Survival and reproduction of leaf miners in fallen oak leaves

Update: 18 November, 2023

Abstract: Abstract Brachys tessellatus is a leaf-mining beetle that attacks Quercus laevis (turkey oak), a deciduous scrub oak in the fall line Sandhills of the southeastern United States. This oak species varies substantially in leaf ab- scission phenology. In the fall of 1994 we examined leaf abscission patterns at three sites in central South Caroli- na and found that leaves containing active miners absci- sed earlier than leaves without active miners. To quantify the effect of leaf abscission phenology on the survivor- ship and body size of leaf miners within the abscised leaves, we marked naturally and manually abscised leaves, left leaves on the ground to over-winter, and then collected leaves before beetles emerged the following spring. We found that beetles inside leaves that were ab- scised early in the season were more likely to be killed by predators, and that they produced smaller pupae than beetles within leaves abscised later in the season. We also evaluated the relationship between adult beetle body size and fecundity; body size of B. tessellatus is positive- ly correlated with lifetime fecundity and daily oviposi- tion rate indicating that effects of leaf-abscission phenol- ogy on beetle body size likely translate into effects on beetle fitness. We discuss how B. tessellatus has adapted to variation of leaf abscission phenology of oaks by evolving developmental plasticity that permits successful completion of larval development over a range of season lengths. Keywords E

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Publication date: 18 November, 2023

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