Marler Thomas E, Terry L Irene
Western Pacific Tropical Research Center; University of Guam; UOG Station; Mangilao, Guam USA.
Commun Integr Biol. 2011 Nov 1;4(6):778-80. doi: 10.4161/cib.17823.
We recently described characteristics of reproductive effort for the cycad Cycas micronesica on the island of Guam. The data were serendipitously recorded just prior to the devastating invasion of the armored scale Aulacaspis yasumatsui. This invasion decimated the cycad population and after six years of infestation no recruitment is occurring among the survivors. We describe various underlying mechanisms that may explain how this homopteran insect has eliminated host recruitment among categories including plant-pollinator mutualism disruptions, direct damage to reproductive structures, population level responses to declining plant health, and failures of seedlings to establish. Our pre-invasion data on reproductive effort will serve as the benchmark for quantifying how this alien pest is endangering the endemic cycad.
我们最近描述了关岛岛上密克罗尼西亚苏铁的繁殖投入特征。这些数据是在盾蚧Aulacaspis yasumatsui造成毁灭性入侵之前意外记录的。这次入侵使苏铁种群数量大幅减少，经过六年的虫害侵袭，幸存者中没有新的植株补充。我们描述了各种潜在机制，这些机制可能解释这种同翅目昆虫是如何在包括植物-传粉者互利关系破坏、对生殖结构的直接损害、种群对植物健康下降的反应以及幼苗无法定植等类别中消除宿主补充的。我们入侵前关于繁殖投入的数据将作为量化这种外来害虫如何危及本地苏铁的基准。
