We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Prey availability in time and space is a driving force in life history evolution of predatory insects.
- Authors
Borges, Isabel; Soares, António; Magro, Alexandra; Hemptinne, Jean-Louis
- Abstract
Environmental constraints can be determinant key factors conditioning predator life history evolution. Prey seems to have conditioned life history evolution in their ladybird predator, with the predators of aphids apparently presenting faster development, greater fecundity and shorter longevity than species preying on coccids. However a rigorous comparison has never been done. We hypothesize that aphids and coccids differ by their developmental rate, abundance, and distribution in the field, which act as ecological constraints promoting life history evolution in ladybird predators. Field data reveal that aphids are ephemeral resources available in the form of large colonies randomly distributed in the habitat whereas coccids form smaller colonies that tend to be aggregated in space and available for longer periods. A comparison in laboratory conditions of two predatory species belonging to the tribe Scymnini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) show that the aphidophagous species lives at a faster pace than the coccidophagous: it develops faster, matures earlier, is more fecund, has a shorter reproductive life-span and allocate proportionally more fat in its gonads relative to soma. This indicates that the life histories of aphidophagous and coccidophagous ladybird predators appear to have evolved in response to particular patterns of prey availability in time and space. Under the light of these results, the existence of a slow-fast continuum in ladybirds is briefly addressed.
- Subjects
PREY availability; LIFE history theory; PREDATORY insects; LADYBUGS; BIOLOGICAL control of aphids; FERTILITY; PLANT habitats
- Publication
Evolutionary Ecology, 2011, Vol 25, Issue 6, p1307
- ISSN
0269-7653
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s10682-011-9481-y