Grayson Kristine L, Parry Dylan, Faske Trevor M, Hamilton Audrey, Tobin Patrick C, Agosta Salvatore J, Johnson Derek M
Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 West Cary Street, Richmond, VA 23284. Present address: Department of Biology, University of Richmond, 28 Westhampton Way, Richmond, VA 23173.
Department of Environmental and Forest, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210.
Environ Entomol. 2015 Jun;44(3):864-73. doi: 10.1093/ee/nvv063. Epub 2015 May 5.
The effects of long-term mass rearing of laboratory insects on ecologically relevant traits is an important consideration when applying research conclusions to wild populations or developing management strategies. Laboratory strains of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar (L.), an invasive forest pest in North America, have been continuously reared since 1967. Selection on these strains has enhanced a variety of traits, resulting in faster development, shorter diapause, and greater fecundity. As in many mass-reared insects, laboratory strains of the gypsy moth are also reared exclusively on artificial diets that lack much of the phytochemical and nutritional complexity associated with natural foliage. We tested for differences in growth and development of wild gypsy moth populations from across the invasive range in comparison to laboratory strains when reared on artificial diet and a preferred foliage host species, northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.). Overall, caterpillars reared on foliage had higher survival and faster development rates, with smaller differences among populations. When reared on artificial diet, laboratory strains had the highest performance as expected. The response from the wild populations was mixed, with two populations performing poorly on artificial diet and another performing nearly as well as the laboratory strains. Performance on diet was enhanced when larvae received cubed portions changed regularly, as opposed to filled cups. Understanding these relationships between food source and population performance is important for informing studies that examine population comparisons using wild and laboratory-reared strains.
在将研究结论应用于野生种群或制定管理策略时，实验室昆虫长期大量饲养对生态相关性状的影响是一个重要的考量因素。舞毒蛾是北美的一种入侵性森林害虫，自1967年以来一直在持续饲养其实验室品系。对这些品系的选择增强了多种性状，导致发育更快、滞育期更短且繁殖力更强。与许多大量饲养的昆虫一样，舞毒蛾的实验室品系也完全以缺乏与天然树叶相关的许多植物化学物质和营养复杂性的人工饲料饲养。我们测试了来自入侵范围内不同地区的野生舞毒蛾种群在以人工饲料和一种偏好的树叶寄主物种——北方红栎（Quercus rubra L.）饲养时，与实验室品系相比在生长和发育方面的差异。总体而言，以树叶饲养的毛虫存活率更高、发育速度更快，不同种群之间的差异较小。以人工饲料饲养时，实验室品系的表现如预期的那样最佳。野生种群的反应不一，有两个种群在人工饲料上表现不佳，另一个种群的表现几乎与实验室品系一样好。当幼虫接受定期更换的块状饲料而非装满饲料的杯子时，其在饲料上的表现会得到改善。了解食物来源与种群表现之间的这些关系对于为使用野生和实验室饲养品系进行种群比较的研究提供信息很重要。
