Long & Medium Term Research: Foraging and Sex Allocation Behavior of an Autoparasitoid in a Spatially-Structured Environment

长期中期研究：觅食和性别分配 自寄生蜂在空间结构中的行为 环境 该奖项是根据长期计划提出的。 &在国外卓越中心的中期研究。 的 该计划旨在使美国科学家和工程师能够 在国外的研究机构进行长期研究， 证明卓越。 奖项提供了机会， 进行联合研究，并使用独特或复杂的。 实验设施、专业知识和实验条件 国外 这个奖项是为了表彰大卫皮门特尔博士 将支持为期六个半月的博士后研究 访问英国的玛莎博士。猎人工作 与希尔伍德帝国学院的H. C. J.戈弗雷博士 帕克，关于“一种哺乳动物的觅食和性别分配行为”， 空间结构寄主环境中的自寄生蜂" 被称为“自动寄生蜂”的寄生蜂提供了一种独特的 一个检验费雪（1930）进化论的机会 的性别比例。 费雪原理，生物体应该 对男女平等投资通常会导致1：1的性别 比例 然而，在自寄生蜂中，雄性和雌性 在不同的主机奠定;因此，“成本”的每一个性别和 预测的性比随宿主环境的变化而变化。 在高的总宿主密度下，黄蜂应该是卵有限的， 在数量较少的宿主中产卵， 产生接近1：1的性别比例。 在低主机 密度，黄蜂应该是寄主限制和简单的产卵 当它们遇到宿主时， 这反映了两种宿主类型的相对丰度。 研究者建议测试Fisher's的这种扩展， 理论与自寄生Encarsia tricolor在 空间结构化的主机环境。 她特别 将评估相对可用性的影响， 两个主机类型，总主机密度，和空间结构， 宿主种群的性别比例。 由于性别分配是 在决定自寄生的种群动态方面， 总之，这项研究将有助于弥合性别之间的差距。 比例理论和人口动态，并将有助于 评价作为生物防治剂的自体寄生物种类。 授标建议提供资金， 适当的，国际旅行，出国当地旅行， 津贴，家属津贴（如适用）和公寓 美国本土机构的行政津贴为250美元。

Long & Medium-Term Research: Foraging and Sex Allocation Behavior of An Autoparasitoid in A Spatially-Structured Environment. This award recommendation is made under the Program for Long & Medium-Term Research at Foreign Centers of Excellence. The program seeks to enable U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct long-term research abroad at research institutions of proven excellence. Awards provide opportunities for the conduct of joint research, and the use of unique or comple. mentary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions in foreign countries. This award for a proposal sponsored by Dr. David Pimentel will support a six-and-one-half month-post-doctoral research visit to the United Kingdom by Dr. Martha S. Hunter to work with Dr. H.C.J. Godfray at the Imperial College at Silwood Park, on "Foraging and Sex Allocation Behavior of An Autoparasitoid in A Spatially-Structured Host Environment." Parasitic wasps called "autoparasitoids" offer a unique opportunity to test Fisher's (1930) theory on the evolution of the sex ratio. Fisher's principle that organisms should invest equally in each sex generally leads to a 1:1 sex ratio. In autoparasitoids, however, males and females are laid in different hosts; thus the "cost" of each sex and the predicted sex ratio varies with the changing host environment. At high total host densities, wasps should be egg-limited, and prefer to oviposit in the less abundant host type, thus producing a sex ratio which is close to 1:1. At low host densities, wasps should be host-limited and simply oviposit in hosts as they encounter them, thus producing a sex ratio which reflects the relative abundance of the two host types. The investigator proposes to test this extension of Fisher's theory with the autoparasitoid Encarsia tricolor in a spatially structured host environment. In particular, she will evaluate the effects of the relative availability of the two host types, total host density, and spatial structure of the host population on sex ratio. Since sex allocation is central in determining the population dynamics of autoparasi- toids, this research will help bridge the gap between sex ratio theory and population dynamics, and will contribute to evaluating autoparasitoid species as biological control agents. The award recommendation provides funds to cover, as appropriate, international travel, local travel abroad, stipend, dependents' allowance if applicable, and a flat administrative allowance of $250 for the U.S. home institution.