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Adalia bipunctata
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Paul M. Brakefield – One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Releases of a natural flightless strain of the ladybird beetle Adalia bipunctata reduce aphid-born honeydew beneath urban lime trees
BioControl, 2012Co-Authors: S.t.e. Lommen, Peter W. De Jong, Thomas C. Holness, Alfons J. Van Kuik, Paul M. BrakefieldAbstract:Aphids can cause major environmental problems in urban areas. One important problem is the annual outbreaks of lime aphid, Eucallipterus tiliae (L.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae), which spoil the surroundings of lime trees by depositing honeydew. To date no environmentally friendly method has been demonstrated to yield effective control of lime aphids. Attempts are made in some cities to control lime aphids by releasing larvae of the native two-spot ladybird beetle, Adalia bipunctata (L.) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). However, it is known that adult ladybird beetles disperse soon after release, and there is little indication they provide control of the aphids. Here, we demonstrate experimentally that releases of a flightless strain of A. bipunctata, obtained from natural variation in wing length, can reduce the impact of honeydew from lime aphid outbreaks on two species of lime in an urban environment. Both larvae and adult beetles were released, and we discuss the contribution of the flightless adults to the decline in honeydew.
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Genetic linkage between melanism and winglessness in the ladybird beetle Adalia bipunctata.
Genetica, 2012Co-Authors: Suzanne T E Lommen, Peter W. De Jong, Kees G Koops, Paul M. BrakefieldAbstract:We report a case of genetic linkage between the two major loci underlying different wing traits in the two-spot ladybird beetle, Adalia bipunctata (L.) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): melanism and winglessness. The loci are estimated to be 38.8 cM apart on one of the nine autosomes. This linkage is likely to facilitate the unravelling of the genetics of these traits. These traits are of interest in the context of the evolution of intraspecific morphological diversity, and for the application of ladybird beetles in biological control programs.
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Development of a wingless morph in the ladybird beetle, Adalia bipunctata.
Evolution & Development, 2009Co-Authors: S.t.e. Lommen, Suzanne V. Saenko, Yoshinori Tomoyasu, Paul M. BrakefieldAbstract:Many taxa of winged insects have independently lost the ability to fly and often possess reduced wings. Species exhibiting natural variation in wing morphology provide opportunities to investigate the genetics and developmental processes underlying the evolution of alternative wing morphs. Although many wing dimorphic species of beetles are known, the underlying mechanisms of variation are not well understood in this insect order. Here, we examine wing development of wild type and natural wingless morphs of the two-spot ladybird beetle, Adalia bipunctata. We show that both pairs of wings are distally truncated in the wingless adults. A laboratory population of the wingless morph displays heritable variation in the degree of wing truncation, reflecting reduced growth of the larval wing discs. The coexistence of variable wingless morphs supports the idea that typical monomorphic wingless insects may be the result of a gradual evolution of wing loss. Gene expression patterns in wing discs suggest that the conserved gene network controlling wing development in wild-type Adalia is disrupted in the dorsoventral patterning pathway in the wingless morphs. Previous research on several species of ant has revealed that the anteroposterior wing patterning pathway is disrupted in wingless workers. Future investigations should confirm whether interruptions in both taxa are limited to the patterning pathways found thus far, or whether there are also shared interruption points. Nevertheless, our results highlight that diverse mechanisms of development are likely to underlie the evolution of wingless insects.
Gregory D D Hurst – One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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No evidence that presence of sexually transmitted infection selects for reduced mating rate in the two spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata
PeerJ, 2015Co-Authors: Sophie L. Jones, Daria Pastok, Gregory D D HurstAbstract:Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are common in animals and plants, and frequently impair individual fertility. Theory predicts that natural selection will favour behaviours that reduce the chance of acquiring a STI. We investigated whether an STI, Coccipolipus hippodamiae has selected for increased rejection of mating by female Adalia bipunctata as a mechanism to avoid exposure. We first demonstrated that rejection of mating by females did indeed reduce the chance of acquiring the mite. We then examined whether rejection rate and mating rate differed between ladybirds from mite-present and mite-absent populations when tested in a common environment. No differences in rejection intensity or remating propensity were observed between the two populations. We therefore conclude there is no evidence that STIs have driven the evolution of female mating behaviour in this species.
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Spatial variation in the incidence of a sexually transmitted parasite of the ladybird beetle Adalia bipunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
European Journal of Entomology, 2006Co-Authors: K. Mary Webberley, John J. Sloggett, Michael E. N. Majerus, Matthew C. Tinsley, Gregory D D HurstAbstract:Whilst sexually transmitted pathogens and parasites are common on insects and other animals, the factors affecting their incidence are currently uncertain. In order to understand the factors important in determining the presence of sexually transmitted parasites, it would be helpful to have information on intraspecific variation in incidence, as the causes of this variation are likely to reflect the likely causes of the presence/absence of sexually transmitted parasites across species. We therefore mapped the incidence of the parasite Coccipolipus hippodamiae within Europe on its primary host, the ladybird Adalia bipunctata. We observed that C. hippodamiae was present widely in Central, Southern and Eastern Europe, but was absent from northerly and north-western popula- tions. The cause of this pattern of incidence variation is discussed, with particular reference to the voltinism of the host. We also note that the distribution of C. hippodamiae on A. bipunctata is not congruent with that of another sexually transmitted parasite of this species, Hesperomyces virescens.
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Invasion of one insect species, Adalia bipunctata, by two different male-killing bacteria
Insect Molecular Biology, 1999Co-Authors: Gregory D D Hurst, Ilia A. Zakharov, Tamsin M. O. Majerus, J. H. Graf Von Der Schulenburg, Dominique Bertrand, J. Baungaard, Wolfgang Völkl, Richard Stouthamer, M. E. N. MajerusAbstract:Male-killing bacteria, which are inherited through the female line and kill male progeny only, are known from five different orders of insect. Our knowledge of the incidence of these elements has stemmed from discovery of their phenotype in different species. Our estimate of the frequency with which insects have been invaded by these elements therefore depends on each observation of the male-killing phenotype within a species being associated with a single micro-organism. We here record an example of a single insect species being infected with two taxonomically distinct male-killing bacteria. Western European populations of the two-spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata, have previously been shown to bear a male-killing Rickettsia. However, we here show that the majority of the male-killing lines tested from Central and Eastern Europe do not bear this bacterium. Rather, 16S rDNA sequence analysis suggests male-killing is associated with a member of the genus Spiroplasma. We discuss this conclusion in relation to the evolutionary genetics of male-killing bacteria, and the evolution of male-killing behaviour in the eubacteria.
Michael E. N. Majerus – One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Female multiple mating in wild and laboratory populations of the two-spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata
Molecular Ecology, 2008Co-Authors: Penelope R. Haddrill, Michael E. N. Majerus, David M. Shuker, William Bradshaw Amos, Sean MayesAbstract:Female mating rate is an important variable for understanding the role of females in the evolution of mating systems. Polyandry influences patterns of sexual selection and has implications for sexual conflict over mating, as well as for wider issues such as patterns of gene flow and levels of genetic diversity. Despite this, remarkably few studies of insects have provided detailed estimates of polyandry in the wild. Here we combine behavioural and molecular genetic data to assess female mating frequency in wild populations of the two-spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). We also explore patterns of sperm use in a controlled laboratory environment to examine how sperm from multiple males is used over time by females, to link mating with fertilization. We confirm that females are highly polyandrous in the wild, both in terms of population mating rates (approximately 20% of the population found in copula at any given time) and the number of males siring offspring in a single clutch (three to four males, on average). These patterns are consistent across two study populations. Patterns of sperm use in the laboratory show that the number of mates does not exceed the number of fathers, suggesting that females have little postcopulatory influence on paternity. Instead, longer copulations result in higher paternity for males, probably due to the transfer of larger numbers of sperm in multiple spermatophores. Our results emphasize the importance of combining field and laboratory data to explore mating rates in the wild.
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Temporal effects of multiple mating on components of fitness in the two-spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
European Journal of Entomology, 2007Co-Authors: Penelope R. Haddrill, David M. Shuker, Sean Mayes, Michael E. N. MajerusAbstract:Insects have provided much of the best evidence to date concerning possible costs and benefits of multiple mating, and here we investigate the benefits of polyandry in the two-spot ladybird, Adalia bipunctata, by attempting to replicate the highly promiscuous mating system in this species. We compared the temporal pattern of reproductive success of females mated multiple times to one male with that of females mated an equal number of times to multiple males, and found transient differences in offspring production and hatch rate over time. Our data suggest that polyandrous females benefit from multiple mating in some circumstances, but the patterns are complex. Following how both the costs and benefits to mating accrue over time will be necessary if we are to fully understand why polyandry evolves.
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Spatial variation in the incidence of a sexually transmitted parasite of the ladybird beetle Adalia bipunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
European Journal of Entomology, 2006Co-Authors: K. Mary Webberley, John J. Sloggett, Michael E. N. Majerus, Matthew C. Tinsley, Gregory D D HurstAbstract:Whilst sexually transmitted pathogens and parasites are common on insects and other animals, the factors affecting their incidence are currently uncertain. In order to understand the factors important in determining the presence of sexually transmitted parasites, it would be helpful to have information on intraspecific variation in incidence, as the causes of this variation are likely to reflect the likely causes of the presence/absence of sexually transmitted parasites across species. We therefore mapped the incidence of the parasite Coccipolipus hippodamiae within Europe on its primary host, the ladybird Adalia bipunctata. We observed that C. hippodamiae was present widely in Central, Southern and Eastern Europe, but was absent from northerly and north-western popula- tions. The cause of this pattern of incidence variation is discussed, with particular reference to the voltinism of the host. We also note that the distribution of C. hippodamiae on A. bipunctata is not congruent with that of another sexually transmitted parasite of this species, Hesperomyces virescens.