A Revision of the Genus Malacosoma Hübner in North America (Lepidoptera: Lasiocampidae): Systematics, Biology, Immatures, and Parasites

Stehr, Frederick W.; Cook, Edwin F.

doi:10.5479/si.03629236.276.1

Cited by 69 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 7 publications

(13 reference statements)

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“…A parallel group of 40 smaller colonies was created in which each colony contained 30 first-instar caterpillars (all from a single family or 15 from each of two unrelated families); this latter group of colonies was used to study only the effects of colony size. Colony size in eastern tent caterpillars is highly variable (Stehr & Cook 1968;Fitzgerald 1995), with colonies of 30 and 100 young caterpillars falling within the naturally observed range.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fitness effects of group merging in a social insect

Costa

Ross

2003

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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Animal social groups often consist of non-relatives, a condition that arises in many cases because of group merging. Although indirect fitness contributions are reduced in such groups compared with those in groups composed of close kin, the genetic-heterogeneity hypothesis suggests that these groups may benefit from increased intracolony genetic variation, which may boost group performance through increased task efficiency or parasite resistance. We confirm one prediction of the task-efficiency explanation by demonstrating a genetic basis for task thresholds of socially important behaviours in eastern tent caterpillars. However, we found no evidence that the expanded range of task thresholds in mixed colonies translates into improved individual or colony performance in the field. By contrast, increased group size, a less commonly considered correlate of group mixing, was found to enhance individual fitness through its effects on larval growth. We conclude that fitness benefits offsetting the dilution of relatedness in heterogeneous social groups may often stem from augmented group size rather than increased genotypic diversity.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fitness effects of group merging in a social insect

Costa

Ross

2003

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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“…Trembling aspen, the preferred host of M. disstria, is a fast-growing pioneer species that naturally colonizes areas exposed to natural (fire, insect and disease) and anthropogenic (clearcutting) disturbances. Aspen rapidly establishes itself on these cleared lands (Stehr and Cook 1968). In Canada, P. tremuloides comprises >80% of the total merchantable poplar (Morley and Balatinecz 1993) This paper brings together the scattered published and unpublished information on M. disstria outbreaks in BC.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…disstria is a native hardwood defoliator, and has the widest distribution of the six species of tent caterpillars (Malacosoma spp.) found in North America (Stehr andCook 1968, Fitzgerald 1995). Its preferred host is trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…disstria is a major pest of deciduous forests in all regions of Canada, with the exception of Newfoundland and the Northwest Territories (Hall 1996), and throughout the United States as far south as Louisiana and possibly into Mexico (Fitzgerald 1995). Its populations repeatedly explode and usually persist for several years before subsiding (Sippell and Ewan 1967, Stehr and Cook 1968, Fitzgerald 1995. During severe outbreaks, when the preferred food source is exhausted, late instar larvae will wander in search of food and feed on other deciduous trees, shrubs and even conifers (Prentice 1963, Oliver 1964, Stehr and Cook 1968, Hildahl and Campbell 1975, Batzer and Morris 1978, Knight et al 1991, Wood 1992.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Its populations repeatedly explode and usually persist for several years before subsiding (Sippell and Ewan 1967, Stehr and Cook 1968, Fitzgerald 1995. During severe outbreaks, when the preferred food source is exhausted, late instar larvae will wander in search of food and feed on other deciduous trees, shrubs and even conifers (Prentice 1963, Oliver 1964, Stehr and Cook 1968, Hildahl and Campbell 1975, Batzer and Morris 1978, Knight et al 1991, Wood 1992. Such severe outbreak conditions are common, and occur periodically throughout most of North America.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Preliminary hazard rating for forest tent caterpillar in British Columbia

Otvos¹,

Omendja²,

Foord³

et al. 2010

The Forestry Chronicle

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Forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma disstria Hübner) is a major defoliator of hardwoods throughout North America, including aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.). M. disstria has been a major concern in many parts of Canada for the last two decades, but until recently in British Columbia it was considered an aesthetic concern only. However, with the increasing interest in the cultivation of hardwoods for fibre, and more recently for fuel, this insect could become a major concern in hardwood management. Records of past M. disstria outbreaks in British Columbia were summarized. The locations and intensity of six outbreaks were overlaid on biogeoclimatic units to determine which biogeoclimatic zones have experienced repeated outbreaks of M. disstria. Between 1944 and 2003, M. disstria outbreaks have become larger in extent and longer in duration. Analysis indicated that aspen stands in the Boreal White and Black Spruce (BWBS), SubBoreal Spruce (SBS) and Interior Cedar-Hemlock (ICH) biogeoclimatic zones have been most frequently attacked. In the BWBS zone, most affected areas (93.3%) were defoliated for only one year (lightly). In the SBS and ICH zones, areas attacked by M. disstria tended to be defoliated two or more consecutive years (40.2% and 56.2%, respectively), and had a greater chance of being more severely defoliated than aspen stands in the BWBS zone.

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Forest landscape structure influences the cyclic‐eruptive spatial dynamics of forest tent caterpillar outbreaks

et al. 2020

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A fundamental question in forest insect ecology is the role of forest landscape structure, particularly the amount and spatial configuration of host tree species, in shaping the dynamics of recurring forest insect outbreaks. For forest tent caterpillar (FTC), independent studies do not converge on a singular conclusion, although all indicate that forest structure influences outbreak dynamics. These studies also vary in how they treat climate as a covariate. We evaluated the relative importance of host forest landscape composition and configuration, as well as climate, for their influence on FTC outbreak cycling in the twentieth century. We predicted that FTC outbreaks would exhibit greater synchrony and intensity within areas associated with higher abundance of host trees. We reconstructed FTC outbreaks from 1928 to 2006 using tree‐ring analysis within a well‐structured experimental landscape located in northwestern Ontario and northern Minnesota. Time‐series clustering and spatial nonparametric covariance were used to determine whether similarities in time series and patterns in spatial synchrony corresponded with land management history. Using constrained ordination, we compared statistical properties of outbreak time series to landscape variables representing host abundance, forest configuration, and climate. We found no evidence of climatic effects at the scale of this study, but a significant albeit small influence of landscape structure on outbreak dynamics. Outbreaks were more synchronous and more cyclic within managed zones containing a greater relative abundance of aspen and other hardwood host tree species, compared with the more conifer‐dominated Wilderness area. Yet, we also observed asynchronous outbreak dynamics across the study area, such that correlations with slower‐changing forest landscape variables varied starkly among outbreak pulses. Consequently, the strength of relationship between landscape variables and FTC outbreak patterns varied strongly through time—a result that may explain why short‐term studies yield conclusions that are at odds with one another. Our results speak to the importance of long time series, contrasting landscape structure, use of multivariate methods, and controlling for climatic variation when investigating the effects of forest landscape structure on the cyclic‐eruptive spatial dynamics for forest defoliators.

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A Revision of the Genus Malacosoma Hübner in North America (Lepidoptera: Lasiocampidae): Systematics, Biology, Immatures, and Parasites

Cited by 69 publications

References 7 publications

Fitness effects of group merging in a social insect

Fitness effects of group merging in a social insect

Preliminary hazard rating for forest tent caterpillar in British Columbia

Forest landscape structure influences the cyclic‐eruptive spatial dynamics of forest tent caterpillar outbreaks

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