Structure and Dynamics of Herbivore Communities in Oak Hybrid Zones

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This research will contribute to the theory of insect-plant interactions by examining patterns of insect attack in host plant hybrid zones. Communities of gall-forming wasps and leaf-mining moths will be examined in 15 oak hybrid zones in Mexico and the Southwestern United States. Densities of insects on hybrid trees will be compared to those on non-hybrid trees. The research will elucidate factors that influence insect attack in plant hybrid zones. Factors to be examined include: geographic structure of hybrid zones, taxonomic relationships between parental oak species, and morphological relationships between parental oak species. Mechanistic hypotheses will be formulated that explain differences in insect attack between hybrid and non-hybrid plants. Important insights will be gained into how insect faunas accrue on host plants. These ideas will contribute to understanding whether hybrid zones act as a sink for herbivores, an important issue in plant-herbivore interaction theory. From an applied perspective, results of the research will bear directly on key questions regarding the response of herbivorous insects to genetically altered crop plants and hybrid zones which may be near agricultural areas.