected based on their strong reaction against P. salmonis and absence of cross-reactivity with other common fish pathogens. Western blot analysis showed that the antibodies reacted to several antigens of P. salmonis . Immunofluorescence assays revealed that these antibodies reacted with the same specificity to different isolates of P. salmonis obtained from the south of Chile. This panel of monoclonal antibodies represents an important tool to develop simple, rapid, sensitive and highly specific methods for the detection of the pathogen and diagnosis of the disease.