Winter Survival and Freeze Tolerance in a Northern Cockroach, Periplaneta japonica (Blattidae: Dictyoptera)

1997 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 849-853 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuhiro Tanaka ◽  
Seiji Tanaka
2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (4) ◽  
pp. 456-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth B. Storey ◽  
Janet M. Storey

Winter survival for thousands of species of insects relies on adaptive strategies for cold hardiness. Two basic mechanisms are widely used (freeze avoidance by deep supercooling and freeze tolerance where insects endure ice formation in extracellular fluid spaces), whereas additional strategies (cryoprotective dehydration, vitrification) are also used by some polar species in extreme environments. This review assesses recent research on the biochemical adaptations that support insect cold hardiness. We examine new information about the regulation of cryoprotectant biosynthesis, mechanisms of metabolic rate depression, role of aquaporins in water and glycerol movement, and cell preservation strategies (chaperones, antioxidant defenses and metal binding proteins, mitochondrial suppression) for survival over the winter. We also review the new information coming from the use of genomic and proteomic screening methods that are greatly widening the scope for discovery of genes and proteins that support winter survival.


2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
P J Baker ◽  
J P Costanzo ◽  
R Herlands ◽  
R C Wood ◽  
R E Lee, Jr.

We investigated the hibernation ecology and cold hardiness of hatchling diamondback terrapins, Malaclemys terrapin (Schoepf, 1793), an estuarine species that reaches 42°N along the Atlantic Ocean. During 3 years of study, about 50% of the nests we monitored harboured hatchlings during winter, and the majority (87%) of these individuals survived despite being intermittently exposed to subfreezing temperatures. Most such exposures were brief (ca. 12 h) and mild (minimum temperature: ca. –1.2 °C); however, turtles were occasionally subjected to longer chilling episodes and lower temperatures. In laboratory experiments, hatchlings supercooled extensively, attaining ca. –15 °C before spontaneously freezing. However, they were highly susceptible to inoculative freezing through contact with external ice and (or) ice-nucleating agents, which occur in nesting soil. Therefore, freeze avoidance through supercooling does not appear to be a viable cold-hardiness strategy in these turtles. Hatchlings subjected to experimental freezing survived exposure to temperatures as low as –3.0 °C, suggesting that freeze tolerance may account for the high winter survival observed in natural nests. We conclude that freeze tolerance in hatchling M. terrapin is promoted by high susceptibility to inoculation, which is known to moderate freezing, allowing cells time to adapt to the attendant physical and osmotic stresses.


2004 ◽  
Vol 129 (5) ◽  
pp. 667-674 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajeev Arora ◽  
Lisa J. Rowland ◽  
Elizabeth L. Ogden ◽  
Anik L. Dhanaraj ◽  
Calin O. Marian ◽  
...  

Loss of freeze tolerance, or deacclimation, is an integral part of winter survival in woody perennials because untimely mid-winter or spring thaws followed by a hard freeze can cause severe injury to dehardened tissues. This study was undertaken to investigate deacclimation kinetics, particularly the timing and speed, of five blueberry (Vaccinium L.) cultivars (`Bluecrop', `Weymouth', `Ozarkblue', `Tifblue', and `Legacy'), with different germplasm compositions and mid-winter bud hardiness levels, in response to an environmentally controlled temperature regime. Based upon bud cold hardiness evaluations in 2000 and 2001, `Tifblue', a Vaccinium ashei Reade cultivar, was one of the least hardy and the fastest to deacclimate; `Bluecrop', a predominantly V. corymbosum L. cultivar, was the most hardy and the slowest to deacclimate; and `Ozarkblue', a predominantly V. corymbosum cultivar but including southern species V. darrowi Camp. and V. ashei, was intermediate in speed of deacclimation. `Weymouth' (predominantly V. corymbosum) and `Legacy' (73.4% V. corymbosum and 25% V. darrowi) were slow to intermediate deacclimators. Deacclimation rates did not correlate strictly with mid-winter bud hardiness. Data suggest that the southern germplasm component V. ashei may be responsible for the observed faster deacclimation whereas both southern species, V. darrowi and V. ashei, may contribute genes for cold sensitivity. Strong positive correlations between stage of bud opening and bud cold hardiness existed in both years (r = 0.90 and 0.82 in 2000 and 2001 study, respectively). Previously identified major blueberry dehydrins, 65-, 60-, and 14-kDa, progressively decreased in their abundance during incremental dehardening in `Bluecrop', `Weymouth', and `Tifblue'. However, down-regulation of the 14-kDa dehydrin most closely mirrored the loss in cold hardiness during deacclimation, and, therefore, may be involved in regulation of bud dehardening. Because differences in deacclimation rate were clearly evident among the genotypes studied, rate of deacclimation of the flower buds of blueberry should be an important consideration in breeding to improve winter survival.


HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 453d-453
Author(s):  
A.M. Shirazi ◽  
E.A. HedBorn ◽  
S.A. Mehaffey ◽  
A.S. Merritt

The winter hardiness of many groundcover cultivars in northern Illinois is not well-known. This study was designed to evaluate the survival of 172 plants used in the groundcover path at The Morton Arboretum. Once a month, from Sept.1997 to Jan. 1998, the plants chosen for this study were visually evaluated and their vitality rated on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = alive, 5 = dead). All nine cultivars of Euonymus fortunei remained virtually unchanged throughout the study period. Among six cultivars of Hedera helix, only `Gold Heart' showed minor damage in November. Nine Heuchera were evaluated and all exhibited excellent resistance to cold temperatures. While all the Pulmonarias studied showed some cold damage by November, `Bielefeld Pink', `Little Blue', `Roy Davidson', Pulmonaria longifolia var. cevennensis, and Pulmonaria officinalis `Sissinghurst White' fared the best for the longest period of time. Five cultivars of Pachysandra terminalis were included in this study. None had significant damage until November, and then only rated a “2.” Of the eight Ajuga evaluated, Ajuga pyramidalis `Metallica Crispa', and Ajuga reptans `Braunherz', `Catlin's Giant', and `Gaiety', exhibited the best cold resistance. Four Polygonums varied widely in their response to cold temperatures, but all showed signs of severe damage in November. Polygonum `Border Jewel' exhibited the best tolerance, rating a “1” in October, but in November it was given a rating of “4.” Their recovery in spring will be compared.


HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 517f-518
Author(s):  
Jeanine M. Davis

To produce large elephant garlic (Allium ampeloprasum L.) bulbs in the southeastern United States, stock cloves must be planted in the fall. During extremely cold winters, however, winter survival rates can be very low. A 2-year study was undertaken to examine practices to increase winter survival rates. Two clove sizes (≤20 g or >20 g), three nitrogen rates (112, 224, and 336 kg/ha), and three planting methods (flat, mulched, and hilled) were tested in a RCB design with four replications. For all planting methods, cloves were set in a shallow trench and covered with soil to ground level. This was also the flat treatment. For the mulched treatment, 7 cm of straw was spread on top. For the hilled treatment, soil was mounded 10 to 15 cm high over the ground level. Cloves were planted in early October and harvested in mid-June. Use of large planting stock cloves increased winter survival rates during the harsh winter, but had no effect during the mild winter. Both years, winter survival was reduced with the flat treatment. Yields of marketable bulbs were 4 to 5 times higher when >20 g cloves were planted than when ≤20 g cloves were used. Nitrogen rate and planting method had no effect on yields. The >20 g cloves also produced larger bulbs than the smaller cloves. Of the three planting methods, the flat treatment produced the smallest bulbs. Bulbs were much larger following the mild winter than the harsh winter.


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