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56 results for “insect predation”
Supplementary materials for: How effective are insect aposematism and Batesian mimicry in deterring a wild avian predator?
<p><strong><a name="_Hlk180513890"></a>Acoustic_parameters_10cm.txt</strong><br>Acoustic parameters of the sounds produced by insects in flight, species recorded at 10 cm from the microphone.</p> <p><strong>Acoustic_parameters_5cm.txt<br></strong>Acoustic parameters of the sounds produced by insects in flight, species recorded at 5 cm from the microphone.</p> <p><strong>Robin_behaviours.txt</strong> <br><em>Erithacus rubecula</em> reactions measured in Boris software from videos of behavioural experiments.</p> <p><strong>Rscript_robin_behaviours.R</strong><br>R script used for the analysis of robins’ behaviours (using Robin_behaviours.txt).</p> <p><strong>Rscript_acoustical_analyses.R</strong><br>R script used for the analysis of acoustical parameters of insect buzzing sounds (using Acoustic_parameters_10cm.txt and Acoustic_parameters_5cm.txt).</p> <p><strong>Robin_experiment_video.mp4<br></strong>Behavioural experiment with a wild European robin (<em>Erithacus rubecula</em>) in its habitat. A freshly defrosted insect specimen and the corresponding buzzing sound of each recorded hymenopteran model and lepidopteran mimic (plus a housefly as a control) were presented in random order to the robin at a feeder with <em>Tenebrio molitor</em> larvae.</p> <p><strong>Robin_experiment_video_Metadata.docx</strong><br><span>Metadata for the supplementary video Robin_experiment_video.mp4.</span></p>
Data from: Out of the tropics: Macroevolutionary size trends in an old insect order are shaped by temperature and predators
<p>Global body size distributions are shaped by selection pressures arising from biotic and abiotic factors such as temperature, predation and parasitism. Here, we investigated the ecological and evolutionary drivers of global latitudinal size gradients in an old insect order (Odonata; dragonflies and damselflies). Phylogenetic comparative analyses revealed that global size variation of extant taxa is negatively influenced by both regional avian diversity and temperature. Interestingly, fossil data show that the relationship between wing size and latitude has shifted: latitudinal size trends had initially negative slopes but became shallower or positive following the emergence of birds 150 MYA. These changing size-latitude trends over geological time were likely driven by bird predation and high dispersal ability of large dragonflies. Our results therefore suggest that latitudinal size gradients were shaped by temperature but also by predators driving the dispersal of large-sized clades out of the tropics and in to the temperate zone.</p>
Tropical–temperate comparisons in insect seed predation vary between study levels and years
<p>The biotic interaction hypothesis, which states the species interaction becomes stronger in the tropics, is deeply rooted in classic ecological literature and widely accepted to contribute to the latitudinal gradients of biodiversity. Tests in latitudinal insect-plant interaction have emphasized leaf-eating insects on a single or a few plant species rather than within an entire community and mixed accumulating evidence, leaving the biotic interaction hypothesis disputed. We aimed to test the hypothesis by quantifying seed predation by insects in a pair of tropical and temperate forest communities with similar elevations. We applied a consistent study design to sample pre-dispersal seeds with systematically set seed traps in 2019-2020 and examined internally feeding insects. The intensity of seed predation was measured and further applied to tropical versus temperate comparison at two levels (cross-species and community-wide). Our results showed every latitudinal pattern associated with different study levels and years, i.e., negative (greater granivory in the tropics in community-wide comparison in 2020), positive (less granivory in the tropics in community-wide and cross-species comparison in 2019), and missing (similar level of granivory in the tropics in cross-species comparisons in 2020). The cross-species level analyses ignore differences among species in seed production and weaken or even lose the latitudinal trend detected by community-wide comparisons. The between-year discrepancy in tropical-temperate comparisons relates to the highly variable annual seed composition in the temperate forest due to mast seeding of dominant species. Our study highlights that long-term community-level researches across biomes are essential to assess the latitudinal biotic interaction hypothesis.</p>
Fig. 2 in Quantifying insect predation in laboratory arenas: the effect of prey acclimation
Fig. 2. Behavioral responses of Orgyia leucostigma caterpillars that acclimated on the plant for less than 20 min (20 min), from 20 to <40 min (40 min), and from 40 to 60 min (60 min) to the attacks of Polistes fuscatus wasps. *P <0.05; ns: P> 0.05. No response = caterpillars that did not respond to predators by dropping. Drop = caterpillars that dropped from the leaf in response to the predator.
Fig. 1 in Quantifying insect predation in laboratory arenas: the effect of prey acclimation
Fig. 1. The mortality of Orgyia leucostigma caterpillars that acclimated on the plant for less than 20 min (20 min), from 20 to <40 min (40 min), and from 40 to 60 min (60 min) before exposure to Polistes fuscatus wasps. Treatments with the same letter are not significantly different (P> 0.05).
Figure 2 in Natural prey of the crab spider Thomisus onustus (Araneae: Thomisidae), an extremely powerful predator of insects
Figure 2. Some of the largest prey captured by Thomisus onustus juveniles together with their captors. (A) Syrphid fly; (B) bombyliid fly; (C) calliphorid fly; (D) Cataglyphis setipes ant.
Figure 1 in Natural prey of the crab spider Thomisus onustus (Araneae: Thomisidae), an extremely powerful predator of insects
Figure 1. Distribution of prey of different sex–age groups of Thomisus onustus (black, late instar and adult females; grey, medium-sized juveniles; dotted, adult males; white, small juveniles) in different size categories (body lengths of prey expressed as percentages of the body lengths of their captors).
Insect seed and cone predation reduces reproductive potential of treeline conifers across northern Canada
<p><strong>Aim</strong>: Altitudinal and latitudinal treeline ecotones have not consistently responded to climate warming the in direction and/or magnitude as predicted by climate alone, suggesting that non-climatic mechanisms (e.g., biotic interactions) are also mediating treeline range dynamics. Through a collaborative research approach, we assessed environmental conditions associated with insect cone granivory and how this biotic interaction may govern the reproductive potential, and therefore range dynamics, of spruce-dominated treelines across northern Canada. </p> <p><strong>Location</strong>: Ten boreal forest treelines, tundra and alpine, from Yukon to Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada</p> <p><strong>Taxa</strong>: White spruce (<em>Picea</em> <em>glauca</em> (Moench) Voss), Black spruce (<em>Picea</em> <em>mariana</em> (Mill.) B.S.P.), <em>Strobilomyia</em> spp., <em>Megastigmus</em> spp.</p> <p><strong>Methods</strong>: Treeline sites were assessed for presence and magnitude of pre-seed dispersal granivory by insects, and viability of available seed was determined. We quantified stand density metrics, organic layer depth, and understory vegetation composition at each location and, subsequently, incorporated those variables into generalized linear mixed models to establish predictors of granivory magnitude and viability of available seed. </p> <p><strong>Results</strong>: Our findings reveal the widespread presence of insect granivory across sites, however, site-specific patterns of granivory were associated with increased moss cover and decreased shrub cover and stand density. While all black-spruce-dominated sites exhibited seed viability rates greater than 50%, the number of seeds produced per cone varied, suggesting that within-site abiotic conditions and biotic interaction pressures limit successful colonization of novel environments in advance of seed dispersal. </p> <p><strong>Main</strong> <strong>Conclusions</strong>: Results from the modelled relationships between cone granivory, seed viability, and environmental conditions represent an essential step toward generalizing how and when biotic interactions across subarctic treelines influence boreal tree range dynamics before seed dispersal. Connections between granivory magnitude and site-level stand density will help establish how treeline form (e.g., discrete or diffuse) may drive patterns of future insect outbreaks under continued climate warming. </p>
Data from: Insect communities under skyglow: diffuse night-time illuminance induces spatio-temporal shifts in movement and predation
<p>We conducted our experiment at the iDiv Ecotron experimental facility, which is an indoor mesocosm facility consisting of independent, experimental chambers called “EcoUnits”. The Ecotron is located in Bad Lauchstädt, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, at the Experimental Research Station of the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ, 51.3917° N, 11.8762° E). Multiple environmental conditions in the EcoUnits can be fully controlled (e.g., nutrient supply and irrigation). Each EcoUnit has internal dimensions of 1.46 m × 1.46 m × 1.50 m (L × W × H, aboveground) and 1.24 m × 1.24 m × 0.80 m (L × W × H, belowground) with the soil surface area measuring 1.54 m².</p> <p>To assess the interactive effects of diffuse nighttime illuminance and landscape structure on animal movement patterns, we established a patch-grassland system which consisted of four meadow patches within each of the corners of an EcoUnit, separated by an area of bare ground. The EcoUnits were filled with 1.23 m<sup>3</sup> of unsterilised and homogenised soil from the vicinity of the iDiv Ecotron, and plant communities of 16 plant species were sown on February 4th 2020. We allowed for a settlement phase of roughly 5 months before starting our measurements.</p> <p> </p> <p>Each heading below describes columns in the two datasets that describe the movement activity (RFID sensor detections) and predation (bite marks left on artificial caterpillar prey dummies) by the experimental insect communities.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>timestamp:</strong> Continuous value indicating the time and date (format: DD/MM/YYYY hh:mm:ss, timezone: UTC+2) at which a tagged individual was detected by an RFID sensor. We defined detections as distinct and only counted them when they (1) occurred on different sensors or when (2) at least 10 seconds had elapsed (without detection on the same sensor) between two consecutive detections on the same sensor. This prevented the repeated detection of resting or dead animals.</p> <p><strong>block_ID: </strong>Categorical value indicating whether an observation was made within the first or second temporal experimental block (b1, b2). Each block corresponded to a period of approximately one lunar cycle (i.e., 28 days: experimental block b1: 21.07.2020 - 18.08.2020, experimental block b2: 15.09.2020 - 13.10.2020).</p> <p><strong>rep_ID: </strong>Categorical value indicating the replicate prey dummy exposures (r2, r3, r4, r5) that took place within each 28-day temporal experimental block: r2 and r3 took place successively within block b1; r4 and r5 took place successively within block b2. NAs identify periods during each experimental block where prey dummies had not yet been deployed or were in the process of being collected/re-deployed. </p> <p><strong>unit_ID: </strong>Categorical value indicating the identity of each of the 12 EcoUnits at the iDiv Ecotron experimental facility.</p> <p><strong>patch_ID: </strong>Categorical value indicating the identify of each of the four meadow patches within each EcoUnit. Patch identities correspond to their coordinates within the EcoUnit.</p> <p><strong>x: </strong>Continuous value indicating the X-coordinate position of an RFID sensor or prey dummy within the Ecotron unit with respect to the position of each EcoUnit’s control panel.</p> <p><strong>y: </strong>Continuous value indicating the Y-coordinate position of an RFID sensor or prey dummy within the Ecotron unit with respect to the position of each EcoUnit’s control panel. </p> <p><strong>day_night: </strong>Categorical value indicating whether an individual was detected during the day (treatment lights off) or during the night (treatment lights on). Night includes the periods of dawn and dusk where daylight was gradually (i.e. linearly) brightened or dimmed over the course of two hours before sunrise and sunset, respectively.</p> <p><strong>habitat: </strong>Categorical value indicating whether a tagged individual was detected within a meadow patch (Patch) or within the area of bare ground (Matrix) which separates individual patches.</p> <p><strong>tag: </strong>Categorical value indicating the unique serial number associated with an RFID-tagged individual. This column is used to estimate local densities (sum of unique tag IDs detected).</p> <p><strong>species: </strong>Categorical value indicating the scientific name of the species according to the taxonomy of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (accessed via GBIF.org during 2020). Note that <em>Harpalus rufipes </em>(De Geer) is referred to in the database by its synonym <em>Pseudoophonus rufipes</em> (De Geer). Poecilus includes the species <em>Poecilus cupreus</em> and<em> Poecilus versicolor</em>. , <em>Harpalus affinis</em>, <em>Harpalus latus</em>) are pooled together at the genus level. </p> <p><strong>bodymass_mg: </strong>Continuous value indicating the live body mass of each tagged individual, excluding the added mass of the RFID tag.</p> <p><strong>detection: </strong>Integer with a fixed value of 1 representing the detection of a unique RFID tag. This column is used to estimate movement activity (sum of detections).</p> <p><strong>bite_count: </strong>Integer value indicating the number of bite marks recorded on an individual prey dummy during a 14-day exposure. Two independent observers scored the prey dummies by identifying and counting the bite marks left by carabid predators.</p> <p><strong>treatment_lux: </strong>Continuous value indicating the treatment of diffuse nighttime illuminance in Lux.</p>
Data for: Interactions between temperature and predation impact insect emergence in alpine lakes
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Behavioral responses to mammalian grazing expose insect herbivores to elevated risk of avian predation
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Insect seed and cone predation reduces reproductive potential of treeline conifers across northern Canada
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Tropical–temperate comparisons in insect seed predation vary between study levels and years
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Relative size matters: Eyespots on large insect prey deter small arthropod predators
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Pathways for accidental biocontrol: the human-mediated dispersal of insect predators and parasitoids
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Data from: Out of the tropics: Macroevolutionary size trends in an old insect order are shaped by temperature and predators
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Predation and parasitism on herbivorous insects change in opposite directions in a latitudinal gradient crossing a boreal forest zone
<ol> <li>The Latitudinal Biotic Interaction Hypothesis (LBIH) predicts that the strength of various biotic interactions decreases from low to high latitudes. Inconsistency between studies testing this hypothesis may result from variations among different types of interactions and among study systems. Therefore, exploration of multiple interactions within one system would help to disentangle latitudinal patterns across individual interactions and to evaluate latitudinal changes in the overall impact of enemies on prey.</li> <li>We tested the prediction based on the LBIH that the pressure of natural enemies on herbivorous insects decreases with an increase in latitude across the boreal forest zone. We also asked whether the impacts of major groups of these enemies exhibit similar latitudinal patterns and whether these patterns are consistent across study years. </li> <li>In 10 forest sites located from 60°N to 69°N in Northern Europe, each summer, from 2016–2019, we measured (i) mortality of three groups of leafmining insects caused by birds, ants, parasitoids, and unknown factors, (ii) bird attacks on caterpillar-shaped plasticine models, and (iii) birch foliar damage caused by defoliators and leafminers.</li> <li>Latitudinal patterns in both insect herbivory on birch and top-down pressure on herbivorous insects varied considerably and inconsistently among the four study years, so that only some of the year-specific correlations with latitude were statistically significant. Nevertheless, meta-analysis combining correlations across years, preys and enemies revealed general decreases in predation by birds (on both natural and model prey) and ants, but an increase in parasitism rates, from low to high latitudes.</li> <li>We found that the direction of latitudinal changes in the strength of biotic interactions was interaction-specific: predation and herbivory supported LBIH, whereas parasitism exhibited an opposite trend. Consequently, the overall impact of natural enemies on herbivorous insects did not change with latitude and was therefore an unlikely reason for the poleward decrease in herbivory observed in our gradient. Considerable among-year variation in the strength of the latitudinal patterns in all the studied interactions suggests that this variation is a widespread phenomenon. </li> </ol>
Data from: Higher predation risk for insect prey at low latitudes and elevations
Biotic interactions underlie ecosystem structure and function, but predicting interaction outcomes is difficult. We tested the hypothesis that biotic interaction strength increases toward the equator, using a global experiment with model caterpillars to measure predation risk. Across an 11,660-kilometer latitudinal gradient spanning six continents, we found increasing predation toward the equator, with a parallel pattern of increasing predation toward lower elevations. Patterns across both latitude and elevation were driven by arthropod predators, with no systematic trend in attack rates by birds or mammals. These matching gradients at global and regional scales suggest consistent drivers of biotic interaction strength, a finding that needs to be integrated into general theories of herbivory, community organization, and life-history evolution.
Dietary diversification of an insect predator along an urban-rural gradient
<p>Here we provide the raw data and R scripts of our study "Dietary diversification of an insect predator along an urban-rural gradient"</p> <p><span>Abstract: Urbanisation generally leads to a loss of taxonomic and functional diversity in almost all animal taxa, yet a mosaic of highly variable habitats within the urban matrix could offer a diversity of insect prey to highly mobile predators such as bats. We therefore asked if insect-feeding bats change in trophic interactions along rural-urban gradients. </span><span>We predicted that the diet of common noctule bats (<em>Nyctalus noctula</em>) diversifies with increasing levels of urbanisation and that urban bats include more pest and nuisance insect species than rural conspecifics.</span><span>Using metabarcoding of faecal samples over three years of sampling, we observed a more diverse diet in urban compared with rural noctule bats. Furthermore, urban bats consumed more than twice as many agricultural pests and six times as many nuisance insects as their rural conspecifics. Finally, insect species richness in the diet decreased with increasing levels of sealed surface and vegetation cover at the sampling site.</span><span>We argue that a highly mobile bat species such as the noctule bat compensate for the lower abundance of insects in urban areas by foraging over relatively large spatial scales, including adjacent rural areas. A high proportion of pest and nuisance insects highlights the importance of urban bats for providing important ecosystem services to humans. Urban planning needs to consider maintaining and establishing dark flight corridors and a diversity of habitats to support urban bat populations. </span></p>
Data from: Match and mismatch: integrating consumptive effects of predators, prey traits, and habitat selection in colonizing aquatic insects
<p>Predators are a particularly critical component of habitat quality, as they affect survival, morphology, behavior, population size, and community structure through both consumptive and non-consumptive effects. Non-consumptive effects can often exceed consumptive effects, but their relative importance is undetermined in many systems. Our objective was to determine the consumptive and non-consumptive effects of a predaceous aquatic insect, <em>Notonecta irrorata</em>, on colonizing aquatic beetles. We tested how <em>N. irrorata </em>affected survival and habitat selection of colonizing aquatic beetles, how beetle traits contributed to their vulnerability to predation by <em>N. irrorata,</em> and how combined consumptive and non-consumptive effects affected populations and community structure. Predation vulnerabilities ranged from 0–95% mortality, with size, swimming, and exoskeleton traits generating species-specific vulnerabilities. Habitat selection ranged from predator avoidance to preferentially colonizing predator patches. Attraction of Dytiscidae to <em>N. irrorata</em> may be a natural ecological trap given similar cues produced by these taxa. Hence, species-specific habitat selection by prey can be either predator-avoidance responses that reduce consumptive effects, or responses that magnify predator effects. <em>Notonecta irrorata</em> had both strong consumptive and non-consumptive effects on populations and communities, while combined effects predicted even more distinct communities and populations across patches with or without predators. Our results illustrate that an aquatic invertebrate predator can have functionally-unique consumptive effects on prey, attracting and repelling prey, while prey have functionally-unique responses to predators. Determining species-specific consumptive and non-consumptive effects is important to understand patterns of species diversity across landscapes.</p>
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.