氮沉降对贝加尔针茅草原土壤酶活性的影响

草原土壤酶作为土壤中最活跃的组分,影响生态系统的物质循环过程,其活性能快速反映氮沉降对土壤环境的变化。以内蒙古贝加尔针茅草原为研究对象,于2010年开始实施模拟氮沉降试验,设置对照(N0,0 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1))、低氮(N30,30 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1);N50,50 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1))、高氮(N100,100 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1);N150,150 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1);N200,200 kg·hm~(-2)·a~(-1))6种氮处理,研究不同氮沉降水平对贝加尔针茅草原土壤6种酶(脲酶、酸性磷酸酶、过氧化氢酶、过氧化物酶、多酚氧化酶和蔗糖酶)活性影响。结果表明,0~10 cm土层,与对照相比,氮沉降处理均降低了土壤脲酶(1.32%~24.54%)、过氧化氢酶(10.34%~46.41%)、过氧化物酶(40.54%~271.43%)和蔗糖酶(2.88%~7.31%)活性。同一氮处理水平,不同深度土层的脲酶、酸性磷酸酶、多酚氧化酶和蔗糖酶活性表现为0~10 cm10~20 cm。相关分析表明,土壤含水量、p H、有机碳、全氮、铵态氮、硝态氮、微生物生物量碳和微生物生物量氮含量与酶活性具有显著相关性(P0.05)。以上结果表明,氮沉降通过改变草原土壤的环境因子,影响土壤酶活性。     

长期施肥对水稻土酶活性及理化特性的影响

为了明确不同施肥种类对水稻土土壤肥力与酶活性的影响,以30年（1981年至今）长期定位试验地为基础,研究不同施肥处理（CK,N,P,K,NPK,2倍NPK,NPK＋猪粪）水稻田耕层（0-20cm）土壤酶活性与养分的变化趋势及其相关性。结果表明：1）施P（配施或单施）增加土壤全P、速效P含量,平衡施肥配施有机肥（NPK＋猪粪处理）土壤的有机质、全P、速效P、全N、速效N均显著增加,所有施肥处理间pH值差异均不显著;2）除了NPK处理土壤脲酶活性最高外,平衡施肥配施有机肥土壤转化酶、酸性磷酸酶、过氧化氢酶活性均较其他处理显著增加;3）酸性磷酸酶活性与土壤全P量呈负相关,过氧化氢酶、脲酶、转化酶与全N、有机质、速效N、速效P呈显著或极显著正相关;因此,水田土壤长期平衡施肥配施有机肥,能显著提高土壤肥力,增加土壤酶活性,有益于土壤生产力的持续提高。     

沼液对甘蓝连作土壤生物学性质的影响

以施用化肥225 kg/hm2为对照,设置两种不同的沼液用量(以纯氮计):沼液I(168 kg/hm2)和沼液II(225 kg/hm2),通过连续3 a的甘蓝种植试验,研究沼液对甘蓝连作土壤微生物区系、土壤酶活性以及土壤养分与土壤酶活性之间的相关性.结果表明:1)施用沼液显著改善了连作土壤的微生物区系,溶磷细菌、解钾细菌、氨化细菌、固氮菌和放线菌的数量显著增加;同时抑制了真菌的富集.两种不同用量的沼液处理较化肥处理的土壤细菌/真菌(B/F)值分别提高了142.7%和202.3%.2)在225 kg/hm2等氮水平下,施用沼液显著提高了土壤的蔗糖酶、磷酸酶和蛋白酶活性,较之化肥处理分别提高了63.96%、137.61%和139.66%;同时显著降低了土壤过氧化氢酶和多酚氧化酶活性.3)土壤养分与土壤酶活性相关性分析表明,有机质含量与土壤脲酶、磷酸酶、蔗糖酶和蛋白酶活性呈显著正相关,与过氧化氢酶活性呈显著负相关,而与多酚氧化酶活性无明显相关性;磷酸酶活性与土壤速效磷含量呈显著正相关;蛋白酶活性与土壤碱解氮、全氮含量呈显著正相关.表4参24     

毛乌素沙地东南缘沙漠化过程中土壤酶活性的演变研究

研究了毛乌素沙地东南缘沙漠化过程中土壤脲酶、过氧化氢酶和多酚氧化酶活性的响应过程,并对其与土壤养分的相关关系进行分析。结果表明,随沙漠化程度的加剧,土壤脲酶、过氧化氢酶和多酚氧化酶活性均降低,随土层深度的增加,土壤脲酶活性呈降低趋势,土壤过氧化氢酶和多酚氧化酶并未表现出规律性变化,沙漠化过程破坏了土壤酶的活性,三种酶活性能较为敏感地反映土壤环境的变化;相关性分析结果显示,土壤三种酶活性之间存在着极显著正相关性．且三种酶活性与土壤有机质和全氮含量之间同样存在极显著正相关性,表明三种酶在相互作用过程存在共生关系,且能够作为衡量土壤肥力的重要指标。土壤脲酶、过氧化氢酶和多酚氧化酶活性变化可作为衡量沙漠化环境变化的重要指示性指标,并可为进一步揭示沙漠化的生物学规律提供依据。     

长期施肥对旱地红壤肥力和酶活性的影响

为了明确不同施肥种类对旱地红壤肥力与酶活性的影响,以30年（1981年至今）长期定位试验地为基础,研究不同施肥处理（CK,N,NP,NPK,2倍NPK,猪粪,NPK＋猪粪）旱地红壤玉米田耕层（0～20 cm）土壤酶活性与养分的变化趋势及其相关性。结果表明：1）全N含量各处理间差异不显著,单施N肥显著增加土壤速效N,施有机肥处理（NPK＋猪粪,猪粪）土壤的pH值、有机质、全P、速效P均显著增加;2）除了2倍NPK处理土壤脲酶活性最高外,施有机肥土壤的转化酶、脱氢酶、酸性磷酸酶、过氧化氢酶活性也较其他处理显著增加;3）酸性磷酸酶、过氧化氢酶、脱氢酶、脲酶与全N、有机质、速效N呈显著或极显著正相关;因此,红壤旱地通过长期施用有机肥或与无机肥配施,不仅能显著提高土壤肥力,而且能增加土壤酶活性,从而显著提高土壤持续生产力。     

复合菌剂对盆栽番茄土壤理化性质及微生物活性的影响

通过盆栽对照试验的方法,研究复合菌剂C1、C2对土壤理化性质及微生物活性的影响,结果表明：与对照相比,施用复合菌剂C1、C2能够减少土壤真菌的数量,在施菌剂早期可以增加土壤细菌的数量,对土壤放线菌影响较小;提高土壤有机质、碱解氮、速效磷、速效钾等土壤养分的质量分数,降低土壤酸度;同时还能够显著地增强土壤脲酶、磷酸酶、纤维素酶及过氧化氢酶的活性。进一步对各处理的土壤因素进行主成分分析,结果显示PC1为土壤碱解氮、速效磷、速效钾,PC2为土壤矿化氮、脲酶、纤维素酶。综合评价土壤质量,复合菌剂C2在各处理中综合得分最大。     

青海湖区紫花针茅草原封育导致的土壤养分时空变化特征

封育导致的生态系统恢复会体现在土壤恢复.以不同封育年限的青海湖区紫花针茅草原为对象,研究封育导致的土壤养分时空变化特征.结果表明:同一样地速效氮、速效磷和速效钾都表现为表层含量最高,显著高于第Ⅱ层,下面几层之间差异不显著;封育对速效养分含量影响不同,对速效钾含量影响不大,而速效磷含量大多显著提高,封育样地速效氮含量稍微高于对照样地.全量养分相比较,封育对土壤全钾和全磷含量影响不大,随土层加深全氮含量降低,封育导致土壤表层全氮含量升高(提高了19.9%).有机质含量随土层加深而降低,长期封育导致土壤有机质含量增加.相关分析表明,速效钾和全钾含量之间相关不显著,速效磷和全磷、速效氮和全氮含量都表现出显著相关,有机质和全量养分之间只有全氮表现出了显著相关.封育后土壤pH值略有升高;随着土层加深,土壤容重升高,但土壤容重变化不大.封育使草原土壤养分含量增加,但是养分的增加是一个非常缓慢的过程,对草原的保护还需继续加强.     

苏南丘陵区林地土壤酶活性及其与土壤理化性质的相关性

研究了苏南丘陵地区马尾松、毛竹、麻栎、杉木4种林分土壤的蔗糖酶、酸性磷酸酶、脲酶活性及其与土壤理化性质的关系.结果表明,马尾松林土壤蔗糖酶和酸性磷酸酶活性最高,毛竹林土壤脲酶活性最高,裸地土壤3种酶活性均最低;3种酶活性在土壤剖面中呈自上而下逐渐减小的趋势,蔗糖酶、酸性磷酸酶活性随土层深度的变化较大,脲酶活性相对变化较小.相关分析结果表明,蔗糖酶和酸性磷酸酶分别与全N、有效P、有机质在α=0.01水平下呈显著正相关,且2种酶之间在α=0.01水平下呈显著正相关;蔗糖酶与Pb在α=0.05水平下呈显著正相关,酸性磷酸酶与Cu、Pb在α=0.01水平下呈显著正相关;脲酶与全P、有机质、Pb在α=0.01水平下呈显著正相关,与容重在α=0.01水平下呈显著负相关,与全N、酸性磷酸酶、Cu在α=0.05水平下呈显著正相关.回归分析结果表明,3种酶与全N、有效P、有机质、Cu、Pb之间呈非线性关系.主成分分析结果表明,对4种林分土壤肥力起主要作用的因子主要包括:土壤脲酶、酸性磷酸酶、蔗糖酶、全N、有效P、速效K、有机质.3种酶可作为较理想的土壤质量评价指标.     

紫茎泽兰与不同植物群落土壤养分及酶活性差异

为了研究紫茎泽兰(Ageratina adenophora Sprengel)与不同植物群落土壤养分及酶活性间的差异,解析不同植物群落抵御紫茎泽兰入侵的生态机制,选取紫茎泽兰不同入侵程度(重度入侵群落、轻度入侵群落、未入侵群落)和不同功能型植物群落样地(禾本科植物群落、双子叶植物群落),测定其植物群落土壤养分和酶活性变化,并对土壤酶活性与土壤养分进行相关性分析。结果表明,紫茎泽兰入侵显著增加了土壤中全氮含量,降低了全磷、全钾含量,土壤中有效养分硝态氮、铵态氮、有效磷和速效钾含量显著增加,重度入侵群落的土壤硝态氮、铵态氮、有效磷和速效钾含量显著大于未入侵群落的,是双子叶植物群落的2.29、2.28、8.13、4.01倍,禾本科植物群落的7.73、3.22、6.91、5.12倍。紫茎泽兰入侵显著提高了入侵区植物群落土壤中脲酶、磷酸酶和蛋白酶活性,重度入侵群落土壤脲酶活性是禾本科群落的3.49倍,磷酸酶活性是双子叶群落的1.65倍,蛋白酶活性是双子叶群落的2.31倍。土壤养分含量与酶活性密切相关,土壤脲酶活性与土壤全氮、硝态氮、铵态氮、全钾和速效钾显著正相关,与全磷显著负相关;土壤磷酸酶、蛋白酶活性与土壤全氮、硝态氮、铵态氮、速效钾和有效磷显著正相关,与全磷含量显著负相关。与不同植物群落相比,紫茎泽兰能更好改变土壤养分的供求平衡,这种改变可使紫茎泽兰在入侵过程中处于优势地位,植物群落间土壤酶活性差异可能是驱动土壤养分变化的重要因子。外来入侵植物紫茎泽兰通过影响土壤酶活性来改变入侵生境土壤养分的供求平衡可能是其成功入侵的生态机制之一。     

矿区复垦土壤的微生物活性变化

在由煤矸石、粉煤灰和污泥构成的矿区复合基质上种植黑麦草进行矿区复垦试验,分析了不同复垦阶段土壤微生物功能多样性和酶活性的差异,以揭示矿区复垦过程中免施肥的可行性.结果表明,矿区复垦土壤微生物功能多样性和酶活性随复垦时间的延长而显著提高.复垦23个月后,矿区复垦土壤的全氮、速效磷和速效钾含量分别比复垦种植前降低72.05％、67.86％和60.19％,蔗糖酶、脱氢酶、脲酶和碱性磷酸酶活性增加1.30～7.56倍.Biolog微平板培养测试结果显示,矿区复垦16和23个月的土壤微生物群落AWCD( average well colour development)值,微生物Shannon多样性指数、Simpson指数、Mclntosh指数均显著高于复垦种植前(P＜0.05).微生物多样性相关参数与土壤酶活性及土壤有机质含量之间呈显著正相关(P＜0.05或P＜0.01),与土壤全氮、速效磷、速效钾含量之间呈显著负相关(P＜0.05或P＜0.01).在矿区复垦过程中污泥作为有机添加物有助于促进植物生长和提高微生物活性.     

Representation of the world's biophysical conditions by the global protected area network

Protected areas (PAs) are often implemented without consideration of already existing PAs, which is likely to cause an overrepresentation of certain biophysical conditions. We assessed the representativeness of the current PA network with regard to the world's biophysical conditions to highlight which conditions are underprotected and where these conditions are located. We overlaid terrestrial and marine PAs with information on biophysical conditions (e.g., temperature, precipitation, and elevation) and then quantified the percentage of area covered by the PA network. For 1 variable at a time in the terrestrial realm, high temperature, low precipitation, and medium and very high elevation were underrepresented. For the marine realm, low and medium sea surface temperature (SST), medium and high sea surface salinity (SSS), and the deep sea were underrepresented. Overall, protection was evenly distributed for elevation across the terrestrial realm and SST across the marine realm. For 2 variables at a time, cold and very dry terrestrial environments had mostly low protection, which was also the case for low SST and low and medium SSS across most depths for marine environments. Low protection occurred mostly in the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula for the terrestrial realm and along the Tropic of Capricorn and toward the poles for the marine realm. Although biodiversity measures are of prime importance for the design of PA networks, highlighting biophysical gaps in current PAs adds a frequently overlooked perspective. These gaps may weaken the potential of PAs to conserve biodiversity. Thus, our results may provide useful insights for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to establish a more comprehensive global PA network.     

Quantitative composition of the defensive secretion ofBledius species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Oxytelinae) is adapted to naturally occurring predators

Summary The adaptation of defensive secretions to their target organisms was examined for the abdominal gland secretions ofBledius furcatus, B. spectabilis andB. arenarius. Therefore the target organisms of the secretion of theseBledius species (i.e. their predators) had to be identified. At the collection sites examined these were the earwigLabidura riparia, the antCataglyphis bicolor, the flyLispe candicans, different carabids of the generaPogonus, Dichirotrichus, Dyschirius, Bembidion andCalathus and the wading birdsHaematopus ostralegus andCalidris alba. The secretion of the abdominal glands contains the toxin ptoluquinone dissolved in either-dodecalactone and 1-undecene (B. furcatus andB. spectabilis) or in octanoic acid and octyloctanoate (B. arenarius). The ratio of these solvents is species-specific. Application experiments using some of the natural insect predators (L. riparia, C. bicolor, Pogonus, Di. gustavii, Dyschirius) revealed that these solvent ratios provided a more effective deterrent than other possible ratios. Thus by combining the solvents in certain ratios, the capability of cuticular penetration and therefore the effectiveness of the defensive secretions are adapted to their natural targets.     

Democracy versus development: New urban debates

The politics of development includes subtexts of choice, as underpinned by community consensus (or lack of it), against the larger backdrop of a liberal democracy, with its intricate power structures that influence the choice of concepts and often lead to complicity rather than consent. A dilemma exists between the understanding of field-level practitioners and that of academics, whose understandings of progress differ. Progress can (and often does) imply long-term change across generations whereas development is often more a matter of crisis management and delivering tangible results to end-users. This makes it a bone of contention across political systems, irrespective of local or global dynamics. Development can emerge as a tool to be wielded for power and further political mileage at the expense of progress. Progress cannot be studied as a counterpoint to development as the sense of history is often missing in development interventions. Development tends to be piecemeal as its very logic often stems from the rationale of power. This is not to suggest, however, that development is only about politics; it is definitely more than the politics of everyday life and involves all of civil society that requires its critical and immediate attention. In this sense, it has become a priority for politicians with an underlying agenda designed to out-manouevre dissent and all statements of protest.     

A framework to measure the wildness of managed large vertebrate populations

As landscapes continue to fall under human influence through habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing is increasingly being used to mitigate anthropogenic threats and enhance the commercial value of wildlife. Subsequent intensification of management potentially erodes wildness by disembodying populations from landscape-level processes, thereby disconnecting species from natural selection. Tools are needed to measure the degree to which populations of large vertebrate species in formally protected and privately owned wildlife areas are self-sustaining and free to adapt. We devised a framework to measure such wildness based on 6 attributes relating to the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of vertebrates (space, disease and parasite resistance, exposure to predation, exposure to limitations and fluctuations of food and water supply, and reproduction). For each attribute, we set empirical, species-specific thresholds between 5 wildness states based on quantifiable management interventions. We analysed data from 205 private wildlife properties with management objectives spanning ecotourism to consumptive utilization to test the framework on 6 herbivore species representing a range of conservation statuses and commercial values. Wildness scores among species differed significantly, and the proportion of populations identified as wild ranged from 12% to 84%, which indicates the tool detected site-scale differences both among populations of different species and populations of the same species under different management regimes. By quantifying wildness, this framework provides practitioners with standardized measurement units that link biodiversity with the sustainable use of wildlife. Applications include informing species management plans at local scales; standardizing the inclusion of managed populations in red-list assessments; and providing a platform for certification and regulation of wildlife-based economies. Applying this framework may help embed wildness as a normative value in policy and mitigate the shifting baseline of what it means to truly conserve a species.     

Achieving Open Access to Conservation Science

Conservation science is a crisis discipline in which the results of scientific enquiry must be made available quickly to those implementing management. We assessed the extent to which scientific research published since the year 2000 in 20 conservation science journals is publicly available. Of the 19,207 papers published, 1,667 (8.68%) are freely downloadable from an official repository. Moreover, only 938 papers (4.88%) meet the standard definition of open access in which material can be freely reused providing attribution to the authors is given. This compares poorly with a comparable set of 20 evolutionary biology journals, where 31.93% of papers are freely downloadable and 7.49% are open access. Seventeen of the 20 conservation journals offer an open access option, but fewer than 5% of the papers are available through open access. The cost of accessing the full body of conservation science runs into tens of thousands of dollars per year for institutional subscribers, and many conservation practitioners cannot access pay‐per‐view science through their workplace. However, important initiatives such as Research4Life are making science available to organizations in developing countries. We urge authors of conservation science to pay for open access on a per‐article basis or to choose publication in open access journals, taking care to ensure the license allows reuse for any purpose providing attribution is given. Currently, it would cost $51 million to make all conservation science published since 2000 freely available by paying the open access fees currently levied to authors. Publishers of conservation journals might consider more cost effective models for open access and conservation‐oriented organizations running journals could consider a broader range of options for open access to nonmembers such as sponsorship of open access via membership fees. Obtención de Acceso Abierto a la Ciencia de la Conservación     

Sexual Predators,Energy Development,and Conservation in Greater Yellowstone

Abstract: In the United States, as elsewhere, a growing debate pits national energy policy and homeland security against biological conservation. In rural communities the extraction of fossil fuels is often encouraged because of the employment opportunities it offers, although the concomitant itinerant workforce is often associated with increased wildlife poaching. We explored possible positive and negative factors associated with energy extraction in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), an area known for its national parks, intact biological diversity, and some of the New World's longest terrestrial migrations. Specifically, we asked whether counties with different economies—recreation (ski), agrarian (ranching or farming), and energy extractive (petroleum)—differed in healthcare (gauged by the abundance of hospital beds) and in the frequency of sexual predators. The absolute and relative frequency of registered sex offenders grew approximately two to three times faster in areas reliant on energy extraction. Healthcare among counties did not differ. The strong conflation of community dishevel, as reflected by in‐migrant sexual predators, and ecological decay in Greater Yellowstone is consistent with patterns seen in similar systems from Ecuador to northern Canada, where social and environmental disarray exist around energy boomtowns. In our case, that groups (albeit with different aims) mobilized campaigns to help maintain the quality of rural livelihoods by protecting open space is a positive sign that conservation can matter, especially in the face of rampant and poorly executed energy extraction projects. Our findings further suggest that the public and industry need stronger regulatory action to instill greater vigilance when and where social factors and land conversion impact biological systems.     

Comparison of the insecticidal effects of water extracted and intact aromatic plants onAcanthoscelides obtectus,a bruchid beetle pest of kidney beans

Summary Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say) is one of the most damaging pests of kidney beans,Phaseolus vulgaris L. worldwide. However, aromatic plants from the families Lamiaceae, Lauraceae, Myrtaceae and Poaceae can protect kidney beans by direct or delayed insecticidal effect, through increased adult mortality and inhibition of beetle reproduction (both oviposition and adult emergence). The efficiency of hydrodistillated and intact plants fromThymus vulgaris andT. serpyllum, Mentha piperata, Rosmarinus officinalis, Satureia hortensis, Eucalyptus globulus, Laurus nobilis, Origanum vulgare, andCymbopogon nardus was compared. For both extracts,Origanum vulgare had the best effect. The insecticidal effect was induced by more than the essential oils because no significant difference was noticed between distilled and intact plants extract. Inhibition of reproduction was particularly important. These results suggest that lipidic as well as non lipidic, allelochemicals, such as phenolics, or non-protein amino-acids, or flavonoids may be involved in the toxicity of aromatic plants to this beetle.     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.     

Some polyphagous Homoptera gain protection from their natural enemies by feeding on the toxic plantsSpartium junceum andErythrina corallodendrum (Leguminosae)

Summary Interactions were studied among alkaloid-containing legumes (Erythrina corallodendrum andSpartium junceum) and non-toxic plants (Citrus sinensis, Cucurbita moschata andEuphorbia tirucalli), several polyphagous homopterans,Aphis craccivora (Aphididae),Icerya purchasi, I. aegyptiaca (Margarodidae),Lepidosaphes ulmi (Diaspididae) andPlanococcus citri (Pseudococcidae), and some major natural enemies of these homopterans. Significant reductions in survival due to negative effects of alkaloid containing as compared with non-alkaloidal plants were recorded for the predatorsRodolia cardinalis andChilocorus bipustulatus, but not forCryptolaemus montrouzieri (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae),Chrysoperla carnea (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) andSympherobius sanctus (Neuroptera: Sympherobiidae). The development time of the larvae or pupae ofR. cardinalis, C. carnea andS. sanctus was longer on the toxic plants than on the non-toxic ones. The percentage of parasitism ofA. craccivora collected from the non-alkaloidal plantsVicia palaestina andMelilotus albus was much higher than that onS. junceum. The parasitoid complexes ofA. craccivora differed between both plant groups. The nutritive value of honeydew ofI. purchasi andA. craccivora, as expressed by the life span ofEncyrtus infelix (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) adults, was also investigated. Life spans were significantly longer when the wasps fed on honeydew produced on non-alkaloidal plants (C. sinensis andPittosporum tobira) than on alkaloid containing plants whenI. purchasi — but notA. craccivora — was the producer. It is suggested that the chemical defense ofE. corallodendrum andS. junceum is exploited by polyphagous phytophages to reduce predation. In nature, population growth and density of four of the investigated homopterans are conspicuously high when they developed on the alkaloid containing plant species, and very low on non-alkaloid plants. The efficiency of their natural enemies may be reduced by sequestration of alkaloids (or other toxic plant compounds) or their transfer into excreted honeydew. Therefore it is assumed that a generalist phytophagous homopteran may be protected from its natural enemies, although at different rates of efficiency, if it can safely sequester the host allelochemical when it develops on toxic species within its host range.