Ecological Entomology

Volume 36 Issue 6

Physical barriers and corridors in urban habitats affect colonisation and parasitism rates of a specialist leaf miner
Guadalupe Peralta, Maria Silvina Fenoglio, Adriana Salvo

Developing an understanding of the ecology of urban areas will become increasingly important as urban development continues to accelerate. Much attention has been focussed on birds and mammals although recent work has also examined the importance of urban areas to insect pollinators. This paper takes a broad ecological approach to understand how the ecology of urban areas might affect leaf miner colonisation and parasitism. The urban environment is detailed as a fragmented and heterogeneous mix of host plants, pavements, walls and yards, with the results showing that pavements act as corridors and constructions as barriers. The distinct physical environment found in urban areas is shown to play a role in the dispersal, colonisation and parasitism found in this system.

Images – Left: Chrysocharis flacilla; Right: C. erecta flower and mined leaf

Editors' choices from previous issues

Discover the extensive resource of backfiles from the Royal Entomological Society's illustrious history online, dating back to 1836, and including work by eminent scientists such as Wallace, Wigglesworth and Westwood.

• Ecological Entomology: 1976, Vol 1 Issue 1 to date

• Journal of Entomology, Series A: 1971 - 1976 (in full)

• Journal of Entomology, Series B: 1971 - 1976 (in full)

• Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society, Series A: 1936 - 1970 (in full)

• Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society, Series B: 1932 - 1970 (in full)

• Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society, Series C: 1936 - 1977 (in full)

• Proceedings of the Royal Entomological Society: 1926 - 1936 (in full)

• Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London: 1836 - 1975

Ecological Entomologyin the news:

Bumblebees find mates on the hills

The article 'Evidence for hilltopping in bumblebees?' has been featured by the BBC

Read the article
Read the press release

The following paper was awarded the 2010 award for the best paper in Ecological Entomology:

Effects of competition, cannibalism and intra-guild predation on larval development of the European coccinellid Adalia bipunctata and the invasive species Harmonia axyridis

R. Ware, B. Yguel & M. Majerus

Read free online

Most downloaded articles in 2011

CO2-mediated changes of plant traits and their effects on herbivores are determined by leaf age
Daniel J. Ballhorn, Imke Schmitt, Jonathon D. Fankhauser, Fumiaki Katagiri, Hardy Pfanz

Effects of competition, cannibalism and intra-guild predation on larval development of the European coccinellid Adalia bipunctata and the invasive species Harmonia axyridis
Remy Ware, Benjamin Yguel, Michael Majerus

Ecosystem engineering by leaf-cutting ants: nests of Atta cephalotes drastically alter forest structure and microclimate Sebastian
T. Meyer, Inara R. Leal, Marcelo Tabarelli, Rainer Wirth

Most cited articles in 2010

The pea aphid complex as a model of ecological speciation
Peccoud J, Simon JC

Differences in defensive behaviour between host-adapted races of the pea aphid
Kunert G, Belz E, Simon JC, et al.

Sequential speciation and the diversity of parasitic insects
Jeffrey L. Feder, Andrew A. Forbes

Read the Virtual Issues from Ecological Entomology free online

New in November 2011!

Insect Ecology

Nutritional Ecology; Invasion Ecology; Mutualism and Symbiosis; and Ecological Immunology

Read Virtual Issues from other Royal Entomological Society journals