1. The ongoing range expansion of the invasive oak lace bug across Europe : current occurrence and potential distribution under climate changeAlbert Ciceu, Flavius Balacenoiu, Maarten De Groot, Debojyoti Chakraborty, Dimitrios N. Avtzis, Marek Barta, Simon Blaser, Matteo Bracalini, Bastien Castagneyrol, Ulyana A. Chernova, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: In recent years, the oak lace bug, Corythucha arcuata, has emerged as a significant threat to European oak forests. This species, native to North America, has in the last two decades rapidly extended its range in Europe, raising concerns about its potential impact on the continent's invaluable oak populations. To address this growing concern, we conducted an extensive study to assess the distribution, colonization patterns, and potential ecological niche of the oak lace bug in Europe. We gathered 1792 unique presence coordinates from 21 Eurasian countries, utilizing diverse sources such as research observations, citizen science initiatives, GBIF database, and social media reports. To delineate the realized niche and future distribution, we employed an ensemble species distribution modelling (SDM) framework. Two future greenhouse gas scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) were considered across three-time intervals (2021–2040, 2061–2080, and 2081–2100) to project and evaluate the species' potential distribution in the future. Our analysis revealed that significant hotspots rich in host species occurrence for this invasive insect remain uninvaded so far, even within its suitable habitat. Furthermore, the native ranges of Turkey oak (Quercus cerris L.) and Hungarian oak (Quercus frainetto L.) species offer entirely suitable environments for the oak lace bug. In contrast, the pedunculate oak and sessile oak distribution ranges currently show only 40 % and 50 % suitability for colonization, respectively. However, our predictive models indicate a significant transformation in the habitat suitability of the oak lace bug, with suitability for these two oak species increasing by up to 90 %. This shift underlines an evolving landscape where the oak lace bug may exploit more of its available habitats than initially expected. It emphasises the pressing need for proactive measures to manage and stop its expanding presence, which may lead to a harmful impact on the oak population across the European landscape.
Keywords: biological invasion, invasive species, species distribution model, Oak pest, biodiversity impact, European oak forest, Europe, oak forest
Published in DiRROS: 13.08.2024; Views: 53; Downloads: 858
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2. Climate, host and geography shape insect and fungal communities of treesIva Franić, Eric Allan, Simone Prospero, Kalev Adamson, Fabio Attorre, Marie-Anne Auger-Rozenberg, Sylvie Augustin, Dimitrios N. Avtzis, Wim Baert, Marek Barta, Maarten De Groot, Barbara Piškur, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: Non-native pests, climate change, and their interactions are likely to alter relationships between trees and tree-associated organisms with consequences for forest health. To understand and predict such changes, factors structuring tree-associated communities need to be determined. Here, we analysed the data consisting of records of insects and fungi collected from dormant twigs from 155 tree species at 51 botanical gardens or arboreta in 32 countries. Generalized dissimilarity models revealed similar relative importance of studied climatic, host-related and geographic factors on differences in tree-associated communities. Mean annual temperature, phylogenetic distance between hosts and geographic distance between locations were the major drivers of dissimilarities. The increasing importance of high temperatures on differences in studied communities indicate that climate change could affect tree-associated organisms directly and indirectly through host range shifts. Insect and fungal communities were more similar between closely related vs. distant hosts suggesting that host range shifts may facilitate the emergence of new pests. Moreover, dissimilarities among tree-associated communities increased with geographic distance indicating that human-mediated transport may serve as a pathway of the introductions of new pests. The results of this study highlight the need to limit the establishment of tree pests and increase the resilience of forest ecosystems to changes in climate.
Keywords: mycology, insects, fungus, community of organisms, influence of the host, influence of climate, influence of geography
Published in DiRROS: 19.07.2023; Views: 498; Downloads: 302
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3. Worldwide diversity of endophytic fungi and insects associated with dormant tree twigsIva Franić, Simone Prospero, Kalev Adamson, Eric Allan, Fabio Attorre, Marie-Anne Auger-Rozenberg, Sylvie Augustin, Dimitrios N. Avtzis, Wim Baert, Marek Barta, Maarten De Groot, Barbara Piškur, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: International trade in plants and climate change are two of the main factors causing damaging tree pests (i.e. fungi and insects) to spread into new areas. To mitigate these risks, a large-scale assessment of tree-associated fungi and insects is needed. We present records of endophytic fungi and insects in twigs of 17 angiosperm and gymnosperm genera, from 51 locations in 32 countries worldwide. Endophytic fungi were characterized by high-throughput sequencing of 352 samples from 145 tree species in 28 countries. Insects were reared from 227 samples of 109 tree species in 18 countries and sorted into taxonomic orders and feeding guilds. Herbivorous insects were grouped into morphospecies and were identified using molecular and morphological approaches. This dataset reveals the diversity of tree-associated taxa, as it contains 12,721 fungal Amplicon Sequence Variants and 208 herbivorous insect morphospecies, sampled across broad geographic and climatic gradients and for many tree species. This dataset will facilitate applied and fundamental studies on the distribution of fungal endophytes and insects in trees.
Keywords: diversity, endophytic fungi, endophytic insects, tree twigs
Published in DiRROS: 01.03.2022; Views: 900; Downloads: 730
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