Naomi Cappuccino Research

During the summer of 1995, I conducted suveys of 1) the herbivore fauna associated with oaks (post oak and blackjack oak) at the Stengl "Lost Pines" Biological Station, 2) herbivores of goldenrods (at Stengl and BFL), and 3) the aphids associated with plants in the family Compositae (Stengl).

1) Herbivore fauna of oaks. As is true of plant-insect associations in general, the oak fauna at the Stengl Station contains a few abundant species and a wide diversity of rare species. These rare species are of interest from both a theoretical and a practical point of view. What factors maintain such species well below the apparent carrying capacity set by the abundance of host plant resources? How do populations of rare species persist in the face of environmental fluctuations?

2) Herbivore fauna of goldenrod (Solidago altissima). The result of samples taken during the summer of 1995 at the Stengl Station, BFL and several points in between, indicate that the goldenrod fauna is depauperate compared to that in Canada, New York, North Carolina and Florida. Although several factors may account for this, including the fact that S. altissima is less abundant here than in other parts of its range, it is also quite likely that the imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, has eliminated many goldenrod herbivores that are common elsewhere. This hypothesis is supported by observations on the composition of the fauna: leaf-miners and gall-makers, which live inside plant tissues are common, whereas species that feed externally (beetles and caterpillars) are absent.

3) Aphids on composites. Most of the composites at the Stengl Station are host to one or more aphid species in the genera Uroleucon, Uromelan and Lambersius. Specimens of several of these species were collected during the summer of 1995 and will be sent for identification. I hope someday to interest a student in the comparative behavior and population dynamics of these aphids.

BFL Research : Cappuccino |