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How does synchrony with host plant affect the performance of an outbreaking insect defoliator?

  • Plant-microbe-animal interactions - original research
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Abstract

Phenological mismatch has been proposed as a key mechanism by which climate change can increase the severity of insect outbreaks. Spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) is a serious defoliator of North American conifers that feeds on buds in the early spring. Black spruce (Picea mariana) has traditionally been considered a poor-quality host plant since its buds open later than those of the preferred host, balsam fir (Abies balsamea). We hypothesize that advancing black spruce budbreak phenology under a warmer climate would improve its phenological synchrony with budworm and hence increase both its suitability as a host plant and resulting defoliation damage. We evaluated the relationship between tree phenology and both budworm performance and tree defoliation by placing seven cohorts of budworm larvae on black spruce and balsam fir branches at different lags with tree budburst. Our results show that on both host plants, spruce budworm survival and pupal mass decrease sharply when budbreak occurs prior to larval emergence. By contrast, emergence before budbreak decreases survival, but does not negatively impact growth or reproductive output. We also document phytochemical changes that occur as needles mature and define a window of opportunity for the budworm. Finally, larvae that emerged in synchrony with budbreak had the greatest defoliating effect on black spruce. Our results suggest that in the event of advanced black spruce phenology due to climate warming, this host species will support better budworm survival and suffer increased defoliation.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to R. Quezada-Garcia, M. Charest, P. Huron, S. Flores, S. Sagne, O. Massicotte-Dagenais, M.-H. Chabot, M. Bourgouin and N. Giasson for help in the field and laboratory. We are also thankful to H. Crepeau for advice on statistical analysis and to Rob Johns (Canadian Forest Service) and three anonymous reviewers for their very helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. Financial support was provided by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec—Nature et Technologies (FQRNT), and by Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, and Forest Protection Limited (FPL) through SERG-International.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Concordia University, 7141 Sherbrooke W., Montreal, QC, H4B 1R6, Canada

    Alvaro Fuentealba & Emma Despland

  2. Centre d’étude de la forêt (CEF) and Département des sciences du bois et de la forêt, Faculté de foresterie, de géographie et de géomatique, Université Laval, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada

    Alvaro Fuentealba & Éric Bauce

  3. Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, 1055 du P.E.P.S., Sainte-Foy, QC, G1V4C7, Canada

    Deepa Pureswaran

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  1. Alvaro Fuentealba
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  2. Deepa Pureswaran
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  3. Éric Bauce
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  4. Emma Despland
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Contributions

AF, DP, ÉB and ED conceived and design the experiments. AF performed the experiments and analyzed the data. AF wrote the first draft of the manuscript, and all authors contributed substantially to revisions.

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Correspondence to Alvaro Fuentealba.

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Communicated by Evan H DeLucia.

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Fuentealba, A., Pureswaran, D., Bauce, É. et al. How does synchrony with host plant affect the performance of an outbreaking insect defoliator?. Oecologia 184, 847–857 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-017-3914-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-017-3914-4

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