An advanced metabolomic approach on grape skins untangles cultivar preferences by for oviposition.

Insects' host preferences are regulated by multiple factors whose interactions are only partly understood. Here we make use of an in-depth, untargeted metabolomic approach combining molecular networking (MN) and supervised Analysis of variance Multiblock Orthogonal Partial Least Squares (AMOPLS) to untangle egg-laying preferences of , an invasive, highly polyphagous and destructive fruit pest originating from Southeast Asia. Based on behavioural experiments in the laboratory as well as field observation, we selected eight genetically related cultivars (e.

Evaluation of Sown Cover Crops and Spontaneous Weed Flora as a Potential Reservoir of Black-Foot Pathogens in Organic Viticulture.

(1) Background. An extensive survey of grapevine-sown cover crops and spontaneous weed flora was conducted from 2019 to 2020 in organic vineyards in six European countries (France, Italy, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland). Our main objective was to detect and identify the presence of -like asexual morphs species associated with black-foot disease on their roots.

Predation on within Hedges in the Agricultural Landscape.

The invasive feeds and reproduces on various cultivated and wild fruits and moves between agricultural and semi-natural habitats. Hedges in agricultural landscapes play a vital role in the population development of , but also harbor a diverse community of natural enemies. We investigated predation by repeatedly exposing cohorts of pupae between June and October in dry and humid hedges at five different locations in Switzerland.

Understanding negative biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationship in semi-natural wildflower strips.

Studies on biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) in highly controlled experiments often yield results incompatible with observations from natural systems: experimental results often reveal positive relationships between diversity and productivity, while for natural systems, zero or even negative relationships have been reported. The discrepancy may arise due to a limited or closed local species pool in experiments, while natural systems in meta-community contexts experience dynamic processes, i.e.

The importance of landscape and spatial structure for hymenopteran-based food webs in an agro-ecosystem.

1. Understanding the environmental factors that structure biodiversity and food webs among communities is central to assess and mitigate the impact of landscape changes. 2.

Impact of vector dispersal and host-plant fidelity on the dissemination of an emerging plant pathogen.

Dissemination of vector-transmitted pathogens depend on the survival and dispersal of the vector and the vector's ability to transmit the pathogen, while the host range of vector and pathogen determine the breath of transmission possibilities. In this study, we address how the interaction between dispersal and plant fidelities of a pathogen (stolbur phytoplasma tuf-a) and its vector (Hyalesthes obsoletus: Cixiidae) affect the emergence of the pathogen. Using genetic markers, we analysed the geographic origin and range expansion of both organisms in Western Europe and, specifically, whether the pathogen's dissemination in the northern range is caused by resident vectors widening their host-plant use from field bindweed to stinging nettle, and subsequent host specialisation.

Diversity protects plant communities against generalist molluscan herbivores.

Wildflower strips are used to increase natural enemies of crop pests and to conserve insect diversity on farmland. Mollusks, especially slugs, can affect the vegetation development in these strips considerably. Although recent theoretical work suggests that more diverse plant communities will exhibit greater resistance against herbivore pressure, empirical studies are scarce.

Small cages with insect couples provide a simple method for a preliminary assessment of mating disruption.

Mating disruption by sex pheromones is a sustainable, effective and widely used pest management scheme. A drawback of this technique is its challenging assessment of effectiveness in the field (e.g.

Phylogeny versus body size as determinants of food web structure.

Food webs are the complex networks of trophic interactions that stoke the metabolic fires of life. To understand what structures these interactions in natural communities, ecologists have developed simple models to capture their main architectural features. However, apparently realistic food webs can be generated by models invoking either predator-prey body-size hierarchies or evolutionary constraints as structuring mechanisms.

Phylogenetic signal in predator-prey body-size relationships.

Body mass is a fundamental characteristic that affects metabolism, life history, and population abundance and frequently sets bounds on who eats whom in food webs. Based on a collection of topological food webs, Ulrich Brose and colleagues presented a general relationship between the body mass of predators and their prey and analyzed how mean predator-prey body-mass ratios differed among habitats and predator metabolic categories. Here we show that the general body-mass relationship conceals significant variation associated with both predator and prey phylogeny.

Modeling food webs: exploring unexplained structure using latent traits.

Several stochastic models have tried to capture the architecture of food webs. This approach is interesting, but it is limited by the fact that different assumptions can yield similar results. To overcome this limitation, we develop a purely statistical approach.