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Forests
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Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests
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Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Biodiversity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 September 2021) | Viewed by 7398

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Jakub Horák

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 1176, CZ-165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: biodiversity; dead wood; forest ecology; management; saproxylic insects
Dr. Adam Véle

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Forestry & Game Management Research Institute, Strnady 136, Jíloviště CZ-252 02, Czech Republic
Interests: ants; biodiversity; biological protection; forest management; pest

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Global change (e.g., climate change, land use, pollution, introduced species, biogeochemical cycles, and their synergism) strongly influence native and also production forests. The result is deforestation or changes in the dynamics and structure of forests. Therefore, there is not only a change in environmental conditions but also in insect communities. An insect can be affected directly or indirectly (through environmental conditions, food webs, etc). Insects are an indispensable component of forest ecosystems, and their biodiversity is most important not only for ecosystem functioning, but also for wood production. Therefore, the recent, rapidly growing extinction rates of insects are most definitely alarming. Changes in the abundance or distribution of insect taxa lead to changes in community composition and diversity not only at local but also at wider geographical scales, with implications for ecosystem processes. For these reasons, it is essential to gain sufficient knowledge about the changes in insect biodiversity driven by global change.

This Special Issue of Forests is focused on insect biodiversity in forests under global change. Research articles may focus on the occurrence and population dynamics of individual species or multitaxa studies, in dependence on environmental changes. Studies dealing with the effect of management aimed at promoting biodiversity are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Jakub Horák
Dr. Adam Véle
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biodiversity
  • ecology
  • environment
  • forest
  • global change
  • insect

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3235 KiB  
Article
In the Shadow of Cormorants: Succession of Avian Colony Affects Selected Groups of Ground Dwelling Predatory Arthropods
by Ondřej Machač, Povilas Ivinskis, Jolanta Rimšaitė, Ondřej Horňák and Ivan Hadrián Tuf
Forests 2022, 13(2), 330; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13020330 - 17 Feb 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1647
Abstract
(1) Nesting of the great cormorants strongly influences terrestrial ecosystems by physical destruction of vegetation and chemical changes in the soil and around the nesting colonies. (2) We investigated spider, harvestmen, and centipede assemblages in different influenced plots (starting colony, active dense colony, [...] Read more.
(1) Nesting of the great cormorants strongly influences terrestrial ecosystems by physical destruction of vegetation and chemical changes in the soil and around the nesting colonies. (2) We investigated spider, harvestmen, and centipede assemblages in different influenced plots (starting colony, active dense colony, and partly abandoned colony) in the biggest Lithuanian cormorant colony in pine woods on the shore of the Baltic Sea in the Curonian Spit National Park in Lithuania. Selected groups of ground dwelling predatory arthropods were collected by pitfall traps in 2012–2014. (3) We recorded a total of 4299 spider specimens (102 species), 451 harvestmen specimens (9 species), and 1537 centipede specimens (7 species). The coverage of moss and herb vegetation, mean Ellenberg value for light, bare ground without vegetation, and number of nests significantly influenced the abundance, species richness, and ecological groups of arthropod predators. (4) Active ground hunters represented by spider Trochosa terricola and centipede Lithobius forficatus were positively influenced by bare ground without vegetation and a higher density of nests, and negatively influenced by an increasing coverage of moss and herbs. The opposite effect was found for web builder spiders and less movable species, represented by dominant spider species Diplostyla concolor and harvestmen Nemastoma lugubre and Oligolophus tridens. (5) The results show how cormorant influence the forest vegetation structure and affect the abundance and species diversity of ground dwelling predatory arthropods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests)
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16 pages, 29918 KiB  
Article
Modeling Climatic Influences on Three Parasitoids of Low-Density Spruce Budworm Populations. Part 3: Actia interrupta (Diptera: Tachinidae)
by Jacques Régnière, Jean-Claude Thireau, Rémi Saint-Amant and Véronique Martel
Forests 2021, 12(11), 1471; https://doi.org/10.3390/f12111471 - 28 Oct 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1290
Abstract
This article is the third and last of a series of models developed to investigate the impact of climate on the spatiotemporal biology of parasitoids. After two earlier papers investigating Tranosema rostrale and Meteorus trachynotus, this last article concerns the tachinid fly [...] Read more.
This article is the third and last of a series of models developed to investigate the impact of climate on the spatiotemporal biology of parasitoids. After two earlier papers investigating Tranosema rostrale and Meteorus trachynotus, this last article concerns the tachinid fly Actia interrupta (Diptera: Tachinidae). An individual-based model of the seasonal biology of A. interrupta was developed to determine the impact of climate on its interactions with two of its hosts, the spruce budworm Choristoneura fumiferana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) and the obliquebanded leafroller C. rosaceana in eastern North America. The model is based on the developmental responses of ‘the parasitoid’s successive life stages and the ovipositional response of adult females to temperature. It was found that the number of generations this parasitoid undergoes each year varies geographically from two to four, and that its potential growth rate, as dictated by synchrony with larvae of its overwintering host C. rosaceana, is highly patterned geographically and topographically as a result of phenological matching with larvae of obliquebanded leafroller entering diapause in late summer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests)
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19 pages, 6564 KiB  
Article
Modeling Climatic Influences on Three Parasitoids of Low-Density Spruce Budworm Populations. Part 2: Meteorus trachynotus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)
by Jacques Régnière, Rémi Saint-Amant, Jean-Claude Thireau, Pierre Therrien, Christian Hébert and Véronique Martel
Forests 2021, 12(2), 155; https://doi.org/10.3390/f12020155 - 28 Jan 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1501
Abstract
This is the second article of a series of three where we develop temperature-driven models to describe the seasonal interactions between parasitoids and their hosts which we use to explore the impact of climate on their spatiotemporal biology. Here, we model the biology [...] Read more.
This is the second article of a series of three where we develop temperature-driven models to describe the seasonal interactions between parasitoids and their hosts which we use to explore the impact of climate on their spatiotemporal biology. Here, we model the biology of Meteorus trachynotus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) with an individual-based model of its daily interactions with two host species. This model predicts the performance of the parasitoid in response to temperature affecting its seasonal development and that of the two hosts. We compare model output with an extensive set of field observations from natural host populations. The predicted activity of the first adult parasitoid generation closely matches the seasonal pattern of attack on the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) within the limitations of available data. The model predicts 1–4 full generations of M. trachynotus per year in eastern North America, with generations well synchronized with larvae of a known overwintering host, the obliquebanded leafroller Choristoneura rosaceana. The model predicts the observed density dependence of parasitism on spruce budworm. Predicted performance exhibits spatial variation caused by complex life-history interactions, especially synchrony with the overwintering host. This leads to a better performance in warm but not hot environments at middle latitudes and elevations. The model’s predicted spatial patterns correspond closely to our field observations on the frequency of parasitism on spruce budworm. Under climate change, the model predicts that the performance of M. trachynotus populations will improve in the northern portion of its range. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests)
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20 pages, 6257 KiB  
Article
Modeling Climatic Influences on Three Parasitoids of Low-Density Spruce Budworm Populations. Part 1: Tranosema rostrale (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae)
by Jacques Régnière, M. Lukas Seehausen and Véronique Martel
Forests 2020, 11(8), 846; https://doi.org/10.3390/f11080846 - 5 Aug 2020
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2371
Abstract
Despite their importance as mortality factors of many insects, the detailed biology and ecology of parasitoids often remain unknown. To gain insights into the spatiotemporal biology of insect parasitoids in interaction with their hosts, modeling of temperature-dependent development, reproduction, and survival is a [...] Read more.
Despite their importance as mortality factors of many insects, the detailed biology and ecology of parasitoids often remain unknown. To gain insights into the spatiotemporal biology of insect parasitoids in interaction with their hosts, modeling of temperature-dependent development, reproduction, and survival is a powerful tool. In this first article of a series of three, we modeled the biology of Tranosema rostrale at the seasonal level with a three-species individual-based model that took into account the temperature-dependent performance of the parasitoid and two of its hosts. The predicted activity of the first adult parasitoid generation closely matched the seasonal pattern of attack on the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). The model predicted 1–4 full generations of T. rostrale per year in eastern North America. The generations were generally well synchronized with the occurrence of larvae of a probable alternate host, the obliquebanded leafroller Choristoneura rosaceana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), which could be used as an overwintering host. Spatial differences in predicted performance were caused by complex interactions of life-history traits and synchrony with the overwintering host, which led to a better overall performance in environments at higher elevations or along the coasts. Under a climate warming scenario, regions of higher T. rostrale performance were predicted to generally move northward, making especially lower elevations in the southern range less suitable. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Global Change on Insect Biodiversity in Forests)
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