Genetic differentiation among Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) populations living on different host plants.

The pink hibiscus mealybug Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Green) is a dangerous pest that damages a wide variety of agricultural, horticultural, and forestry crops. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprints were used to characterize the genetic variation of 11 M. hirsutus populations infesting three plant species in Nayarit, Mexico. Analysis was carried out using four primers combinations, producing 590 polymorphic bands. Cluster analysis, as well as bootstrap dendrogram and nonmetric multidimensional scaling analysis, grouped M. hirsutus populations according to their host plant. The estimated F(ST) values indicated a high differentiation in M. hirsutus populations among the three host plant species. These results were also supported by a Bayesian analysis, which indicated a population clustering robustness according to their host plant. Genetic variation among populations is not caused by geographic distances, as shown by a Mantel test.

Effects of the seed predator Acanthoscelides schrankiae on viability of its host plant Mimosa bimucronata.

Seeds of Mimosa bimucronata are heavily infested (pre-dispersal predation) by the bruchid beetle Acanthoscelides schrankiae in Brazil. In this study, firstly we set up experiments to assess seed germination under seven and six different light and temperature regimes, respectively, and then we evaluated the ability of seeds to germinate after predation. We tested the hypothesis that the non-predated seeds from infested fruits may respond differently when set for germination than those seeds of non-infested fruits. We also hypothesized that predation may increase the production of unviable seeds. Seeds under 18 hours of light presented the highest percentage of germination, and the alternating temperature 20-30 degrees C was considered as optimum for germination (abnormal seedlings were not considered as a successful germination). Germination of seeds from non-infested fruits was significantly higher than germination of non-predated seeds from infested fruits, and predation also caused a significant increase in the proportion of dead seeds. Our results also show a positive correlation between proportions of unviable seeds and predated seeds. These results demonstrated that seeds of M. bimucronata are strongly affected by predation because predated seeds did not germinate and non-predated seeds had their viability reduced when located in infested fruits, supporting our hypothesis.

Effects of the seed predator Acanthoscelides schrankiae on viability of its host plant Mimosa bimucronata

Seeds of Mimosa bimucronata are heavily infested (pre-dispersal predation) by the bruchid beetle Acanthoscelides schrankiae in Brazil. In this study, firstly we set up experiments to assess seed germination under seven and six different light and temperature regimes, respectively, and then we evaluated the ability of seeds to germinate after predation. We tested the hypothesis that the non-predated seeds from infested fruits may respond differently when set for germination than those seeds of non-infested fruits. We also hypothesized that predation may increase the production of unviable seeds. Seeds under 18 hours of light presented the highest percentage of germination, and the alternating temperature 20-30 °C was considered as optimum for germination (abnormal seedlings were not considered as a successful germination). Germination of seeds from non-infested fruits was significantly higher than germination of non-predated seeds from infested fruits, and predation also caused a significant increase in the proportion of dead seeds. Our results also show a positive correlation between proportions of unviable seeds and predated seeds. These results demonstrated that seeds of M. bimucronata are strongly affected by predation because predated seeds did not germinate and non-predated seeds had their viability reduced when located in infested fruits, supporting our hypothesis.