Herbivory in Oak Hybrid Zones: General Patterns, Genetic Relationships, and Mechanisms

这项研究将检查宿主的食草模式 混合区 提出了三个相关项目， 阐明了一个瘿蜂叶矿物橡树系统：1）遗传 栎属杂种区的结构; 2）食草动物密度格局 和物种多样性的各种杂交组合，和3） 食草动物负荷变化的机制 在橡树杂种区域内的寄主分类群。 一种相互关联， 实验和分子遗传学方法。的 设计了相关分析和实验分析来验证三个 相互排斥的假设，关于模式的草食性， 主持混合区。基因分析将引入一种新的 植物-昆虫生态学RAPD技术 多态性DNA），这将区分三个竞争 渐渗杂交模型和寄主对 寄生虫 这项工作对 引进杂交和基因工程农业 农作物，以及保护受威胁的濒危物种 通过种间杂交。

The research will examine patterns of herbivory in host hybrid zones. Three related projects are proposed that will elucidate for a gall wasp-leaf miner-oak system: 1) the genetic structure of oak hybrid zones, 2) patterns of herbivore density and species diversity in a variety of hybrid combinations, and 3) mechanisms responsible for variation in herbivore loads between host taxa within oak hybrid zones. A combination of correlative, experimental, and molecular genetic approaches are proposed. The correlative and experimental analyses are designed to test three mutually exclusive hypotheses regarding patterns of herbivory in host hybrid zones. The genetic analysis will introduce a new technique to plant-insect ecology, RAPD (for Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA), that will distinguish among three competing models of introgressive hybridization and host susceptibility to parasites. The work has important implications for the introduction of hybrid and genetically engineered agricultural crops, and for the conservation of endangered species threatened by interspecific hybridization.