Robert W. Pemberton

Matching the origin of an invasive weed for selection of a herbivore haplotype for a biological control programme

The Florida Everglades have been invaded by an exotic weed fern, Lygodium microphyllum. Across its native distribution in the Old World tropics from Africa to Australasia it was found to have multiple location‐specific haplotypes. Within this distribution, the climbing fern is attacked by a phytophagous mite, Floracarus perrepae, also with multiple haplotypes. The genetic relationship between mite and fern haplotypes was matched by an overarching geographical relationship between the two. Further, mites that occur in the same location as a particular fern haplotype were better able to utilize the fern than mites from more distant locations. From a biological control context, we are able to show that the weed fern in the Everglades most likely originated in northern Queensland, Australia/Papua New Guinea and that the mite from northern Queensland offers the greatest prospect for control.

Insects and other arthropods used as drugs in Korean traditional medicine.

Insects and other arthropods appear in pharmacopoeias of Korean traditional medicine, but little was known about their use in modern South Korea. Interviews were conducted with 20 traditional medicine doctors at clinics in South Koreas Kyeong Dong Shijang in Seoul--one of the worlds largest traditional drug markets--to learn about current patterns of usage. Seventeen products are prescribed and the use of arthropod drugs is stable or increasing. Centipedes (Scolopendra spp.) used primarily to treat arthritis and the silk moth fungus (Beauveria bassiana, which infects silk moth larvae) used mostly to treat stroke, are the most frequently prescribed and medically important arthropod drugs. Most of the arthropod drugs were traditionally collected or reared on the Korean Peninsula, but now they are imported, mainly from China. Folk logic appears to be the basis for some arthropod drug uses (i.e. centipedes, which have many legs, are used for leg problems). But many of the arthropods have venom and other defensive chemicals which are biologically active. The South Korean use of arthropods as drugs (as well as for food and enjoyment) is due, in part, to more positive attitudes towards these animals compared to many cultures. Arthropods appear to be an unexplored and unexploited source of drugs for modern medicine.

Marketing time predicts naturalization of horticultural plants.

Horticulture is an important source of naturalized plants, but our knowledge about naturalization frequencies and potential patterns of naturalization in horticultural plants is limited. We analyzed a unique set of data derived from the detailed sales catalogs (1887-1930) of the most important early Florida, USA, plant nursery (Royal Palm Nursery) to detect naturalization patterns of these horticultural plants in the state. Of the 1903 nonnative species sold by the nursery, 15% naturalized. The probability of plants becoming naturalized increases significantly with the number of years the plants were marketed. Plants that became invasive and naturalized were sold for an average of 19.6 and 14.8 years, respectively, compared to 6.8 years for non-naturalized plants, and the naturalization of plants sold for 30 years or more is 70%. Unexpectedly, plants that were sold earlier were less likely to naturalize than those sold later. The nurserys inexperience, which caused them to grow and market many plants unsuited to Florida during their early period, may account for this pattern. Plants with pantropical distributions and those native to both Africa and Asia were more likely to naturalize (42%), than were plants native to other smaller regions, suggesting that plants with large native ranges were more likely to naturalize. Naturalization percentages also differed according to plant life form, with the most naturalization occurring in aquatic herbs (36.8%) and vines (30.8%). Plants belonging to the families Araceae, Apocynaceae, Convolvulaceae, Moraceae, Oleaceae, and Verbenaceae had higher than expected naturalization. Information theoretic model selection indicated that the number of years a plant was sold, alone or together with the first year a plant was sold, was the strongest predictor of naturalization. Because continued importation and marketing of nonnative horticultural plants will lead to additional plant naturalization and invasion, a comprehensive approach to address this problem, including research to identifyand select noninvasive forms and types of horticultural plants is urgently needed.

ORCHID BEES DON'T NEED ORCHIDS: EVIDENCE FROM THE NATURALIZATION OF AN ORCHID BEE IN FLORIDA

Almost 200 species of orchid bees are the exclusive pollinators of nearly 700 specialized orchids in the neotropics. This well-known mutualism involves orchids, called perfume orchids, which produce species-specific blends of floral fragrances, and male orchid bees, which collect and use these fragrance compounds during their courtship. We report here the naturalization of an orchid bee, Euglossa viridissima, in southern Florida, USA, where perfume orchids are absent. Chemical analysis of the contents of the fragrance storage organs in the hind tibias of 59 male bees collected in Florida identified 55 fragrance compounds, including 27 known from the perfumes of nine species of E. viridissimas orchid mutualists in Mesoamerica. Aromatic leaves, such as basil, were found to be important surrogate sources of needed fragrance compounds in Florida. The bees ability to live and become abundant in the absence of its orchid mutualists suggests that the orchid bee-perfume orchid mutualism may be facultative for the bees, even though it is obligatory for the orchids. This invasive bee visits and potentially pollinates the flowers of many plants in Florida, behavior that could promote the abundance of selected exotic and native species.

Life history and host specificity of the Japanese flea beetles Trachyaphthona sordida and T. nigrita (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), potential biological control agents against skunk vine, Paederia foetida (Rubiaceae), in the southeastern parts of the United States and Hawaii.

Skunk vine, Paederia foetida (Rubiaceae), is native to Asia and has been recognized as an invasive weedy vine of natural areas in Florida and Hawaii. Two insects, Trachyaphthona sordida and Trachyaphthona nigrita (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) from Japan are being considered as potential biological control agents against skunk vine. To gather fundamental information on their biology, we carried out field surveys and laboratory experiments in Kyushu, southern Japan, between 2003 and 2006. We found that T. sordida is commonly distributed in Kyushu and T. nigrita is restricted to the southern parts of Kagoshima Prefecture on the southern part of Kyushu. These species are fundamentally univoltine and adults appear in late April to early July. Trachyaphthona sordida overwinters as mature larvae and T. nigrita as mature larvae or rarely as adults. Larvae of both species feed on fine roots of P. foetida in the field and Serissa foetida (Rubiaceae) under rearing conditions, and they appear to have tribe‐level host specificity in their host range. On the basis of these results, we suggest that both species are suitable as biological control agents.

Seasonal phenology and stage-specific parasitism of the apple ermine moth, Yponomeuta malinellus Zeller, in Korea

The apple ermine moth, Yponomeuta malinellus Zeller (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae), is a tent caterpillar that feeds on Malus spp. in Korea. Populations of the moth in native areas appeared to be regulated by the assemblage of parasitoids. Phenological associations between host stages and parasitoids, susceptible stage(s) of the host for each parasitoid, and stage‐specific parasitism were studied. The egg larval parasitoid Ageniaspis fuscicollis (Dalman) had highest parasitism of first instar larvae (24%), with 14% parasitism of other larval stages. Dolichogenidea delecta (Haliday) was recovered from all larval instars with the highest parasitism rate of second instar larvae (20.1%), followed by 19.9% parasitism of mid‐larval hosts. Herpestomus brunicornis Gravenhorst was reared from second instar larvae through to pupal collection, and had the highest parasitism rate (29.9%) at the pupal stage. The larval pupal parasitoid Zenillia dolosa (Meigen) was recovered from mid‐larval to pupal stages with the highest parasitism rate (5.5%) occurring in third to fourth instar larvae. The host stages for developing A. fuscicollis completely overlap with those of D. delecta, and with those of H. brunicornis to some degree. A statistically significant negative correlation exists between A. fuscicollis and these dominant parasitoids, indicating competitive interaction within the host.

Parasitoid complex of the bird cherry ermine moth Yponomeuta evonymellus in Korea.

The parasitoid complex of Yponomeuta evonymellus L. (Lepidoptera: Yponomeutidae), the bird cherry ermine moth (BCEM), was sought in South Korea with the goal of identifying its potential biological controls. Thirteen primary and two secondary parasitoids were found. Diadegma armillatum (Grav.), Herpestomus brunnicornis Grav. (Icheumonidae), and Zenillia dolosa (Meigen) (Tachinidae) were the most important parasitoids causing 3.5%, 7.1%, and 7.7% of the combined parasitism of the host larvae and pupae, respectively. The composition of parasitoid species was more diverse in larvae than in pupae; 10 species were reared from larvae, compared to six from pupae. The parasitoid complex contributed to the relatively low mortality levels of Yponomeuta evonymellus with the combined total rate of parasitism of 29.6% for the host larvae and pupae. This level is below that found in some European populations (50%) and is not greater than the larval rate of parasitism (31%) found in the congeneric apple ermine moth in Korea. This low rate of parasitism is partly attributed to the parasitism by Ageniaspis fuscicollis (1%) detected in Yponomeuta evonymellus, which is similar to that detected in Yponomeuta evonymellus in European reports. This is the first report of the parasitoid complex attacking the BCEM in Korea.

Waterblommetjie (Aponogeton distachyos, Aponogetonaceae), a recently domesticated aquatic food crop in Cape South Africa with unusual origins.

The inflorescence of Aponogeton distachyos, an endemic Cape South African aquatic herb, known as waterblommetjie, has been a traditional wild-gathered vegetable. This plant has been brought into cultivation as a food crop during the past twenty years. The reasons for its domestication were the loss and decline in wild populations because of herbicide runoff from agriculture, urban expansion that reduced the plant’s habitat, and overcollection. Domestication also began because a pop song, celebrating this vegetable as an Afrikaans cultural symbol, started a food fad that greatly increased demand. Waterblommetjie cultivation, widespread marketing, and the general popularity of this unique food continues in the Mandela Era of South Africa.RésuméLa inflorecencia de Aponogeton distachyos, una hierba ácuatica endémica al Cabo de Buena Esperanza, Africa, conocido como waterblommetjie, ha sido una vegetal silvestere tradicional. La planta se ha adoptada para 1a cultivatión dentro los últimos veinte años. Las razones por domesticarla fueron 1a perdida y el declino de las poblaciones silvestres por cause del escurrimiento de los herbicidas de áreas agríciolas, 1a expansión urbana 1a qual redujo el área de hábitat del la planta, y su cosecha excesiva. Además, su domesticatión empezó porque una canción popular 1a cual celebró esta verdura como un símbolo cultural africaans empezó una moda en 1a comid 1a cual aumentó mucho la demanda. La cultivateón de waterblommetjie, el mercado extendido, y la popularidad general de esta única comida continuan durante la era de Mandela en Sudáfrica.