Abstract
Invasive alien species may cause substantial changes and damaging impacts. Here, we document the current distribution and ecological interactions with native biota of relatively recently introduced wasps, Vespula vulgaris and V. germanica, in the southern part of the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve (CHBR) in southern Chile. We conducted field studies in four different habitats on Navarino Island: evergreen, deciduous and mixed forests, and shrublands. The spread of V. vulgaris throughout the island has led to it occupying suitable habitats in both urban and rural settings, while V. germanica has not been observed in the last 2 years. The presence of V. vulgaris in remote areas of the CHBR is likely the result of human-mediated movement through the channels within the reserve. The composition of foraged items was different in each of the four studied habitats, yet strongly linked to the resources of each, indicating the inherent ability of V. vulgaris to exploit available resources efficiently. V. vulgaris mainly forages berries from shrubs, and preys on a variety of arthropods, particularly hoverflies, craneflies and lepidoptera larvae. The lack of natural competitors and availability of multiple resources has allowed V. vulgaris to rapidly become a common pest in urban and rural settings in the southern extremity of South America. While we consider that eradication would now be impossible, population control at local scales may still be possible with proper planning and long-term management. Our data provide a baseline for management planning, and we strongly recommend social engagement and dialog with relevant governmental institutions to achieve this challenging task.
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The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
We thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments and suggestions. JRC is supported by the National Agency for Research and Development (ANID)/ Scholarship Program/ Doctorado Becas Chile/2021 – 21212048, and PC by NERC core funding to the BAS ‘Biodiversity, Evolution and Adaptation’s Team. We also thank Cristian Soto, Fernando Cárdenas, Lorena Saavedra, Javiera Pineda and Lukas Quinteros for their help during fieldwork. This study is part of the initiative “Niche modelling, invasion stage and habitat preferences of alien Vespula wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in Navarino island (55°S), southern Chile”, and a contribution of the Wankara Laboratory.
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JR-C conceived the idea and design of the study. Fieldwork and data collection were performed by JR-C, AM-M and LMZ. Data preparation, analyses and figures were performed by JR-C, PC, MG and TC. The first draft of the manuscript was written by JR-C and PC, and all authors commented on versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Rendoll-Cárcamo, J., Convey, P., Gañán, M. et al. Ecological features of exotic Vespula wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) invading the southernmost UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Biol Invasions 24, 2103–2112 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-022-02765-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-022-02765-y