Species interactions affect dispersal: a meta-analysis

Context-dependent dispersal allows organisms to seek and settle in habitats improving their fitness. Despite the importance of species interactions in determining fitness, a quantitative synthesis of how they affect dispersal is lacking. We present a meta-analysis asking (i) whether the interaction experienced and/or perceived by a focal species (detrimental interaction with predators, competitors, parasites or beneficial interaction with resources, hosts, mutualists) affects its dispersal; and (ii) how the species' ecological and biological background affects the direction and strength of this interaction-dependent dispersal. After a systematic search focusing on actively dispersing species, we extracted 397 effect sizes from 118 empirical studies encompassing 221 species pairs; arthropods were best represented, followed by vertebrates, protists and others. Detrimental species interactions increased the focal species' dispersal (adjusted effect: 0.33 [0.06, 0.60]), while beneficial interactions decreased it (-0.55 [-0.92, -0.17]). The effect depended on the dispersal phase, with detrimental interactors having opposite impacts on emigration and transience. Interaction-dependent dispersal was negatively related to species' interaction strength, and depended on the global community composition, with cues of presence having stronger effects than the presence of the interactor and the ecological complexity of the community. Our work demonstrates the importance of interspecific interactions on dispersal plasticity, with consequences for metacommunity dynamics.This article is part of the theme issue 'Diversity-dependence of dispersal: interspecific interactions determine spatial dynamics'.

Two sympatric lineages of Australian Cnestus solidus share Ambrosiella symbionts but not Wolbachia

Sympatric lineages of inbreeding species provide an excellent opportunity to investigate species divergence patterns and processes. Many ambrosia beetle lineages (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) reproduce by predominant inbreeding through sib mating in nests excavated in woody plant parts wherein they cultivate symbiotic ambrosia fungi as their sole source of nutrition. The Xyleborini ambrosia beetle species Cnestus solidus and Cnestus pseudosolidus are sympatrically distributed across eastern Australia and have overlapping morphological variation. Using multilocus sequencing analysis of individuals collected from 19 sites spanning their sympatric distribution, we assessed their phylogenetic relationships, taxonomic status and microbial symbionts. We found no genetic differentiation between individuals morphologically identified as C. solidus and C. pseudosolidus confirming previous suggestions that C. pseudosolidus is synonymous to C. solidus. However, within C. solidus we unexpectedly discovered the sympatric coexistence of two morphologically indistinguishable but genetically distinct lineages with small nuclear yet large mitochondrial divergence. At all sites except one, individuals of both lineages carried the same primary fungal symbiont, a new Ambrosiella species, indicating that fungal symbiont differentiation may not be involved in lineage divergence. One strain of the maternally inherited bacterial endosymbiont Wolbachia was found at high prevalence in individuals of the more common lineage but not in the other, suggesting that it may influence host fitness. Our data suggest that the two Australian Cnestus lineages diverged allopatrically, and one lineage then acquired Wolbachia. Predominant inbreeding and Wolbachia infection may have reinforced reproductive barriers between these two lineages after their secondary contact contributing to their current sympatric distribution.

Photosensitivity of Dispersing Cryptic Date Stone Beetles Coccotrypes dactyliperda (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Scolytinae)-A Pilot Study

The date stone beetle, Coccotrypes dactyliperda, is a cryptic spermatophagus species that spends almost its entire life cycle inside the seeds of palms, esp. Phoenix sp. Only during dispersal, when the host seed has been largely eaten out, do females emerge for a short period of time in search of a fresh seed in which to establish new brood galleries. Previous work indicated that C. dactyliperda might be photophobic, preferring to emerge from seeds during night hours, whereas anecdotal evidence suggested that the beetles might be photophilic in terms of their movements post emergence. This paper examines the photosensitivity of the species under controlled laboratory conditions. The results show that C. dactyliperda, once removed from the brood chamber, is attracted by and moves faster to a light source, but that the color of the lit surface (red, blue, green, black) has no influence on either direction or crawl speed.

Effects of Thelytokous Parthenogenesis-Inducing Wolbachia on the Fitness of Trichogramma dendrolimi Matsumura (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) in Superparasitised and Single-Parasitised Hosts

Thelytokous Wolbachia-infected Trichogramma species have long been considered as biological control agents against lepidopteran pests in agriculture and forestry. Wolbachia has been suggested to increase the probability of the superparasitism of Trichogramma, but the fate of infected offspring in the superparasitised host is still unknown. The present study aimed to evaluate the fitness of thelytokous Wolbachia-infected (TDW) and bisexual Wolbachia-free (TD) Trichogramma dendrolimi Matsumura (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) lines in superparasitised or single-parasitised hosts. The results showed that irrespective of whether Trichogramma wasps were developed from superparasitised or single-parasitised hosts, the TDW line was characterized by reduced fitness, including lower fecundity, shorter longevity, and smaller body size of F1 offspring, and lower emergence rate of F2 offspring than the TD line. This was not true for the survival rate and developmental time of F1 offspring. Additionally, the fitness parameters of T. dendrolimi that developed from superparasitised hosts were lower compared with that of T. dendrolimi that developed from single-parasitised hosts. Interestingly, Wolbachia-infected females had higher dispersal capacity than bisexual females when they developed from superparasitised hosts. The results indicated that Wolbachia negatively affects fitness of T. dendrolimi, but enhance dispersal capacity of T. dendrolimi females in superparasitism condition. Further studies need to be carried out to select the best line that will allow Wolbachia and their host Trichogramma to be better adapted to one another.