Influences of Diet on the Life Histories of Aquatic Insects

1979 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 335-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. H. Anderson ◽  
Kenneth W. Cummins

Benthic species are partitioned into functional feeding groups based on food-acquiring mechanisms. Effects of food quality on voltinism, growth rate, and size at maturity are demonstrated for representatives of gougers and shredders, collectors, and scrapers. Food quality for predators is uniformly high, but food quantity (prey density) obviously influences their life histories. A food switch from herbivory to predation, or some ingestion of animal tissues, in the later stages is a feature of the life cycle of many aquatic insects. Temperature interacts with both food quality and quantity in effects on growth as well as having a direct effect on control of metabolism. Thus further elaboration of the role of food in life history phenomena will require controlled field or laboratory studies to partition the effects of temperature and food. Key words: aquatic insects, feeding strategies, functional groups, life histories

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e6151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Doherty-Weason ◽  
Fernanda X. Oyarzun ◽  
Luciano Vera ◽  
Miguel Bascur ◽  
Fabián Guzmán ◽  
...  

In marine invertebrates, the modes of development at early stages are related to the type and capacity of larval feeding to achieve growth. Therefore, studying the factors that determine larval feeding strategies can help to understand the diversity of life histories and evolution of marine invertebrates. The polychaete Boccardia wellingtonensis is a poecilogonous species that encapsulates and incubates its offspring. This species produces two types of larvae: (1) larvae that do not feed within the capsule and hatch as planktotrophic larvae (indirect development), and (2) adelphophagic larvae that feed on nurse eggs and other larvae inside the capsule to hatch as advanced larvae or juveniles (direct development). Otherwise, the larval types are indistinguishable at the same stage of development. The non-apparent morphological differences between both types of larvae suggest that other factors are influencing their feeding behavior. This work studied the potential role of the activity of 19 digestive enzymes on the different feeding capacities of planktotrophic and adelphophagic larvae of B. wellingtonensis. Also, differences in larval feeding structures and the larval capacity to feed from intracapsular fluid were evaluated by electron and fluorescence microscopy. Results showed that both types of larvae present similar feeding structures and had the capacity to ingest intracapsular fluid protein. Adelphophagic larvae showed overall the highest activities of digestive enzymes. Significant differences between larval types were observed in nine enzymes related to the use of internal and external nutritional sources. Given that larval feeding is closely related to larval development in species with encapsulation, this work supports that the study of the digestive enzymatic machinery of larvae may contribute to understanding the evolution of developmental modes.


Author(s):  
Nguyen Van Hieu ◽  
Nguyen Van Vinh

An intensive field survey on aquatic insects of Me Linh Station for Biodiversity in Vinhphuc province was conducted in December 2015. Specimens were collected at 8 different sites and aquatic insects were collected both quantitatively by Surber net and qualitatively by hand net, pond net. As a result, a total of 110 aquatic insect species belonging to 98 genera, 49 families and 9 orders were recognized. Among these, the order Ephemeroptera had the highest species number with 26 species, followed by Odonata with 25 species, Trichoptera with 18 species, Coleoptera with 15 species, Hemiptera with 11 species, Diptera with 9 species. Lepidoptera, Plecoptera and Megaloptera had the lowest of species number, represented by 3 species of Lepidoptera, 2 species of Plecoptera and 1 species of Megaloptera. Besides, the quantitative analysis results and the functional feeding groups were provided.


Author(s):  
Maren N. Vitousek ◽  
Laura A. Schoenle

Hormones mediate the expression of life history traits—phenotypic traits that contribute to lifetime fitness (i.e., reproductive timing, growth rate, number and size of offspring). The endocrine system shapes phenotype by organizing tissues during developmental periods and by activating changes in behavior, physiology, and morphology in response to varying physical and social environments. Because hormones can simultaneously regulate many traits (hormonal pleiotropy), they are important mediators of life history trade-offs among growth, reproduction, and survival. This chapter reviews the role of hormones in shaping life histories with an emphasis on developmental plasticity and reversible flexibility in endocrine and life history traits. It also discusses the advantages of studying hormone–behavior interactions from an evolutionary perspective. Recent research in evolutionary endocrinology has provided insight into the heritability of endocrine traits, how selection on hormone systems may influence the evolution of life histories, and the role of hormonal pleiotropy in driving or constraining evolution.


Author(s):  
Marina Vilenica ◽  
Andreja Brigić ◽  
Michel Sartori ◽  
Zlatko Mihaljević

Research examining mayfly ecology in karst streams and rivers has increased in recent years, though microhabitat preferences remain poorly characterized. We examined mayfly assemblage taxonomy, functional feeding groups and microhabitat preferences in two contrasting lotic Dinaric karst catchments, one pristine and one anthropogenically impacted. At monthly intervals over a one-year period, all major microhabitats (i.e. dominated by boulders, cobbles, sand, silt, mosses, or angiosperms) were sampled at sites spanning springs, upper, middle and lower river reaches, and tufa barriers. In both catchments, mayfly species richness was comparable among microhabitats, while mayfly abundance was highest on mosses and lowest on silt. NMDS ordination did not group assemblages according to microhabitat type, which may reflect the greater influence of physical and chemical water properties. In both catchments and all microhabitats, mayfly assemblages were dominated by grazers/scrapers at upstream sites and by detritivores at downstream sites. Active filter feeders were more abundant in microhabitats with silt substrates and lower current velocities. This study demonstrated that certain mayfly species strongly preferred a specific microhabitat type, reflecting their water current preferences and feeding strategies, while other species shifted between microhabitats, likely in search of food resources and shelter. The results emphasize the importance of habitat heterogeneity in supporting diverse communities in karst rivers.


2007 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 808-817 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen S. Cheung

Over the past decade, research interest has risen on the direct effects of temperature on exercise capacity and tolerance, particular in the heat. Two major paradigms have been proposed for how hyperthermia may contribute to voluntary fatigue during exercise in the heat. One suggests that voluntary exhaustion occurs upon the approach or attainment of a critical internal temperature through impairment in a variety of physiological systems. An alternate perspective proposes that thermal inputs modulate the regulation of self-paced workload to minimize heat storage. This review seeks to summarize recent research leading to the development of these two models for hyperthermia and fatigue and explore possible bridges between them. Key areas for future research and development into voluntary exhaustion in the heat include (i) the development of valid and non-invasive means to measure brain temperature, (ii) understanding variability in perception and physiological responses to heat stress across individuals, (iii) extrapolating laboratory studies to field settings, (iv) understanding the failure in behavioural and physiological thermoregulation that leads to exertional heat illness, and (v) the integration of physiological and psychological parameters limiting voluntary exercise in the heat.


2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1717) ◽  
pp. 20160071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara M. Frank

For all visually competent organisms, the driving force behind the adaptation of photoreceptors involves obtaining the best balance of resolution to sensitivity in the prevailing light regime, as an increase in sensitivity often results in a decrease in resolution. A number of marine species have an additional problem to deal with, in that the juvenile stages live in relatively brightly lit shallow (100–200 m depth) waters, whereas the adult stages have daytime depths of more than 600 m, where little downwelling light remains. Here, I present the results of electrophysiological analyses of the temporal resolution and irradiance sensitivity of juvenile and adult stages of two species of ontogenetically migrating crustaceans ( Gnathophausia ingens and Systellaspis debilis ) that must deal with dramatically different light environments and temperatures during their life histories. The results demonstrate that there are significant effects of temperature on temporal resolution, which help to optimize the visual systems of the two life-history stages for their respective light environments. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Vision in dim light’.


Author(s):  
Z Sikorski ◽  
G Sikorska-WisÂniewska ◽  
Poland
Keyword(s):  

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Chen

The continental lower crust is an important composition- and strength-jump layer in the lithosphere. Laboratory studies show its strength varies greatly due to a wide variety of composition. How the lower crust rheology influences the collisional orogeny remains poorly understood. Here I investigate the role of the lower crust rheology in the evolution of an orogen subject to horizontal shortening using 2D numerical models. A range of lower crustal flow laws from laboratory studies are tested to examine their effects on the styles of the accommodation of convergence. Three distinct styles are observed: 1) downwelling and subsequent delamination of orogen lithosphere mantle as a coherent slab; 2) localized thickening of orogen lithosphere; and 3) underthrusting of peripheral strong lithospheres below the orogen. Delamination occurs only if the orogen lower crust rheology is represented by the weak end-member of flow laws. The delamination is followed by partial melting of the lower crust and punctuated surface uplift confined to the orogen central region. For a moderately or extremely strong orogen lower crust, topography highs only develop on both sides of the orogen. In the Tibetan plateau, the crust has been doubly thickened but the underlying mantle lithosphere is highly heterogeneous. I suggest that the subvertical high-velocity mantle structures, as observed in southern and western Tibet, may exemplify localized delamination of the mantle lithosphere due to rheological weakening of the Tibetan lower crust.


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