Insect Outbreaks Revisited

The abundance of insects can change dramatically from generation to generation; these generational changes may occur within a growing season or over a period of years. Such extraordinary density changes or "outbreaks" may be abrupt and ostensibly random, or population peaks may occur in a more or less cyclic fashion. They can be hugely destructive when the insect is a crop pest or carries diseases of humans, farm animals, or wildlife. Knowledge of these types of population dynamics and computer models that may help predict when they occur are very important.

This important new book revisits a subject not thoroughly discussed in such a publication since 1988 and brings an international scale to the issue of insect outbreaks.

Insect Outbreaks Revisited is intended for senior undergraduate and graduate students in ecology, population biology and entomology, as well as government and industry scientists doing research on pests, land managers, pest management personnel, extension personnel, conservation biologists and ecologists, and state, county and district foresters.

Contributors viii

Acknowledgments xi

Preface xii

PART I PHYSIOLOGICAL AND LIFE HISTORY PERSPECTIVES 1

1 Insect Herbivore Outbreaks Viewed through a Physiological Framework: Insights from Orthoptera 3
Spencer T. Behmer and Anthony Joern

2 The Dynamical Effects of Interactions between Inducible Plant Resistance and Food Limitation during Insect Outbreaks 30
Karen C. Abbott

3 Immune Responses and Their Potential Role in Insect Outbreaks 47
J. Gwen Shlichta and Angela M. Smilanich

4 The Role of Ecological Stoichiometry in Outbreaks of Insect Herbivores 71
Eric M. Lind and Pedro Barbosa

PART II POPULATION DYNAMICS AND MULTISPECIES INTERACTIONS 89

5 Plant-Induced Responses and Herbivore Population Dynamics 91
André Kessler, Katja Poveda, and Erik H. Poelman

6 Spatial Synchrony of Insect Outbreaks 113
Andrew M. Liebhold, Kyle J. Haynes, and Ottar N. Bjørnstad

7 What Tree-Ring Reconstruction Tells Us about Conifer Defoliator Outbreaks 126
Ann M. Lynch

8 Insect-Associated Microorganisms and Their Possible Role in Outbreaks 155
Yasmin J. Cardoza, Richard W. Hofstetter, and Fernando E. Vega

PART III POPULATION, COMMUNITY, AND ECOSYSTEM ECOLOGY 175

9 Life History Traits and Host Plant Use in Defoliators and Bark Beetles: Implications for Population Dynamics 177
Julia Koricheva, Maartje J. Klapwijk, and Christer Björkman

10 The Ecological Consequences of Insect Outbreaks 197
Louie H. Yang

11 Insect Outbreaks in Tropical Forests: Patterns, Mechanisms, and Consequences 219
Lee A. Dyer, Walter P. Carson, and Egbert G. Leigh Jr.

12 Outbreaks and Ecosystem Services 246
Timothy D. Schowalter

PART IV GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 267

13 Evidence for Outbreaks from the Fossil Record of Insect Herbivory 269
Conrad C. Labandeira

14 Implications of Host-Associated Differentiation in the Control of Pest Species 291
Raul F. Medina

PART V APPLIED PERSPECTIVES 311

15 Disasters by Design: Outbreaks along Urban Gradients 313
Michael J. Raupp, Paula M. Shrewsbury, and Dan A. Herms

16 Resistance to Transgenic Crops and Pest Outbreaks 341
Bruce E. Tabashnik and Yves Carrière

17 Natural Enemies and Insect Outbreaks in Agriculture: A Landscape Perspective 355
J. Megan Woltz, Benjamin P. Werling, and Douglas A. Landis

18 Integrated Pest Management – Outbreaks Prevented, Delayed, or Facilitated? 371
Deborah K. Letourneau

19 Insect Invasions: Lessons from Biological Control of Weeds 395
Peter B. McEvoy, Fritzi S. Grevstad, and Shon S. Schooler

20 Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Outbreak Potential 429
Maartje J. Klapwijk, Matthew P. Ayres, Andrea Battisti, and Stig Larsson

Subject Index 451

Taxonomic Index 459

Colour plate pages fall between pp. 196 and 197

“I believe that graduate students, senior researchers, and government and industry scientists in entomology and population ecology will benefit from reading this book. The book could also be highly recommended to land managers, extension personnel, and foresters wanting to let know more about insect outbreaks, and how to best prevent and manage insect outbreaks and their consequences.” (Ecology, 1 August 2013)

“The book is full of good ideas. The editors have done a pretty good job and are to be congratulated.” (British Journal of Entomology & Natural History, 1 August 2013)

“Overall this is an important and informative book, on a vital subject which is not only of specific interest but which has a relevance to all ecologists who work with population ecology.” (British Ecological Society Bulletin, 1 August 2013)

“This new look at insect outbreaks is a very welcome addition to entomological literature.” (African Entomology, 1March2013)

Pedro Barbosa was born in Guayama, Puerto Rico and raised in Spanish Harlem, in New York City. He received his B.S. in biology from the City College of New York and his M.S. and Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Pedro's research interests are in theoretical and applied ecology of plant-insect interactions with an emphasis on tri-trophic interactions. He has authored or coauthored many refereed publications, and written or edited 13 books.

Deborah K. Letourneau's Bachelor's, Master's and doctoral degrees are from the University of Michigan and University of California at Berkeley. As Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz her research concerns plant-insect interactions, biodiversity, and environmental risk in the context of decision-making that sustains both livelihoods and the environment.

Anurag A. Agrawal studies the evolutionary ecology of plants and insects as a professor at Cornell University's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Department of Entomology. His work spans community ecology, invasive species, coevolution, and ecological genetics. Please visit his lab website www.herbivory.com for current projects and research.

In 1987 a book called Insect Outbreaks was published and became a "classic" in its field. Over the last two decades significant advances have been made in our understanding of certain aspects of insect outbreak dynamics and outbreak species and so, in this new volume, the subject is thoroughly reviewed.

Whether you are interested in cutting-edge design of agroecosystems for a nation's food security, modelling the spread of invasive insects under climate change scenarios, quelling devastating urban tree die-offs through innovation rather than toxic materials, probing the powerful secrets of the microbial community in an insect's gut, or discovering the truth about genetically-modified pesticidal plants - Insect Outbreaks Revisited will answer your questions and stimulate new ideas. With chapters by top scientists and rising stars in insect physiology, evolution, population dynamics and ecology, this book provides a stimulating collection of perspectives on why and when to expect outbreaks of insects in managed and unmanaged ecosystems, what to focus on as causes, and how to manage and mitigate any adverse consequences.