No abstract

This scientific paper examines the impact of climate change on the spread and survival of the invasive species Corythucha arcuata (Oak Lace Bug, or OLB) in Romania. The OLB is native to the Eastern USA and Canada, and in its native habitat, it coexists with minimal impact to the preferred host plant species Quercus. However, in Europe, the OLB in high-density causes early defoliation, slowing tree growth and it leads to the death of trees. As Quercus is a keystone species, the impact of the OLB on European forests is significant. This paper aims to address several gaps in knowledge about the OLB by presenting findings from a study conducted by the Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu (ULBS) in Romania. The study identified the species ‘chronology of spread, ecology, ethology, and biology of the species, in addition to foliage classification to determine the extent of attack. The study found a direct link between temperature and speed of the generational lifecycle. The findings support the thesis that climate change is enabling the healthy, rapid density growth of OLB, which is a danger to the Quercus sp. Further research is needed in the area of the thermal tolerance of the OLB, and the research conducted by the ULBS represents the first documented research into the thermal constant of the insect. The paper concludes that further research must be in the direction to understand how and where these insects survive during winter to find future management measures and identify chemical or biological methods as solutions to eradicate and stop the expansion of the invasion of the OLB, and the potential consequences for the Quercus sp.

This paper complements the data published thus far about species of the nymphalid family with data collected in Romania’s eight regions between 1887 and 1984 and elsewhere in Europe (Austria, Germany, Croația, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia and Switzerland), including the date and the site of original collection. For the first time, this research presents the collecting information of the species held in the entomological collection of the Museum of Natural History in Sibiu. It identifies the species of the nymphalid family in six of the museum’s lepidoptera collections. These collections are of extraordinary interest not least because they are associated with natural scientists of European renown, such as Daniel Czekelius, Eugen Worell, Viktor Weindel, Rolf Weirauch, Heinrich Hann von Hannenheim and Eckbert Schneider. The analysis, cataloguing, centralisation and updating of the nomenclature resulted in a number of 1,865 specimens from 49 species and fifteen genera (of the 90 referenced in Romania’s fauna): Aglais, Apatura, Araschnia, Argynnis, Brenthis, Boloria, Euphydryas, Inachis, Issoria, Libythea, Limenitis, Melitaea, Neptis, Nymphalis and Polygonia. Data published in a previous article add 101 specimens from the Vanessa genus. Most species originate regionally from the nine counties of Transylvania followed by Oltenia and Moldova (three counties each), Banat and Dobrogea (two counties each), Crișana, Satu Mare and Muntenia (one county each) and the capital of Romania, Bucharest. The species presented in this paper also include the extinct taxon Polygonia egea (Cramer, 1775), Eugen Worrell collection and three species that are endemic to Romania: Melitaea retyezatica Diöszeghy, 1930, Argynnis pandora dacica Hormuzaki, 1892, Daniel Czekelius collection and Boloria pales ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775) carpathomeridionalis Crosson et Popescu-Gorj, 1963, both in the Viktor Weindel collection.

This paper complements the data published thus far about species of the nymphalid family with data collected in Romania’s eight regions between 1887–1984 and elsewhere in Europe (Austria, Croatia, the Republic of Moldova, and Serbia), including the date and the site of original collection. For the first time, this research presents the collecting information of the species held in the entomological collection of the Museum of Natural History in Sibiu. It identifies the species of the nymphalid family in six of the museum’s lepidoptera collections. These collections are of extraordinary interest not least because they are associated with natural scientists of European renown such as Daniel Czekelius, Eugen Worell, Viktor Weindel, Rolf Weirauch, Heinrich Hann von Hannenheim, and Eckbert Schneider. The analysis, cataloguing, centralization, and updating of the nomenclature resulted in a number of 1.865 specimens from 49 species and fifteen genera (of the 90 referenced in Romania’s fauna): Aglais, Apatura, Araschnia, Argynnis, Brenthis, Boloria, Euphydryas, Inachis, Issoria, Libythea, Limenitis, Melitaea, Neptis, Nymphalis, Polygonia.  Data published in a previous article adds 101 specimens from the Vanessa genus. Most species originate regionally from the 9 counties of Transylvania followed by Oltenia and Moldova (3 counties each), Banat and Dobrogea (2 counties each), Crișana, Satu Mare, and Muntenia (1 county each), and the capital Buchrest. The species presented in this paper also include the extinct taxon Polygonia egea, Eugen Worrell collection and two species that are endemic to Romania: Melitaea retyezatica, Daniel Czekelius collection and Boloria pales caprathomeridionalis, both Viktor Weindel collection.

This scientific paper examines the impact of climate change on the spread and survival of the invasive species Corythucha arcuata Say, 1832 (oak lace bug, or OLB) in Romania. The OLB is native to the Eastern USA and Canada, and in its native habitat, it coexists with minimal impact to the preferred host plant species Quercus. However, in Europe, the OLB in high density causes early defoliation, slowing tree growth. As Quercus spp. is a keystone species, the impact of the OLB on European forests is significant. This paper aims to address several gaps in knowledge about the OLB by presenting findings from a study conducted by the Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu (ULBS) in Romania. The study identified the species’ chronology of spread, ecology, ethology and biology of the species, in addition to foliage classification to determine the extent of attack. The study found a direct link between the temperature and the speed of the generational lifecycle. The findings support the thesis that climate change is enabling the healthy, rapid density growth of OLB, which is a danger to the Quercus spp. Further research is needed in the area of the thermal tolerance of the OLB, and the research conducted by the ULBS represents the first documented research into the thermal constant of the insect. The paper concludes that further research must be in the direction to understand how and where these insects survive during winter to find future management measures and identify chemical or biological methods as solutions to eradicate and stop the expansion of the invasion of the OLB, and the potential consequences for the Quercus sp.