Biology of Dendroctonus murrayanae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in Idaho and Montana and Comparative Taxonomic Notes

Abstract

We studied the biology of Dendroctonus murrayanae Hopkins (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta Douglas, in Idaho and Montana. The beetle was not a primary agent of tree mortality. Susceptible host trees were physically damaged, had thin foliage, or were otherwise predisposed to infestation. Beetles attacked individual trees, not in groups, near ground level and at low density. Life stages and their behavior are described. Egg galleries were constructed upward and usually had short spurs. Mating occurred in the egg gallery. Eggs were laid in an elongated group, not in niches, in a shallow excavation along only one side of the egg gallery. Larvae aggregated in a communal chamber, feeding side by side, but separated before pupation. D. murrayanae has four instars. One annual generation is indicated, overwintering as larvae. D. murrayanae occurred in some trees with Pseudips (=Ips) mexicanus (Hopkins), Ips pini (Say), and Hylurgops porosus (LeConte) but seldom with the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins. No natural enemy or commensal insect was observed in brood chambers. A new character on the frons is described and the relationship of D. murrayanae and the spruce beetle, Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby), is discussed.

Evolution of tree killing in bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): trade-offs between the maddening crowds and a sticky situation

“…Species with gregarious larval feeding include some early succession saprophages attacking very resinous hosts, as well as true parasites. For example, the lodgepole pine beetle, Dendroctonus murrayanae Hopkins, may attack suppressed trees at low densities near ground level (Furniss and Kegley 2008), while Dentroctonus micans and its closely related North American congener Dentroctonus punctatus display a typical parasitic lifestyle, where single-mated females attack live trees (Grégoire 1988;Furniss 1995;Lindgren et al 1999). There also appear to be regional differences in the colonisation behaviours of some parasitic species, such as Dendroctonus valens LeConte (Furniss and Carolin 1980;Aukema et al 2010), which could indicate how different habitat and landscape structures favour different strategies.…”

Associations of secondary bark beetles with dying and live lodgepole pine in the post-outbreak phase of mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae (Hopkins), in the central interior of British Columbia, Canada.

“…Cross-attractions within the secondary bark beetle circles are common, for example, showing some cross attractions between these species with the other secondary bark beetles pheromones, in addition to the potential synergistic effects from host volatiles (Reid 1955, Safranyik et al 1999a, 1999b, 2000, Furniss and Kegley 2008; consistent with the studies by and Miller and Borden (2003) that found ipsenol and ipsdienol to be attractive to Hylurgops porosus.…”

“…Dendroctonus murrayanae has four larval instars, with larval offspring aggregating and feeding gregariously side-by-side in communal chambers, and taking more than 26 days to mature into adults from second-instar larvae(Furniss and Kegley 2008). Dendroctonus murrayanae is univoltine, overwintering as larvae .…”

“…Dendroctonus murrayanae is univoltine, overwintering as larvae . Flight to attack new hosts occurs in mid-June to mid-July, with eggs hatching into larvae in August before winter(Safranyik et al 2004, Furniss andKegley 2008) (Table 2).Pityogenes spp. (Bedel), twig beetlesPityogenes spp.…”

Temperature-dependent development of the great European spruce bark beetle Dendroctonus micans (Kug.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) and its predator Rhizophagus grandis Gyll. (Coleoptera: Monotomidae: Rhizophaginae)

“…It is noteworthy that this species is a close relative of D. micans , together in a monophyletic clade that also includes the only other spruce‐feeding specialist D. punctatus , as well as the pine‐feeding D. murrayanae (Kelley & Farrell, ; Reeve et al ., ). Field observations indicate that both D. punctatus and D. murrayanae overwinter as late‐stage/mature larvae (Furniss, ; Furniss & Kegley, ) and we speculate that this may represent two more examples of diapause in the genus, and also that diapause may be an adaptive ancestral character within this primarily spruce‐feeding clade.…”