An estimated 400–800 million tons of prey are annually killed by the global spider community

Spiders have been suspected to be one of the most important groups of natural enemies of insects worldwide. To document the impact of the global spider community as insect predators, we present estimates of the biomass of annually killed insect prey. Our estimates assessed with two different methods suggest that the annual prey kill of the global spider community is in the range of 400–800 million metric tons (fresh weight), with insects and collembolans composing >90% of the captured prey. This equals approximately 1‰ of the global terrestrial net primary production. Spiders associated with forests and grasslands account for >95% of the annual prey kill of the global spider community, whereas spiders in other habitats are rather insignificant contributors over a full year. The spider communities associated with annual crops contribute less than 2% to the global annual prey kill. This, however, can be partly explained by the fact that annual crop fields are “disturbed habitats” with a low buildup of spider biomass and that agrobiont spiders often only kill prey over short time periods in a year. Our estimates are supported by the published results of exclusion experiments, showing that the number of herbivorous/detritivorous insects and collembolans increased significantly after spider removal from experimental plots. The presented estimates of the global annual prey kill and the relative contribution of spider predation in different biomes improve the general understanding of spider ecology and provide a first assessment of the global impact of this very important predator group.     

“You are what you eat”: Diet modifies cuticular hydrocarbons and nestmate recognition in the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile

 Nestmate recognition plays a key role in the behavior and evolution of social insects. We demonstrated that hydrocarbons are the chemical cues used in Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, nestmate recognition, and that these hydrocarbons can be acquired from insect prey. Consequently, Argentine ant cuticular hydrocarbon patterns reveal the same hydrocarbons present in their diet. Diet alters both the recognition cues present on the cuticular surface and the response of nestmates to this new colony odor, resulting in aggression between former nestmates reared on different insect prey. Received: 16 June 2000 / Accepted: 14 August 2000     

Immunity in a Social Insect

 Although pathogens appear to have exerted significant selective pressure on various aspects of sociality, mechanisms of disease resistance in the social insects are poorly understood. We report here on an immune response to infection by the dampwood termite, Zootermopsis angusticollis. Nymphs immunized with an injection of 7.6×10⁷, 7.6×10⁵, or 7.6×10⁴ cells/ml glutaraldehyde-killed solution of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa had significantly higher survivorship than controls following a challenge with a lethal concentration of active bacteria. Similarly, nymphs exposed to a 9×10^–1 spores/ml suspension of the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae had higher survivorship than controls after a challenge with a lethal concentration of spores. Prior exposure to a pathogen thus conferred upon termites a degree of protection during a subsequent encounter with the same pathogen. This represents the first demonstration of immune function in vivo in a social insect. Received: 18 May 1999 / Accepted in revised form: 26 August 1999     

锌冶炼-氯碱复合污染区昆虫中的重金属

采集葫芦岛草地中14种昆虫（植食性、杂食性、肉食性）及蚯蚓,测定生物体内汞、镉、铅含量,研究生物体内重金属污染情况.植食性昆虫汞、镉、铅平均含量分别为0.168、 9.19、 12.58 mg·kg^-1;杂食性昆虫汞、镉、铅平均含量分别为0.375、 24.43、 17.71 mg·kg^-1;肉食性昆虫汞、镉、铅平均含量0.928、 29.78、 18.39 mg·kg^-1;蚯蚓平均汞含量为1.923 mg·kg^-1,葫芦岛生物体内重金属污染严重.不同种类昆虫对重金属的富集能力差异较大,蜗牛、蜻蜓对汞的富集能力较高;蜘蛛对镉、铅的富集能力较高.昆虫体内重金属含量顺序为汞<铅<镉.汞、镉、铅含量由低到高的顺序均为植食性昆虫<杂食性昆虫<肉食性肉昆虫,杂食性昆虫与肉食性昆虫平均镉、铅含量之间较为接近.昆虫体内镉、铅含量之间极显著相关,而汞与镉、汞与铅含量之间的相关性较差.表明昆虫体内镉铅具有同一来源,而汞的来源较为复杂.     

Loss coefficient of nitrogenous non-point source pollution under various precipitation conditions

In this study, calibrations of non-point source (NPS) pollution models are performed based on Black River basin historical real-time runoff data, sedimentation record data, and NPS sources survey information. The concept of NPS loss coefficient for the watershed or the loss coefficients (LC) for simplicity is brought up by examining NPS build-up and migration processes along riverbanks in natural river systems. The historical data is used for determining the nitrogenous NPS loss coefficient for five land use types including farmland, urban land, grassland, shrub land, and forest under different precipitation conditions. The comparison of outputs from Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model and coefficient export method showed that both methods could obtain reasonable LC. The high Pearson correlation coefficient (0.94722) between those two sets of calculation results justified the consistency of those two models. Another result in the study is that different combinations of precipitation condition and land use types could significantly affect the calculated loss coefficient. As for the adsorptive nitrogen, the order of impact on LC for different land use types can be sorted as: farm land > urban land > grassland > shrub land > forest while the order was farmland > grass land > shrub land > forest s>urban land for soluble nitrogen. __________ Translated from Acta Scientiae Circumstantiae, 2006, 26(3): 392–397 [译自: 环境科学学报]     

Evolution of a new sense for wind in flying phasmids? Afferents and interneurons

The evolution of winged stick insects (phasmids) from secondarily wingless ancestors was proposed in recent studies. We explored the cuticle of flying phasmids for wind sensors that could be involved in their flight control, comparable to those known for locusts. Surprisingly, wind-sensitive hairs (wsH) occur on the palps of mouthparts and on the antennae of the winged phasmid Sipyloidea sipylus which can fly in tethered position only when air currents blow over the mouthparts. The present study describes the morphology and major functional properties of these “new” wsH with soft and bulging hair bases which are different from the beaker-like hair bases of the wsH on the cerci of phasmids and the wsH described in other insects. The most sensitive wsH of antennae and palps respond with phasic-tonic afferents to air currents exceeding 0.2 ms⁻¹. The fields of wsH on one side of the animal respond mainly to ventral, lateral, and frontal wind on the ipsilateral side of the head. Afferent inputs from the wsH converge but also diverge to a group of specific interneurons at their branches in the suboesophageal ganglion and can send their integrated input from wsH fields of the palps and antennae to the thoracic central nervous system. Response types of individual wsH-interneurons are either phasic or phasic-tonic to air puffs or constant air currents and also, the receptive fields of individual interneurons differ. We conclude that the “new” wsH system and its interneurons mainly serve to maintain flight activity in airborne phasmids and also, the “new” wsH must have emerged together with the integrating interneurons during the evolution from wingless to the recent winged forms of phasmids.     

Walking on insect paths? Early ommatidial development in the compound eye of the ancestral crustacean, Triops cancriformis

 Ommatidia (the compound eye's functional units) in insects are formed by the recruitment of undifferentiated cells under the control of signalling factors. During this process, a sequence of "preclusters" composed of specifically arranged precursor cells is followed. In the growth zone of the eye of Triops, an ancestral crustacean, we observed a patterning process that corresponds well with that of insects. In both taxa, clusters with arc-like, five-cell and eight-cell patterns are found, and the sequence in which the photoreceptor or R-cells of each ommatidium become identifiable is basically the same. The first to appear are R8-like and R2/5-like cells, second are R3/4-like, and third are R1/6- and R7-like cells (if the fly's cell-numbering system is used). Thus, the morphogenetic steps during which the cell identities and the cellular architecture of the ommatidia develop appear to be conserved between these arthropod groups. Furthermore, the individual cells and cell pairs which build an insect ommatidium seem to have their homologues in crustaceans. In the evolution of developmental processes, intercellular recruitment seems to be a mechanism operating on the level of single cells even in distantly related species. Received: 12 May 2000 / Accepted in revised form: 17 May 2000     

Essential host plant cues in the grapevine moth

Host plant odours attract gravid insect females for oviposition. The identification of these plant volatile compounds is essential for our understanding of plant–insect relationships and contributes to plant breeding for improved resistance against insects. Chemical analysis of grape headspace and subsequent behavioural studies in the wind tunnel show that host finding in grapevine moth Lobesia botrana is encoded by a ratio-specific blend of three ubiquitous plant volatiles. The odour signal that attracts mated females to grape consists of the terpenoids (E)-β-caryophyllene, (E)-β-farnesene and (E)-4,8-dimethyl-1,3,7-nonatriene. These compounds represent only a fraction of the volatiles released by grapes, and they are widespread compounds known throughout the plant kingdom. Specificity may be achieved by the blend ratio, which was 100:78:9 in grape headspace. This blend elicited anemotactic behaviour in moths at remarkably small amounts. Females were attracted at release rates of only a few nanograms per minute, at levels nearly as low as those known for the attraction of male moths to the female sex pheromones.     

The bacterium<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Xenorhabdus nematophila</Emphasis> inhibits phospholipases A<Subscript>2</Subscript> from insect,prokaryote, and vertebrate sources

The bacterium, Xenorhabdus nematophila, is a virulent insect pathogen. Part of its pathogenicity is due to impairing cellular immunity by blocking biosynthesis of eicosanoids, the major recognized signal transduction system in insect cellular immunity. X. nematophila inhibits the first step in eicosanoid biosynthesis, phospholipase A₂ (PLA₂). Here we report that the bacterium inhibits PLA₂ from two insect immune tissues, hemocytes and fat body, as well as PLA₂s selected to represent a wide range of organisms, including prokaryotes, insects, reptiles, and mammals. Our finding on a bacterial inhibitor of PLA₂ activity contributes new insight into the chemical ecology of microbe–host interactions, which usually involve actions rather than inhibitors of PLA₂s.     

基于高通量测序的流化床生物滤器细菌群落结构分析

为了解流化床生物滤器内部细菌群落组成及其净水机制,通过高通量测序方法,研究了不同时期滤器中表层和底层滤料的细菌群落结构,分析了滤器不同床层的营养盐变化情况及水处理性能.结果表明,滤器的硝化作用主要发生于床层下部,表层对其的贡献率不显著.稳定工况下,流化床生物滤器对NH_4~+-N、TN、BOD_5和SS的去除率达到(68.3±2.24)%、(49.54±3.56)%、(60.35±4.98)%和(45.21±2.11)%,对氨氮的去除负荷达到(343.28±75.5)g·(m~3·d)~(-1),其硝化性能优于常规生物滤器.试验共筛选31个门,490个细菌属,其生物多样性显著高于常规生物滤器.自清洗装置的启停对滤器中不同区域载体表面细菌的多样性没有影响,对各样品的优势菌群略有影响.在滤器稳定运行时,表层区域的优势细菌基本维持不变,主要包括厌氧绳菌科、黄杆菌科、红杆菌科、硝化螺菌属、暖绳菌科.而底层区域的优势细菌随着时间的推移有所变化,主要包括硝化螺菌属、微丝菌属、Muricauda、Defluviimonas、红杆菌科.     

Shade tree management affects fruit abortion, insect pests and pathogens of cacao

The mortality of cacao fruits caused by early fruit abortion or insect and pathogen attacks was investigated in differently managed agroforestry systems in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. Nine agroforestry systems shaded by three different types of tree stands were selected, which represented a decrease in structural heterogeneity: forest remnants, diverse planted trees and one or two species of planted leguminose trees. After standardized manual cross-pollination, the development of 600 fruits on 54 trees (6 trees per agroforest) was followed during 18 weeks of fruit development. In total, 432 of all fruits were lost before maturity, which seriously undermined yields. The proportion of harvested fruits per tree (overall average: 27 ± 4%) was not affected by canopy type. Although shade cover did not have a significant effect, losses due to fruit abortion were most likely under forest shade, where nitrogen-fixing leguminose shade trees were absent. Fruit losses due to pathogenic infections and insect attacks increased with the homogenization of the agroforests, supporting the hypothesis that agricultural homogenization increases risks of pest outbreaks. In conclusion, shade management may be improved to increase yields from cacao using highly diversified natural shade agroforestry systems.     

周村水库主库区热分层初期氮素降低的驱动因子分析

为了探究周村水库热分层前期氮素的变化趋势及其驱动因子,于2016年2~4月定期对周村水库主库区进行水质指标监测,并在采样点采集新鲜水样和表层沉积物,实验室模拟水库氮素变化过程中,水体和沉积物的反硝化作用量.结果表明周村水库在热分层初期,库区总氮浓度由(2.28±0.09)mg·L~(-1)降至(1.08±0.09)mg·L~(-1),硝氮浓度由(1.66±0.09)mg·L~(-1)降至(0.25±0.06)mg·L~(-1),氨氮浓度总体变化不大,亚硝氮的浓度几乎不变.与此同时,叶绿素没有明显增加,藻类的影响不大;氮素降低主要由于好氧反硝化菌的反硝化作用造成.热分层初期水库的温度逐渐增加、DO、pH的变化以及以小分子量为主的有机物组成均利用好氧反硝化菌的生长繁殖,菌数从1.06×105cfu·L~(-1)增加到8.33×106cfu·L~(-1),使得水库的反硝化作用增强,水库氮素下降;与此同时的模拟实验中,仅有水体好氧反硝化菌作用时,培养瓶的总氮去除量为0.7 mg,水体和表层沉积物共同作用时,总氮去除量为3.3 mg,水体与表层沉积物的反硝化去除氮量之比大体为1∶4,表层沉积物的反硝化作用是水库氮素去除的重要因素.     

不同种植方式对亚热带红壤微生物多样性的影响

土壤微生物在推动土壤碳循环过程方面发挥着重要作用,然而种植方式的改变对土壤微生物多样性的影响机制还不十分清楚.本研究采集湖南省盘塘县长期定位试验站红壤稻田(PR)、旱地(UC)及水旱轮作(PR)这3种不同种植方式的土壤样品,采用末端限制性酶切片段长度多态性分析(T-RFLP)技术和实时荧光定量(RT-PCR)技术分析了土壤细菌16S rRNA基因的多样性和丰度,研究种植方式改变对土壤微生物数量、群落结构及其多样性的影响.结果表明,3种种植方式的土壤细菌16S rRNA基因数量(以干土计)为2.5×109~1.5×1010拷贝·g-1,与PR相比,UP和UC处理16S rRNA基因丰度显著下降(P0.05).同时,3种种植方式下土壤细菌的优势类群为变形菌(76、90和327 bp;相对丰度47%~53%)和绿弯菌(65 bp;相对丰度10%~12%).冗余分析表明种植方式改变了土壤理化性质,导致土壤细菌群落结构特征的显著变化,而土壤理化性质中有机碳和全氮含量是影响土壤细菌群落结构的主要因子.多样性指数分析(香农指数和均匀度指数)显示种植水稻的土壤细菌多样性最高,显著高于水旱轮作和旱地土壤.可见,种植方式的改变对土壤群落组成和数量造成了深刻的影响,而水稻种植是亚热带红壤可持续利用的一种有效方式,其更有利于土壤有机质的累积,土壤肥力及微生物多样性均较高.     

Neurosecretion: peptidergic systems in insects

 Insect neuropeptides are produced in less than 1% of the cells of the central nervous system. Despite this, they are important messenger molecules which influence nearly all physiological processes, including behaviour. They can act as transmitters, modulators and classical hormones, and often exhibit pleiotropic functions when released into the haemolymph. The large number of neuropeptides that has been identified from some of the model organisms among insects underlines the complexity of the neurosecretory system; studies about the coordinated actions of these substances are in their preliminary stages. Recent advances in insect neuropeptide research will be reviewed here, concentrating on the distribution of multiple peptide forms in the central nervous system and adjacent neurohaemal organs, and the role of neuropeptides in eclosion behaviour.     

Occurrence of phytophagous insects on wild Vigna sp. and cultivated cowpea: comparing the relative importance of host-plant resistance and millet intercropping

The effects of host-plant resistance on cowpea phytophagous insects and their natural enemies under pure and mixed crop conditions was evaluated at Minjibir, Kano State, Nigeria, in 1992–1994 crop seasons. Cowpea Vigna unguiculata cv ‘IT86D-715' (susceptible to insect pests) and a wild Vigna line Vigna vexillata ‘TVnu 72' (resistant to most insect species) were planted alone and in mixtures with millet (Pennisetum glaucum) in plots of 25×25 m.Mixed cropping had limited effect on major insects and natural enemies. Colonies of Aphis craccivora were significantly smaller and there were more adults of Maruca vitrata in crop mixtures than in monocultures. However, flower and raceme infestation by larval M. vitrata, Megalurothrips sjostedti, and Sericothrips sp. were similar in crop mixtures and monocultures. Empoasca sp. populations and seedling infestation by beanfly Ophiomyia phaseoli were also similar in mixtures and monocultures as well as pod damage by M. vitrata and populations of Clavigralla tomentosicollis. Parasitization rates of M. vitrata, C. tomentosicollis and O. phaseoli and predator–prey ratios of spiders and Orius sp. were similar across cropping systems. Host-plant resistance in TVnu 72 drastically reduced insect populations and damage. Grain yield per hill was high in cowpea IT86D-715 and was not affected by intercropping with millet. Grain yield of TVnu 72 was poor and reflected the low yield potential of this accession.Host-plant resistance is an effective means of controlling insect pest damage in cowpea and there is no evidence that high levels of resistance reduced natural biological control.     

Genitalic autogrooming: a self-filling trash collection system in crickets

Insects groom almost all parts of the body surface with their legs and mouth parts. However, some body regions are difficult to reach and keep clean. One is the genital chamber located in the last abdominal segment in males which houses the phallic complex for copulation and production of the spermatophore. In the male cricket, foreign substances can enter the genital chamber when it is opened during copulation and spermatophore formation. Moreover, the dorsal pouch and ventral lobes of the phallic complex, which mould the attachment plate, tube, and ampulla of the spermatophore, are inevitably soiled as a result of spermatophore production. We found a unique cleaning system in which foreign substances accumulated during copulation and spermatophore debris left in the dorsal pouch after copulation are quickly removed and collected in special pockets in the genital chamber. This trash is collected by undulation of the genital chamber’s membranous floor which is entirely covered by small scales (∼10 μm) similar to those in the ovipositor of female crickets. This self-filling trash collecting system may be used in some other insects which produce the spermatophore in a similar manner to that of crickets.     

铜离子的持续负荷对活性污泥生物硝化活性的影响

重金属对生物硝化的抑制是困扰很多污水处理厂脱氮效果的难题.本文采用间歇式活性污泥反应器(SBR),研究了模拟废水中不同浓度的Cu2+持续抑制及负荷停止后硝化效率、硝化细菌活性和Cu分布的变化.结果表明,硝化活性易受Cu2+的影响,抑制程度随着Cu2+浓度的增大和施加持续Cu2+负荷的运行周期的延长而提高,当活性污泥内、外吸附Cu的总量达(14.0±1.0)mg·g-1(以MLSS计)时,氨氮去除率降至26.5%±4.0%.Cu2+对氨氧化细菌(AOB)的抑制作用大于亚硝酸盐氧化细菌(NOB).在Cu2+负荷为10和20 mg·L-1的体系中,NOB可以全部或部分被驯化而适应含铜废水.恢复阶段,AOB和NOB的活性完全或部分恢复,恢复速率和程度随抑制期Cu2+投加浓度的增加而降低.反应体系内Cu主要分布在细胞内部和表面,且不易解析,硝化抑制率与溶解的Cu2+浓度呈负相关性.     

Performance assessment and microbial diversity of two pilot scale multi-stage sub-surface flow constructed wetland systems

This study assessed the performance and diversity of microbial communities in multi-stage sub-surface flow constructed wetland systems(CWs). Our aim was to assess the impact of configuration on treatment performance and microbial diversity in the systems. Results indicate that at loading rates up to 100 g BOD5/(m2·day), similar treatment performances can be achieved using either a 3 or 4 stage configuration. In the case of phosphorus(P), the impact of configuration was less obvious and a minimum of 80% P removal can be expected for loadings up to 10 g P/(m2·day) based on the performance results obtained within the first16 months of operation. Microbial analysis showed an increased bacterial diversity in stage four compared to the first stage. These results indicate that the design and configuration of multi-stage constructed wetland systems may have an impact on the treatment performance and the composition of the microbial community in the systems, and such knowledge can be used to improve their design and performance.     

Effect of cypermethrin insecticide on the microbial community in cucumber phyllosphere

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is one of the most widely used vegetable in the world,and different pesticides have been extensively used for controlling the insects and disease pathogens of this plant.However,little is known about how the pesticides affect the microbial community in cucumber phyllosphere.This study was the first attempt to assess the impact of pyrethroid insecticide cyperemethrin on the microbial communities of cucumber phyllosphere using biochemical and genetic approaches.Phospholipid fatty ac...