Geographical dispersion of ragweed leaf beetle (Ophraella communa) based on climatic and biological characters in the Palearctic habitats

Abstract

The accidentally introduced ragweed leaf beetle (Ophraella communa) is a most promising biological control agent for common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), which herbivore has already emerged in several areas of the Palearctic region. The aim of our study was to model the expansion of O. communa and the number of generations in the various Palearctic regions. Furthermore, our objective was to determine the effect of the prevailing wind on the direction of its spread and to ascertain the relationship between the green biomass production of ragweed and individual numbers of this leaf beetle. According to our meta‐analytical findings, the advancement of O. communa is continuous in the Palearctic areas. This phytophagous insect invades new habitats, which are occupied by A. artemisiifolia, and spreads quickly. The stable populations of O. communa seem to be strictly linked to the presence of its primary host, A. artemisiifolia. We show that the rapid spread of this insect is due to the combination of wind direction and topography features, which was reinforced by our analysis. O. communa possesses uniformly multivoltine populations in its Palearctic habitats. So, insects possessing facultative diapause are able to colonize northern areas depending on the presence of their host, which statement is based on the processing of 143 East‐ and 68 West‐Palearctic records According to our investigations, the mass appearance of this phytophagous insect coincided with the assimilation peak of its main host, common ragweed.

A story of becoming a horticultural threat, cypress jewel beetle Lamprodila festiva (Coleoptera, Buprestidae): analytical approach of its European escalation based on bibliographical sources

“…In addition, the dispersal pattern and direction of some invasive species is crucially influenced by the potential range of their host plant, as confirmed by several studies (Morey et al 2016;Keszthelyi et al 2022a). Furthermore, geographic and relief patterns (Rigot et al 2014), as well as the location of major trade routes, may be crucial for space occupancy (Cini et al 2012).…”

“…The vector analysis we used for the first time pointed out that the dispersal hotpots we detected for L. festiva and their directions are similar to those of many similar invasive species in the same area. For example, the dispersal patterns of the box-tree moth (Cydalima perspectalis) on the coasts of the Black Sea (Musolin et al 2022), the spread of the ragweed leaf beetle (Ophraella communa) in central Europe (Keszthelyi et al 2022a), and the citrus flatid planthopper (Metcalfa pruinosa) (Kenis & Branco 2010) in western Europe follow similar patterns.…”

Spread, mass occurrence and damages of Ophraella communa LeSage, 1986 on Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. in continental Croatia

“…Moriya andShiyake, 2001). Further observations in the northern and southern parts of Croatia, where the species has not yet been found, will provide additional information on the colonization pattern of this potential biocontrol agent of common ragweed (Kiss, 2007;Keszthelyi et al, 2022).…”

Common Ragweed—Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.: A Review with Special Regards to the Latest Results in Biology and Ecology

“…It is considered an introduced weed species in Hungary, France and Italy. Its spreading is extensive in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Slovakia, Poland, Turkey and the Korean Peninsula [9,12]. Csontos et al [13] examined the herbariums of more botanical museums, universities and botanical gardens.…”

“…As a result, the spread of A. artemisiifolia can be expected to the north, as the unfavorable conditions that have existed thus far will gradually change, and parallel with this, ragweed populations adapt to those conditions. So, we can conclude that the potential spreading area of ragweed will grow on all continents [12,15,[53][54][55][56][57][58]. Out of the changing environmental factors, the enhanced level of CO 2 can significantly contribute to its future successful spread [15,50,59].…”