Effects of slash pine phloem nutrition on the reproductive performance of Ips calligraphus (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)
1989
Popp, M.P. | Wilkinson, R.C. | Jokela, E.J. | Harding, R.B. | Phillips, T.W.
The density of eggs laid per centimeter of gallery by laboratory-reared Ips calligraphus (Germar) females was determined following introduction into thin phloem bolts cut from 25-yr-old slash pine, Pinus elliotii Engelm. var. elliottii, that had been fertilized at the time of planting with a combination of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, or phosphorus alone. Egg density was negatively correlated with female pronotal width (size) and positively correlated with the phloem phosphorus concentration. These two variables explained 64% of the variation in egg density. It is hypothesized that altering egg density in response to varying phloem nutrition represents a resource partitioning mechanism that reduces larval competition. These results also suggest that excessive phosphorus fertilization of slash pine on the Coastal Plain soils could contribute to a build-up in the beetle population without the added benefits of stand growth.
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