为什么热带雨林里有这么多种食草昆虫?
Vojtech Novotny1, Pavel Drozd, Scott E Miller
1Institute of Entomology, Czech Academy of Sciences and Department of Zoology, University of South Bohemia, Branisovska 31, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic. novotny@entu.cas.cz
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|July 15, 2006
概括
热带昆虫的多样性可能是由植物的多样性驱动的,而不是更狭窄的草食动物饮食. 对温带和热带森林进行比较的研究发现,昆虫数量和宿主特异性相似,这表明植物多样性是昆虫物种丰富的关键.
科学领域:
- 生态生态学 生态生态学
- 昆虫学 昆虫学是一门学科.
- 森林科学 森林科学 森林科学
背景情况:
- 了解热带森林中树种共存的机制正在取得进展.
- 对于热带植物上草食昆虫的广泛多样性的明确解释仍然难以捉摸.
研究的目的:
- 测试假设,草食物种在多种社区的共存反映了狭窄的宿主特异性.
- 为了比较来自温带和热带树木的叶食昆虫,以了解昆虫多样性模式.
主要方法:
- 在温带和热带树木上比较叶食昆虫群落,具有相似的家族遗传分布.
- 量化了每100平方米树叶上的叶食昆虫物种的数量.
- 评估了温带和热带昆虫群落之间的宿主特异性差异.
主要成果:
- 温带和热带树木支持相似数量的叶食昆虫物种 (每100米29.0 +/- 2.2比23.5 +/- 1.8).
- 温带和热带昆虫群落之间的宿主特异性没有显著差异.
- 植物多样性从温带到热带的研究地点增加了七倍.
结论:
- 与温带森林相比,热带森林中的叶食昆虫在食物资源中没有更细致的划分.
- 昆虫物种丰富度的度梯度可能是植物多样性的直接函数.
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