Statistical Difficulties in the Analysis of Predator Functional Response Data

Abstract

Can. Ent. 115: 1359-1364 (1983) A very simple model of normalized growth rates of temperate pasture legumes and grasses in response to temperature and moisture developed by Fitzpatrick and Nix for Australia was modified and usdd to examine the favorability of weather for the buildup of eight species of aphids in southeastern Australia. The work takes a physiological approach to describing the condition favorable for aphid population development. ResumeUn modkle trks simple de la croissance normalisee des 1Cgumineuses et des graminCes des p2turages ternperks en fonction de la tempkrature et de l'humidite, mis au point par Fitzpatrick et Nix pour l'Australie, a Ct C modifiC et utilisC pour Ctudier la convenance de la tempCrature pour l'accroissement de 8 esphces de pucerons dans le sud de 1'Australie. Une approche physiologique est utilisCe pour dkcrire les conditions favorisant la croissance des populations aphidiennes.

Density‐dependent predation of early instar Chaoborus feeding on multispecies prey assemblages1

“…It is possible that a type 3 functional response better describes the curve for K. cochlearis typica (Fig. 2), but no one has statistically fit functional response data to the sigmoid model (Livdahl and Stiven 1983). The difficulty, according to my own trials and Houck and Strauss (1985), seems to be in obtaining appropriate seed values for the nonlinear regression analysis.…”

Functional responses of immature stages of Propylea quatuordecimpunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) to Aphis fabae (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

“…Fitting was performed using a non-linear least squares approach (Livdahl & Stiven, 1983;R Development Core Team, 2008). Significant differences between the parameters of the functional response model for all larval stages were tested with the superposition of 95% confidence intervals criterion.…”

“…Critical aspects of predator and prey interactions can be determined by examining the relationship between predator feeding behaviour and the density of prey (Livdahl & Stiven, 1983). The number of prey attacked per predator as a function of prey density is known as the functional response (Solomon, 1949;Holling, 1959).…”

Development and Parasitism byAphelinus certus(Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), a Parasitoid ofAphis glycines(Hemiptera: Aphididae)

“…The starting values of a and T h required by the nonlinear regression procedure were found by a linear regression of 1/N a against 1/N 0 . The resultant y-intercept is the initial estimate of T h and the reciprocal of the regression coefÞcient (slope) is an estimate of a (Livdahl andStiven 1983, Watson et al 2000). These initial estimates were reÞned by nonlinear regression.…”