Silvicultural treatment effects on oak seed production and predation by acorn weevils in southeastern Ohio

Lombardo, Jeffrey A.; McCarthy, Brian C.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2008.01.017

Cited by 30 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…A number of studies investigating weevil attack on acorns have shown lower rates of infestation during years of high acorn production35. For example, 66% of Q. liaotungensis (a variety of Q. mongolica )16 and 86% of chestnut oak acorns20 were attacked by weevils during years of lower acorn production and only 29% and 26% in high production years. Indeed, a negative correlation between seed crop size and predation rate by seed insects has been reported for many temperate tree species9.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Weevils are one of the major causes of declining regeneration of Quercus spp. in northwestern India18 and have been reported to infest or destroy up to 70% of acorns of Q. crispula in Japan9, and >90% of acorns in eastern hardwood forests in the US1920. Despite the dominance and importance of Q. schottkyana to the integrity of these southern Chinese forests and the region’s biodiversity, few studies have reported acorn production and rates of weevil infestation by any of the oak species in the subgenus Cyclobalanopsis 1521 and their data are only for 1 or 2 years.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Pre-dispersal strategies by Quercus schottkyana to mitigate the effects of weevil infestation of acorns

Xia

Harrower

Turkington

et al. 2016

Sci Rep

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We investigated how pre-dispersal strategies may mitigate the effects of weevil infestation of acorns in a population of Quercus schottkyana, a dominant oak in Asian evergreen broad-leaved forests, and assess if weevil infestation contributes to low seedling recruitment. We counted the number of acorns produced, daily from the end of August to mid-late November for 9 years from 2006–2014. We also recorded the rate of acorn infestation by weevils and acorn germination rates of weekly collections. Annual acorn production was variable, but particularly low in 2011 and 2013. There was no trade-off between acorn production and acorn dry mass. However, acorns produced later in the season were significantly heavier. For most years: (i) the rate of weevil infestation was negatively density dependent (a greater proportion of acorns died with increased acorn density), (ii) the percentage germination of acorns was positively density dependent (proportionately more acorns germinated with increased density), and (iii) as the season progressed, the percentage of infested acorns declined while germination rates increased. Finally, (iv) maximum acorn production, percentage infestation and percentage germination were asynchronous. Although pre-dispersal mortality is important it is unlikely to be the primary factor leading to low recruitment of oak seedlings.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pre-dispersal strategies by Quercus schottkyana to mitigate the effects of weevil infestation of acorns

Xia

Harrower

Turkington

et al. 2016

Sci Rep

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“…The oaks ( Quercus spp. ), distributed widely throughout the world (Johnson, Shifley, & Rogers, ; Struve, Sternberg, Drunasky, Bresko, & Gonzalez, ), often suffer from a lack of seedling recruitment due, in part, to extensive acorn predation (Lombardo & McCarthy, ; Macdougall et al, ). Due to their large size (1–13 g) and high energy content (Perea, Fernandes, & Dirzo, ), the acorns of oaks are a preferred food source for numerous vertebrate species (Haas & Heske, ; Leiva & Fernández‐Alés, ; Sundaram, Lichti, Widmar, & Swihart, ; Wróbel & Zwolak, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of seedling growth and survival to post‐germination cotyledon removal: An investigation among seven oak species

Bartlow

Curtis

et al. 2019

Journal of Ecology

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Rodents regularly rely on emerged epicotyls to locate and remove cotyledons still containing valuable nutrients. However, the extent to which acorn characteristics influence tolerance to post‐germination predation has received little attention. Here, we investigated the impact of cotyledon removal following epicotyl emergence on seedling performance and survival of seven oak (Quercus) species. We imitated cotyledon predation at different stages of seedling establishment and development in order to detect effects on seedling height, leaf number and tissue/component mass. Seedling growth and survival were negatively affected by cotyledon loss regardless of oak species. However, these negative effects decreased as the epicotyl length at which cotyledons were removed increased. We also found that there was a threshold epicotyl length above which seedling survival and performance were relatively unaffected in white oak species compared to red oak species. Following cotyledon removal, early germinating white oak (section Quercus) seedlings survived and/or grew better than the late germinating red oak (section Lobatae) seedlings. This was likely caused by a difference in dependence on cotyledon reserves, which ultimately affected the ability of seedlings to tolerate cotyledon removal. Synthesis. From an evolutionary perspective, this is likely to follow from the early germination in white oaks and the ability of seed consumers to locate young seedlings from the emerging epicotyls. Our study has implications for forest regeneration by suggesting additional opportunities for white oak species to establish following epicotyl emergence. Future studies should consider quantifying the rates of post‐germination cotyledon loss.

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“…Weevil larvae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and moth caterpillars (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) represent the most important groups of oak acorn predators, although weevils are responsible for the majority of seed loss (Crawley & Long 1995;Branco et al 2002;Bonal et al 2007;Espelta et al 2009). Weevil pre-dispersal predation shapes recruitment potential of trees (Crawley & Long 1995;Espelta et al 2009;Bogdziewicz et al 2017), and severely destroys crops of northern red oaks in their native range (Lombardo & McCarthy 2008;Bogdziewicz et al 2017). While less is known about moth feeding ecology, weevils are feeding specialists, with particular species best adapted to exploit particular hosts (Bonal et al 2011;Govindan et al 2012;Muñoz et al 2014;Peguero et al 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive oaks escape pre‐dispersal insect seed predation and trap enemies in their seeds

Bogdziewicz

Bonal

Espelta

et al. 2018

Integrative Zoology

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Species introduced to habitats outside their native range often escape control by their natural enemies. Besides competing with native species, an alien species might also affect the native herbivores by introducing a new source of different quality food. Here, we describe the case of northern red oak (Quercus rubra) invasion in Europe. We collected data on insect (moth Cydia spp. and weevil Curculio spp.) seed predation of northern red oak in its native (USA, North America) and invasive (Poland, Europe) range, as well as for sessile oaks (Quercus petrea) in Europe. We also evaluated the quality of acorns as hosts for weevil larvae by collecting infested acorns and measuring weevil developmental success, and quantifying acorn traits such as seed mass, tannins, lipids and protein concentration. We used DNA barcoding to identify insects to the species level. The predation by moths was similar and very low in both species and in both ranges. However, red oaks escape pre-dispersal seed predation by weevils in Europe. Weevil infestation rates of northern red oak acorns in their invasive range were 10 times lower than that of sessile oaks, and also 10 times lower than that of red oaks in North America. Furthermore, even when weevils oviposited into northern red oaks, the larvae failed to develop, suggesting that the exotic host created a trap for the insect. This phenomenon might gradually decrease the local abundance of the seed predator, and further aid the invasion.

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Silvicultural treatment effects on oak seed production and predation by acorn weevils in southeastern Ohio

Cited by 30 publications

References 44 publications

Pre-dispersal strategies by Quercus schottkyana to mitigate the effects of weevil infestation of acorns

Pre-dispersal strategies by Quercus schottkyana to mitigate the effects of weevil infestation of acorns

Responses of seedling growth and survival to post‐germination cotyledon removal: An investigation among seven oak species

Invasive oaks escape pre‐dispersal insect seed predation and trap enemies in their seeds

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