耕作措施对华北夏玉米田土壤温度和酶活性的影响

为探讨长期耕作措施下华北平原夏玉米生长季土壤温度与酶活性的变化规律,本研究对四种耕作处理（免耕秸秆还田NTS,旋耕秸秆还田RTS,翻耕秸秆还田CTS和翻耕秸秆不还田CT）下土壤层次的温度和酶活性进行了测定和分析。结果表明：同一土壤层次的各耕作处理均从6：00．18：00呈现正弦波的变化特征;免耕、旋耕等保护性耕作处理在玉米的生育期内温度变化平稳,日均差均小于翻耕秸秆还田和翻耕秸秆不还田;免耕秸秆还田处理土壤酶活性最高,脲酶活性在夏玉米的3个生育期（播种期、大喇叭口期和收获期）分别高于翻耕秸秆不还田处理28．98％,35．62％和24．9％,碱性磷酸酶分别高32．7％,11．94％和10．39％,脱氢酶分别高27．53％,20．39％和30．53％,旋耕和翻耕秸秆还田处理3种酶的活性也明显高于翻耕秸秆不还田处理;旋耕与翻耕秸秆还田处理脲酶和碱性磷酸酶的差异不显著,脱氢酶的差异达到了5％的差异显著水平;通过研究表明在华北平原采用少免耕为主的保护性耕作措施,可以提高土壤酶活性,降低成本,提高经济效益。     

不同耕作方式对玉米田土壤有机碳含量的影响

在华北夏玉米生产体系中,采用田间试验,研究了撂荒、翻耕、免耕和旋耕4种耕作方式下,玉米4个生育期(苗期、拔节期、灌浆期、成熟期)耕层(0~20 cm)土壤总有机碳质量分数、活性有机碳质量分数和碳库管理指数的变化.结果表明:在观测期间,玉米不同生育期(0~20 cm)土层有机碳质量分数和活性有机碳质量分数均呈明显的动态变化,就3种耕作方式来讲,土壤总有机碳和活性有机碳均表现为免耕最高,翻耕和旋耕次之;成熟期免耕、旋耕、翻耕3种处理的土壤碳库管理指数比撂荒分别提高了47.38%、30.43%、27.00%;土壤活性有机碳与总有机碳、碳库管理指数均存在显著相关关系,玉米产量与土壤总有机碳质量分数存在显著相关性,与土壤活性有机碳质量分数和土壤碳库管理指数无明显相关性.综合考虑以上因素,免耕有利于提高土壤有机碳质量分数和土壤碳库管理指数,改善土壤质量,提高土壤肥力.     

生物菌肥、秸秆炭对麦田土壤酶活性及小麦产量的影响

为明确生物菌肥、秸秆炭对我国旱地麦田土壤酶活性及小麦产量的影响,通过田间试验研究农户施肥(FF)、测控施肥(MF)、菌肥无机肥(MFB)、秸秆炭无机肥(MFC)4种施肥处理对旱地小麦生育期土壤脲酶、过氧化氢酶、碱性磷酸酶活性及小麦产量和产量构成因素的影响.结果表明,旱地麦田0-20 cm土层3种酶活性随小麦生育期推进呈现不同变化趋势,脲酶活性高峰均在拔节至扬花期,过氧化氢酶活性高峰均在成熟期,碱性磷酸酶活性高峰均在返青期.在测控定量施肥基础上,菌肥无机肥较农户施肥显著提高了拔节至扬花期土壤脲酶、过氧化氢酶活性.秸秆炭无机肥较农户施肥显著提高了拔节至扬花期碱性磷酸酶活性,提高幅度为16.1%-17.6%(P 0.05).菌肥无机肥和秸秆炭无机肥处理的冬小麦籽粒产量较农户施肥分别提高22.4%、21.5%(P 0.05),秸秆炭无机肥处理显著提高了冬小麦千粒重.拔节至成熟期脲酶活性与小麦籽粒产量呈显著正相关;拔节至扬花期碱性磷酸酶与小麦千粒重呈极显著正相关.综上所述,在测控定量施肥基础上,菌肥无机肥和秸秆炭无机肥可以提高冬小麦产量与生育期酶活性,因此适宜在旱地麦田推广应用.(图3表3参42)     

秸秆还田少免耕对冲积土微生物多样性及微生物碳氮的影响

土壤微生物是耕地质量的重要指标,为阐明秸秆还田少免耕对土壤质量的影响及其机理,在成都平原(温江)冲积水稻土区,开展了水稻–小麦/油菜轮作秸秆还田培肥定位试验(2003～2008年),在小麦生长季节,系统研究了土壤耕层微生物数量和微生物生物量的变化特征.结果表明,秸秆还田翻耕与秸秆还田免耕的土壤耕层微生物总量分别增加了51.7%、12.8%,土壤微生物数量增加主要来自土壤细菌数量的增加;从小麦全生育期看,在小麦分蘖期的增加幅度高于小麦播种期和小麦收获后,有利于促进小麦养分吸收与生长发育.秸秆还田少免耕显著增加了微生物生物量,秸秆还田翻耕和秸秆还田免耕处理土壤微生物碳总量分别比对照提高74.1%、25.8%,土壤微生物氮分别提高60.2%和12.1%.秸秆还田循环利用显著增加了土壤微生物数量和生物量,有利于土壤养分循环与转化,有利于提高土壤有机质含量并改善有机质质量,是耕地质量建设的重要途径.     

保护性耕作对潮土结构特性的影响

研究不同保护性耕作措施对潮土结构特性的影响,探求不同秸秆还田方式下土壤结构的变化规律.以河北省石家庄市栾城县长期定位试验为研究基础,采用了传统翻耕、翻耕秸秆还田、旋耕秸秆还田、免耕覆盖还田、免耕立秆还田和免耕粉碎还田6种处理,分别对不同耕层的土壤容重、有机碳含量、团聚体及有机无机复合体进行了测定,对比分析了不同保护性耕作对潮土结构特性的影响.结果表明:免耕覆盖还田的土壤容重值最低;干筛情况下,免耕秸秆覆盖还田的MWD值显著高于其它处理30.4%～47.4%,而湿筛情况下,免耕立秆还田与粉碎还田MWD值高于其它处理;立秆还田的土壤分散系数最低,而粉碎还田的分散系数比其它处理高20.48%～330.93%;翻耕处理的原土复合量、原土复合度分别高于免耕处理10.82%～21.62%、8.97%～20.97%.不同秸秆还田方式对土壤结构稳定性的影响有很大差异:覆盖还田能改善田间土壤结构;立秆还田能提高微团聚体的稳定性;粉碎还田通过增加土壤有机碳含量而增加水稳性大团聚体的含量.     

不同耕作方式对红壤旱地土壤理化性状及玉米产量的影响

通过田间试验,研究了免耕(T1)、翻耕(T2)、免耕+秸秆覆盖(T3)、翻耕+秸秆覆盖(T4)、翻耕+秸秆深埋(T5)5种耕作方式下土壤理化状况及玉米(Zea mays L)产量.结果表明,使用了秸秆的耕作方式(T3、T4、T5)有利于改良土壤的理化性状、提高玉米产量;翻耕与免耕相比,翻耕能改良土壤物理性状、提高土壤有机质和氮素含量、提高玉米产量,但翻耕土壤中有效磷和速效钾的含量比免耕土壤中低.T5对降低耕层土壤容重、增加土壤孔隙度、提高土壤含水量、改善土壤结构、提高有机质和氮素含量及提高玉米产量有最好的效果;T3对提高耕层土壤有效磷和速效钾含量最明显,对改善土壤结构也表现出较好的效果.因此,丘陵区红壤早地采用翻耕+秸秆深埋的耕作方式,对改良土壤理化性状,提高经济效益有重要意义.     

不同耕作模式对双季稻田生态系统净碳汇效应及收益的影响

耕作措施是影响稻田生态系统净碳汇效应和经济收益的关键因素。为探明南方双季稻区不同耕作模式下稻田耕层土壤(0—20 cm)固碳速率和土壤碳密度、年碳汇平衡和经济收益的变化特征,开展紫云英(Astragalus sinicus L.)-双季稻大田定位试验,设双季水稻翻耕+秸秆还田(CT)、双季水稻旋耕+秸秆还田(RT)、双季水稻免耕+秸秆还田(NT)、双季水稻旋耕+秸秆不还田(RTO,对照)4种耕作处理,系统分析了不同耕作方式对稻田耕层土壤固碳速率和土壤碳密度、年碳汇平衡和经济收益的影响。研究结果表明,各处理稻田耕层土壤的固碳速率变化范围为2.98—3.43 t·hm~(-2)·a~(-1),耕层土壤碳密度为29.77—34.33 t·hm~(-2),其大小顺序均表现为CTRTNTRTO。不同耕作处理稻田生态系统作物的净碳固定变化范围为5.27—7.43 t·hm~(-2)·a~(-1),其大小顺序表现为CTRTNTRTO;CT和RT处理土壤的净碳汇量分别比NT处理增加40.26%和3.90%。不同处理稻田生态系统物质投入的碳成本为0.03—0.85 t·hm~(-2)·a~(-1),年经济收益为7.11—8.81×10~3 CNY·hm~(-2)·a~(-1),稻田生态系统经济效益大小顺序表现为CTRTNTRTO。总之,翻耕、旋耕结合秸秆还田处理均有利于提高双季稻田耕层土壤的固碳速率、碳汇效应和经济收益,是增加耕层土壤有机碳库贮量的有效措施。     

玉米秸秆覆盖免耕对土壤呼吸的影响

土壤呼吸是大气CO2的重要来源,而我国华北平原玉米秸秆覆盖免耕对土壤呼吸的影响的研究报道较少.该文的研究目的主要在于揭示玉米秸秆覆盖免耕对土壤呼吸的影响,为农作措施对碳循环的影响的研究提供理论依据.覆盖免耕试验结果表明,玉米秸秆覆盖免耕土壤CO2全年平均释放量为13.2 g·m-2·d-1,分别比还翻处理和清翻处理增加8.38％和27.6％.所有测定时间中,除去2007年4月24日外,在其余取样时间里处理之间CO2释放量均呈差异显著.不同处理土壤呼吸均表现出显著的季节性动态变化,7月是全年的呼吸高峰期,覆盖免耕在5月多出一次高峰期.玉米秸秆覆盖免耕全年土壤呼吸的最低峰值比最高峰值降低77.1%,显著高于清茬翻耕和还田翻耕,表明玉米秸秆覆盖免耕土壤呼吸季节性变化较为强烈.     

麦秸还田与土壤耕作对稻季CH_4和N_2O排放的影响

2008年在大田试验条件下,设置麦秸还田旋耕、麦秸不还田旋耕、麦秸还田翻耕、麦秸不还田翻耕4个处理,采用静态暗箱-气相色谱法田间原位观测稻麦两熟制农田水稻生长季CH_4和N_2O排放通量,研究小麦秸秆全量还田与土壤耕作两项技术措施对稻季CH_4和N_2O排放的影响及其温室效应,以期为稻麦两熟制农田温室气体减排提供对策.结果表明:麦秸还田对稻季CH_4排放总量的影响达极显著水平,麦秸还田与耕作方式的互作效应对CH_4排放总量有显著影响,麦秸还田和耕作方式对N_2O排放总量的影响均达极显著水平;不同麦秸还田与土壤耕作处理稻季OH4排放总量为:麦秸还田旋耕>麦秸还田翻耕>麦秸不还田翻耕>麦秸不还田旋耕,N_2O的排放总量为:麦秸不还田翻耕>麦秸不还田旋耕>麦秸还田翻耕>麦秸还田旋耕;与麦秸不还田相比,相同耕作措施下麦秸还用排放CH_44和N_2O所产生的全球增温潜势(GWP)明显提高.麦秸还田条件下旋耕处理的GWP高于翻耕处理,而"单位产量的GWP"无明显差异,麦秸不还田条件下采用旋耕措施较翻耕可减轻温室效应.     

稻田土壤呼吸及酶活性对不同秸秆还田方式的响应

为了解秸秆还田通过改变土壤酶活性影响稻田土壤二氧化碳排放的过程,通过大田试验分析小麦和油菜秸秆翻埋还田(W1,R1)、覆盖还田(W2,R2)以及不还田(CK)处理下土壤呼吸和酶活性的变化及其对不同秸秆还田方式的响应.结果表明:(1)不同秸秆还田方式下土壤呼吸均表现为双峰值,峰值分别出现在6月(208.3±6.1 mL/kg)和9月(106.2±13.5 mL/kg).除油菜秸秆翻埋还田外,其他秸秆还田方式均增加了土壤呼吸作用.(2)土壤脲酶和蔗糖酶对不同秸秆还田方式响应各异.不同秸秆还田方式下土壤脲酶活性变化较小,没有表现出显著差异性.由此表明,不同秸秆还田对氮相关酶活性及氮素转化影响较小.而蔗糖酶在不同秸秆还田方式下差异较大.(3)蔗糖酶与土壤呼吸存在显著正相关关系(P0.05).上述结果表明蔗糖酶对秸秆还田较为敏感,可较好地表征秸秆还田过程中土壤呼吸变化状况,可为稻田营养循环利用提供有效依据.     

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.