Population Cycles of Yellowjackets (Hymenoptera:Vespinae) in the Pacific Northwest
1

Akre, Roger D.; Reed, Hal C.

doi:10.1093/ee/10.3.267

Cited by 29 publications

(32 citation statements)

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“…Wasps are notorious for their wide fluctuations in numbers from year to year (Akre & Reed 1981;Archer 1985). We have also noted a huge variation in wasp numbers between patches of honeydewinfested forest at anyone time within 20 kIn of our Trass site.…”

Section: Insect Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 65%

Beech honeydew: Seasonal variation and use by wasps, honey bees, and other insects

Møller¹,

Tilley²

1989

New Zealand Journal of Zoology

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Variation in the production of beech honeydew by the scale insect (Ultracoelostoma assimile), and in the density and abundance of insects feeding on it, was studied in a mixed beech (Nothojagus) forest near Nelson, New Zealand.Nearly all anal tubes were connected toa feeding instar of the scale insect and so were able to deliver drops of honeydew to feeding insects and birds. The number of anal tubes and drops was high in winter and spring and declined to a trough in late summer and autumn. Drop quality (size and sugarconcentration) also reached a low in the late summer and autumn. It is suggested that consumption of drops by wasps (mainly common wasps, Vespulavulgaris, but also German wasps, V. germanica) caused the paucity of honeydew in late summer and autumn. Wasps probably also prevented feral honey bees (Apis mellijera) from gathering honeydew then.Wasps were by far the most abundant insect feeding on honeydew, peaking at an average of S8 wasps per m 2 of trunk of honeydew-infested tree in March. Wasp numbers declined markedly in April. Concern is expressed about the impact of introduced wasps on endemic insects, honeydew and insectfeeding birds inhabiting the honeydew beech forests.

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Section: Insect Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 65%

Beech honeydew: Seasonal variation and use by wasps, honey bees, and other insects

Møller¹,

Tilley²

1989

New Zealand Journal of Zoology

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“…The mechanism behind this negative feedback has been suggested to be aggression and subsequent high mortality among queens during the first colony stage (Akree and Reed 1981;Archer 1985). Climate has been suggested as a key aspect for understanding the fluctuations of this insect (Akree and Reed Realized percapita growth rate (R = ln(N t / N t-1 ) of the time series against the density of the previous year (N t-1 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The model ranking according to BIC is the same if we use Akaike information criterion for small sample size (AICc) 1981; Madden 1981; Archer 1985; Barlow et al 2002), but the specific climate variable and the sign of the effect vary with each study. Akree and Reed (1981) found that warm and dry springs have a positive influence on wasp abundance, but their analysis was based on anecdotal data, and a rigorous evaluation was absent. A negative effect of spring rainfall was found by Barlow et al (2002), but Madden (1981) described a positive effect of autumn and spring rainfall on yellowjacket abundance, which was related to food availability in the early spring.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The use of SAM and ENSO allowed us to test the influence of the overall climate condition (Stenseth et al 2003) rather than the influence of a single variable. Previous studies have demonstrated that overwintering is a key step to explain wasp abundance in the following spring (Akree and Reed 1981;Archer 1985;Barlow et al 2002). Several variables, or the interaction between them, may influence queen survival during the winter.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, rainfall appears to show contrasting effects on wasp populations: in the northwest USA and New Zealand it seems to be negative (Akree and Reed 1981;Barlow et al 2002), while in Tasmania rainfall appears to have a positive effect on fluctuations of common wasp populations (Madden 1981). On the other hand, the role of temperature in ectotherm performance has been shown to be unimodal, with an increasing phase at low and medium temperatures, and a decrease at high levels (Huey and Berrigan 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Combined effect of ENSO and SAM on the population dynamics of the invasive yellowjacket wasp in central Chile

Estay

Lima

2009

Population Ecology

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The population dynamics of the yellowjacket wasp (Vespula germanica Fabricus) in central Chile were analyzed for the first time. Using a simple Ricker logistic model and adding the effects of local weather variables (temperature and precipitation) and large-scale climate phenomena as El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Southern Annular Mode (SAM), we modeled the interannual fluctuations in nest density. The best model according to the Bayesian information criterion (BIC) included 1-year-lag negative feedback combined with the positive additive effects of ENSO and SAM. According to this model, yellowjacket nest density was favored by warm and dry winters, which probably influenced the survival of overwintering queens. Large-scale climatic variables [Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) and SAM] described the effect of exogenous factors in wasp fluctuations better than local weather variables did. Our results emphasize the usefulness of climate indices and simple theoretical-based models in insect ecological research.

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Multi‐locus DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonality of foraging ecology of western spotted skunks in the Pacific Northwest

et al. 2023

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There are increasing concerns about the declining population trends of small mammalian carnivores around the world. Their conservation and management are often challenging due to limited knowledge about their ecology and natural history. To address one of these deficiencies for western spotted skunks (Spilogale gracilis), we investigated their diet in the Oregon Cascades of the Pacific Northwest during 2017–2019. We collected 130 spotted skunk scats opportunistically and with detection dog teams and identified prey items using DNA metabarcoding and mechanical sorting. Western spotted skunk diet consisted of invertebrates, such as wasps, millipedes, and gastropods; vertebrates, such as small mammals, amphibians, and birds; and plants, such as Gaultheria, Rubus, and Vaccinium. Diet also consisted of items, such as black‐tailed deer, that were likely scavenged. Comparison in diet by season revealed that spotted skunks consumed more insects during the dry season (June–August), particularly wasps (75% of scats in the dry season), and marginally more mammals during the wet season (September–May). We observed a similar diet in areas with no record of human disturbance and areas with a history of logging at most spatial scales, but scats collected in areas with older forest within a skunk's home range (1‐km buffer) were more likely to contain insects. Western spotted skunks provide food web linkages between aquatic, terrestrial, and arboreal systems and serve functional roles of seed dispersal and scavenging. Due to their diverse diet and prey switching, western spotted skunks may dampen the effects of irruptions of prey, such as wasps, during dry springs and summers. By studying the natural history of western spotted skunks in the Pacific Northwest forests, while they are still abundant, we provide key information necessary to achieve the conservation goal of keeping this common species common.

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Population Cycles of Yellowjackets (Hymenoptera:Vespinae) in the Pacific Northwest 1

Cited by 29 publications

References 0 publications

Beech honeydew: Seasonal variation and use by wasps, honey bees, and other insects

Beech honeydew: Seasonal variation and use by wasps, honey bees, and other insects

Combined effect of ENSO and SAM on the population dynamics of the invasive yellowjacket wasp in central Chile

Multi‐locus DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonality of foraging ecology of western spotted skunks in the Pacific Northwest

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