Decreased small mammal and on-host tick abundance in association with invasive red imported fire ants (
            <i>Solenopsis invicta</i>
            )

Castellanos, Adrian A.; Medeiros, Matthew C. I.; Hamer, Gabriel L.; Morrow, Michael E.; Eubanks, Micky D.; Teel, Pete D.; Hamer, Sarah A.; Light, Jessica E.

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2016.0463

Cited by 28 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 19 publications

(25 reference statements)

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“…The red imported fire ant is an invasive pest species with significant ecological, economic and health consequences for the southern United States and many areas around the world (Ascunce et al., ; Tschinkel, ). These ants negatively impact native wildlife, alter seed dispersal and other ecosystem functions, and can fundamentally shift multitrophic interactions (Allen, Epperson, & Garmestani, ; Castellanos et al., ; Kaplan & Eubanks, ; Ness, ). In previous work, we found persistent colony‐level variation among fire ants in behaviours such as extra‐nest activity, exploration and foraging recruitment to food, which significantly affected colony growth and productivity (Bockoven, Wilder, & Eubanks, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colony‐level behavioural variation correlates with differences in expression of theforaginggene in red imported fire ants

2017

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Among social insects, colony-level variation is likely to be widespread and has significant ecological consequences. Very few studies, however, have documented how genetic factors relate to behaviour at the colony level. Differences in expression of the foraging gene have been associated with differences in foraging and activity of a wide variety of organisms. We quantified expression of the red imported fire ant foraging gene (sifor) in workers from 21 colonies collected across the natural range of Texas fire ant populations, but maintained under standardized, environmentally controlled conditions. Colonies varied significantly in their behaviour. The most active colonies had up to 10 times more active foragers than the least active colony and more than 16 times as many workers outside the nest. Expression differences among colonies correlated with this colony-level behavioural variation. Colonies with higher sifor expression in foragers had, on average, significantly higher foraging activity, exploratory activity and recruitment to nectar than colonies with lower expression. Expression of sifor was also strongly correlated with worker task (foraging vs. working in the interior of the nest). These results provide insight into the genetic and physiological processes underlying collective differences in social behaviour. Quantifying variation in expression of the foraging gene may provide an important tool for understanding and predicting the ecological consequences of colony-level behavioural variation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colony‐level behavioural variation correlates with differences in expression of theforaginggene in red imported fire ants

2017

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“…The virus was confirmed at 2 different localities, and field notes indicate similar lesions were observed in other rodent species. During 2013–2017 ( 12 , 13 ), among ≈1,800 rodents captured during field research in east central Texas, we documented proliferative lesions on the tail or feet of > 17 individual rodents of 3 species ( B. taylori , n = 12; Chaetodipus hispidus , n = 2; Sigmodon hispidus , n = 3). The combined distributional range of these 3 host species includes > 20 US states and a large portion of Mexico ( 14 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Novel Poxvirus in Proliferative Lesions of Wild Rodents in East Central Texas, USA

Hodo¹,

Mauldin²,

Light³

et al. 2018

Emerg. Infect. Dis.

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“…Diseases, invasive species, and pests are expected to change their distribution with ecological consequences, with, for example, tick vectors shifting and likely bringing diseases into new regions, impacting both humans and wildlife [70,71]. This will require more complex eradication and control strategies [72] as tick-borne disease relationships are changed [73]. These are just a few examples of the profound impact on wildlife populations.…”

Section: Ecological Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fauna Biodiversity is threatened due to the trend and magnitude of rapid changes over a short timeline [53] Extirpation due to varied capacity of species to adapt to environmental changes brought about by climate change [54] Organisms respond to inhospitable physical climate conditions by shifting, expanding, or contracting their historic ranges [60,61] Barriers to dispersal that reduce gene flow in landscapes which limit potential for natural adaptation [67] Texas: migration patterns for resident birds have been impacted [68] Texas: some rodent species will go extinct and geographic shifts of 54% or more will occur [69] Texas: tick vectors are shifting and will likely bring diseases into new regions impacting humans and wildlife, resulting in more complex eradication and control strategies [70][71][72][73] Climate 2020, 8, 10 6 of 19 Table 1. Cont.…”

Section: Climate Impacts On Ecosystems Citationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrating Agriculture and Ecosystems to Find Suitable Adaptations to Climate Change

Thayer

Vargas

Castellanos

et al. 2020

Climate

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Climate change is altering agricultural production and ecosystems around the world. Future projections indicate that additional change is expected in the coming decades, forcing individuals and communities to respond and adapt. Current research efforts typically examine climate change effects and possible adaptations but fail to integrate agriculture and ecosystems. This failure to jointly consider these systems and associated externalities may underestimate climate change impacts or cause adaptation implementation surprises, such as causing adaptation status of some groups or ecosystems to be worsened. This work describes and motivates reasons why ecosystems and agriculture adaptation require an integrated analytical approach. Synthesis of current literature and examples from Texas are used to explain concepts and current challenges. Texas is chosen because of its high agricultural output that is produced in close interrelationship with the surrounding semi-arid ecosystem. We conclude that future effect and adaptation analyses would be wise to jointly consider ecosystems and agriculture. Existing paradigms and useful methodology can be transplanted from the sustainable agriculture and ecosystem service literature to explore alternatives for climate adaptation and incentivization of private agriculturalists and consumers. Researchers are encouraged to adopt integrated modeling as a means to avoid implementation challenges and surprises when formulating and implementing adaptation.

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Decreased small mammal and on-host tick abundance in association with invasive red imported fire ants ( Solenopsis invicta )

Cited by 28 publications

References 19 publications

Colony‐level behavioural variation correlates with differences in expression of theforaginggene in red imported fire ants

Colony‐level behavioural variation correlates with differences in expression of theforaginggene in red imported fire ants

Novel Poxvirus in Proliferative Lesions of Wild Rodents in East Central Texas, USA

Integrating Agriculture and Ecosystems to Find Suitable Adaptations to Climate Change

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