Chimneys are mud mounds built by fiddler crabs that encircle the entrance to their burrow. Their function in many species is unknown. In
Uca capricornis
, crabs of both sexes and all sizes build chimneys, but females do so disproportionately more often. There are no differences in the immediate physical or social environments between crabs with and without a chimney. Chimney owners spend less time feeding and more time underground than non-owners. We show experimentally that burrows with a chimney are less likely to be located by an intruder. It is possible that some crabs construct chimneys around their burrow to conceal the entrance and reduce the risk of losing it to an intruder.
Onion thrips, Thrips tabaci Lindeman, is the primary pest of onion, which is grown in either large-scale, monoculture systems surrounded by other onion fields, or in small-scale systems surrounded by multiple vegetable crops. In 2011 and 2012, populations of insect predators and their prey, T. tabaci, were assessed weekly in onion fields in both cropping systems. Insect predator taxa (eight species representing five families) were similar in onions grown in both systems and the most commonly occurring predators were from the family Aeolothripidae. Seasonal population dynamics of predators and T. tabaci followed similar trends within both cropping systems and tended to peak in late July and early August. Predator abundance was low in both systems, but predator abundance was nearly 2.5 to 13 times greater in onion fields in the small-scale system. T. tabaci abundance often positively predicted predator abundance in both cropping systems.
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