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Temporal and spatial variations in the parasitoid complex of the horse chestnut leafminer during its invasion of Europe

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Abstract

The enemy release hypothesis posits that the initial success of invasive species depends on the scarcity and poor adaptation of native natural enemies such as predators and parasitoids. As for parasitoids, invading hosts are first attacked at low rates by a species-poor complex of mainly generalist species. Over the years, however, parasitoid richness may increase either because the invading host continuously encounters new parasitoid species during its spread (geographic spread-hypothesis) or because local parasitoids need different periods of time to adapt to the novel host (adjustment-hypothesis). Both scenarios should result in a continuous increase of parasitoid richness over time. In this study, we reconstructed the development of the hymenopteran parasitoid complex of the invasive leafminer Cameraria ohridella (Lepidoptera, Gracillariidae). Our results show that the overall parasitism rate increases as a function of host residence time as well as geographic and climatic factors, altogether reflecting the historic spread of C. ohridella. The same variables also explain the individual parasitism rates of several species in the parasitoid complex, but fail to explain the abundance of others. Evidence supporting the “geographic spread-hypothesis” was found in the parasitism pattern of Cirrospilus talitzkii (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae), while that of Pediobius saulius, another eulophid, indicated an increase of parasitism rates by behavioral, phenological or biological adjustments. Compared to fully integrated host-parasitoid associations, however, parasitism rates of C. ohridella are still very low. In addition, the parasitoid complex lacks specialists, provided that the species determined are valid and not complexes of cryptic (and presumably more specialized) species. Probably, the adjustment of specialist parasitoids requires more than a few decades, particularly to invaders which establish in ecological niches free of native hosts, thus eliminating any possibility of recruitment of pre-adapted parasitoids.

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Acknowledgments

Many thanks go to colleagues from different European countries for providing additional leaf samples for this analysis: Andrea Nardini, Trieste (I), Barbara Jäckel, Berlin (D), Zoltan Kovacs, Sopron (HU), Boris Hrasovec, Zagreb (HR), Marius Gilbert, Brussels (BE), Vitaliy Kryvoruchko, Vienna (A), Krzysztof Wieczorek, Vienna (A), Ivo Holy, Prague (CZ). The parasitoids found in this study were determined by the senior author, nevertheless his expertise derived from the help of many taxonomists in previous investigations, i.e., Stefan Vidal, Göttingen (D), Hannes Baur, Bern (CH), Richard Askew, Beeston (UK), Christer Hansson, Lund (S), Csaba Thuroczy, Köszeg (H). We are also very grateful to Laura Parsons and David C. Lees, London (UK) for proofreading the English and to two anonymous referees for their valuable comments which helped to improve an earlier version of the manuscript. This study was financially supported by the European Commission and the Swiss Federal Office for Education and Science as part of the FP5 project CONTROCAM, QLK5-CT-2000-01684.

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Author notes

  1. Giselher Grabenweger

    Present address: AGES Vienna, Spargelfeldstraße 191, 1226, Vienna, Austria

  2. Patrik Kehrli

    Present address: Service Entomologie, Station de Recherche Agroscope Changins-Wädenswil, 1260, Nyon, Switzerland

  3. Sven Bacher

    Present address: UNI Fribourg, Department of Biology, Chemin du Musée 10, 1700, Fribourg, Switzerland

  4. Jona Freise

    Present address: LAVES Niedersachsen, Postfach 3949, 26029, Oldenburg, Germany

Authors and Affiliations

  1. BOKU Vienna, Institute of Plant Protection, Peter Jordan Straße 82, 1190, Vienna, Austria

    Giselher Grabenweger & Michaela Stolz

  2. AGES Vienna, Spargelfeldstraße 191, 1226, Vienna, Austria

    Christa Lethmayer

  3. UNI Bern, Institute of Zoology, Baltzerstraße 3, 3012, Bern, Switzerland

    Patrik Kehrli & Sven Bacher

  4. Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Althanstr. 14, 1090, Vienna, Austria

    Irene Zweimüller

  5. INRA Orleans, UR633 Zoologie Forestière, CS 40001 Ardon, 45075, Orléans, France

    Sylvie Augustin & Sylvain Guichard

  6. Department of Forestry, TEI Kavala, Proastio, 66100, Drama, Greece

    Nikolaos Avtzis

  7. Department of Animal Ecology, TU Munich, Am Hochanger 13, 85354, Freising, Germany

    Jona Freise & Werner Heitland

  8. CABI Europe-Switzerland, 1Rue des Grillons, 2800, Delémont, Switzerland

    Sandrine Girardoz & Marc Kenis

  9. Faculty of Agronomy, University of Forestry, Bul. Kliment Ohridski 10, 1756, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Rumen Tomov

  10. Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences, Branisovska 31, 370 05, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    Lubomir Volter

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  1. Giselher Grabenweger
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  2. Patrik Kehrli
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  4. Sylvie Augustin
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  13. Rumen Tomov
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  14. Lubomir Volter
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Correspondence to Giselher Grabenweger.

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Grabenweger, G., Kehrli, P., Zweimüller, I. et al. Temporal and spatial variations in the parasitoid complex of the horse chestnut leafminer during its invasion of Europe. Biol Invasions 12, 2797–2813 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-009-9685-z

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