TY - JOUR A1 - Poethke, Hans J. A1 - Hovestadt, Thomas T1 - Evolution of density-and patch-size-dependent dispersal rates N2 - Based on a marginal value approach, we derive a nonlinear expression for evolutionarily stable (ES) dispersal rates in a metapopulation with global dispersal. For the general case of density-dependent population growth, our analysis shows that individual dispersal rates should decrease with patch capacity and-beyond a certain threshold-increase with population density. We performed a number of spatially explicit, individual-based simulation experiments to test these predictions and to explore further the relevance of variation in the rate of population increase, density dependence, environmental fluctuations and dispersal mortality on the evolution of dispersal rates. They confirm the predictions of our analytical approach. In addition, they show that dispersal rates in metapopulations mostly depend on dispersal mortality and inter-patch variation in population density. The latter is dominantly driven by environmental fluctuations and the rate of population increase. These conclusions are not altered by the introduction of neighbourhood dispersal. With patch capacities in the order of 100 individuals, kin competition seems to be of negligible importance for ES dispersal rates except when overall dispersal rates are low. KW - Metapopulation KW - Dichte KW - Verteilung KW - density-dependent dispersal KW - metapopulation KW - patch size KW - ESS KW - dispersal rate KW - individual based model (IBM) Y1 - 2002 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-49659 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Heisswolf, Annette A1 - Reichmann, Stefanie A1 - Poethke, Hans-Joachim A1 - Schröder, Boris A1 - Obermaier, Elisabeth T1 - Habitat quality matters for the distribution of an endangered leaf beetle and its egg parasitoid in a fragmented landscape N2 - Fragmentation, deterioration, and loss of habitat patches threaten the survival of many insect species. Depending on their trophic level, species may be differently affected by these factors. However, studies investigating more than one trophic level on a landscape scale are still rare. In the present study we analyzed the effects of habitat size, isolation, and quality for the occurrence and population density of the endangered leaf beetle Cassida canaliculata Laich. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) and its egg parasitoid, the hymenopteran wasp Foersterella reptans Nees (Hymenoptera: Tetracampidae). C. canaliculata is strictly monophagous on meadow sage (Salvia pratensis), while F. reptans can also parasitize other hosts. Both size and isolation of habitat patches strongly determined the occurrence of the beetle. However, population density increased to a much greater extent with increasing host plant density ( = habitat quality) than with habitat size. The occurrence probability of the egg parasitoid increased with increasing population density of C. canaliculata. In conclusion, although maintaining large, well-connected patches with high host plant density is surely the major conservation goal for the specialized herbivore C. canaliculata, also small patches with high host plant densities can support viable populations and should thus be conserved. The less specialized parasitoid F. reptans is more likely to be found on patches with high beetle density, while patch size and isolation seem to be less important. KW - Fragmentierung KW - Pflanzenfressende Insekten KW - Eiparasitismus KW - Metapopulation KW - Habitat fragmentation KW - herbivore KW - host plant density KW - metapopulation KW - multitrophic Y1 - 2009 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-47740 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Poethke, Hans-Joachim A1 - Hovestadt, Thomas A1 - Mitesser, Oliver T1 - Local extinction and the evolution of dispersal rates: Causes and correlations N2 - We present the results of individual-based simulation experiments on the evolution of dispersal rates of organisms living in metapopulations. We find conflicting results regarding the relationship between local extinction rate and evolutionarily stable (ES) dispersal rate depending on which principal mechanism causes extinction: if extinction is caused by environmental catastrophes eradicating local populations, we observe a positive correlation between extinction and ES dispersal rate; if extinction is a consequence of stochastic local dynamics and environmental fluctuations, the correlation becomes ambiguous; and in cases where extinction is caused by dispersal mortality, a negative correlation between local extinction rate and ES dispersal rate emerges. We conclude that extinction rate, which both affects and is affected by dispersal rates, is not an ideal predictor for optimal dispersal rates. KW - Ausbreitung KW - Evolution KW - Computersimulation KW - Metapopulation KW - dispersal KW - evolution KW - ESS KW - metapopulation KW - extinction KW - individual-based model Y1 - 2003 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-47718 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bonte, Dries A1 - Hovestadt, Thomas A1 - Poethke, Hans-Joachim T1 - Male-killing endosymbionts: influence of environmental conditions on persistance of host metapopulation N2 - Background: Male killing endosymbionts manipulate their arthropod host reproduction by only allowing female embryos to develop into infected females and killing all male offspring. Because of the reproductive manipulation, we expect them to have an effect on the evolution of host dispersal rates. In addition, male killing endosymbionts are expected to approach fixation when fitness of infected individuals is larger than that of uninfected ones and when transmission from mother to offspring is nearly perfect. They then vanish as the host population crashes. High observed infection rates and among-population variation in natural systems can consequently not be explained if defense mechanisms are absent and when transmission efficiency is perfect. Results: By simulating the host-endosymbiont dynamics in an individual-based metapopulation model we show that male killing endosymbionts increase host dispersal rates. No fitness compensations were built into the model for male killing endosymbionts, but they spread as a group beneficial trait. Host and parasite populations face extinction under panmictic conditions, i.e. conditions that favor the evolution of high dispersal in hosts. On the other hand, deterministic 'curing' (only parasite goes extinct) can occur under conditions of low dispersal, e.g. under low environmental stochasticity and high dispersal mortality. However, high and stable infection rates can be maintained in metapopulations over a considerable spectrum of conditions favoring intermediate levels of dispersal in the host. Conclusion: Male killing endosymbionts without explicit fitness compensation spread as a group selected trait into a metapopulation. Emergent feedbacks through increased evolutionary stable dispersal rates provide an alternative explanation for both, the high male-killing endosymbiont infection rates and the high among-population variation in local infection rates reported for some natural systems. KW - Metapopulation KW - Parasit KW - Wirt KW - Endosymbiont KW - Theoretische Ökologie KW - Host-parasite interactions KW - individual-based model Y1 - 2008 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-45344 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bonte, Dries A1 - Hovestadt, Thomas A1 - Poethke, Hans Joachim T1 - Sex-specific dispersal and evolutionary rescue in metapopulations infected by male killing endosymbionts N2 - Background: Male killing endosymbionts manipulate their arthropod host reproduction by only allowing female embryos to develop into infected females and killing all male offspring. Because the resulting change in sex ratio is expected to affect the evolution of sex-specific dispersal, we investigated under which environmental conditions strong sex-biased dispersal would emerge, and how this would affect host and endosymbiont metapopulation persistence. Results: We simulated host-endosymbiont metapopulation dynamics in an individual-based model, in which dispersal rates are allowed to evolve independently for the two sexes. Prominent male-biased dispersal emerges under conditions of low environmental stochasticity and high dispersal mortality. By applying a reshuffling algorithm, we show that kin-competition is a major driver of this evolutionary pattern because of the high within-population relatedness of males compared to those of females. Moreover, the evolution of sex-specific dispersal rescues metapopulations from extinction by (i) reducing endosymbiont fixation rates and (ii) by enhancing the extinction of endosymbionts within metapopulations that are characterized by low environmental stochasticity. Conclusion: Male killing endosymbionts induce the evolution of sex-specific dispersal, with prominent male-biased dispersal under conditions of low environmental stochasticity and high dispersal mortality. This male-biased dispersal emerges from stronger kin-competition in males compared to females and induces an evolutionary rescue mechanism. KW - Metapopulation KW - Theoretische Ökologie KW - Endosymbiont KW - Wirt KW - Parasit KW - Host-parasite interactions KW - individual-based model Y1 - 2009 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-45351 ER - TY - THES A1 - Hein, Silke T1 - The survival of grasshoppers and bush crickets in habitats variable in space and time T1 - Das Überleben von Heuschrecken in raum-zeitlich veränderlichen Habitaten N2 - Die zunehmende Nutzung von Landschaften führt zu einer steigenden Fragmentierung schützenswerter Flächen. Damit verbunden ist eine Zerschneidung von großen Populationen in Metapopulationen. In solchen Fällen bestimmt das Gleichgewicht zwischen Aussterben und Besiedlung von Habitaten die regionale Überlebenswahrscheinlichkeit von Arten. Um diese bestimmen, braucht man ein gutes Verständnis der Habitatansprüche der Arten, sowie Informationen über ihr Ausbreitungsverhalten. Ziel dieser Arbeit war es, geeignete Flächen für Heuschrecken in einer Landschaft identifizieren zu können, sowie einen Beitrag zur Quantifizierung der Erreichbarkeit einzelner Flächen durch Individuen zu leisten. Der erste Teil dieser Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der Quantifizierung der Habitateignung von Flächen für Heuschrecken. Dazu habe ich statistische Habitateignungsmodelle mittels logistischer Regression erstellt, evaluiert und validiert. Es zeigte sich, dass die Habitatwahl der Heuschrecken auf einer mittleren räumlichen Skalenebene erfolgt. Dies steht mit der beobachteten Ausbreitungsdistanz der Tiere im Einklang. Neben dem nur grob klassifizierten Landschaftsfaktor „Biotoptyp“ korrelieren vor allem strukturelle Faktoren sowie abiotische Faktoren mit dem Vorkommen der Heuschreckenarten. Bei der Bestimmung eines gemeinsamen Models für alle drei Heuschreckenarten erwies sich das Model der Art S. lineatus mit den Parametern Biotoptyp und Vegetationshöhe als am besten geeignet zur Vorhersage der Vorkommen der anderen Heuschreckenarten. Um zu testen, ob auch die Vorkommen von Arten unterschiedlicher Tiergruppen mittels eines gemeinsamen Modells vorhergesagt werden können, habe ich sowohl die Heuschreckenmodelle zur Prognose von Faltervorkommen getestet, als auch Modelle für Falter auf Heuschrecken übertragen. Dabei erwiesen sich die Heuschreckenmodelle zur Prognose der anderen Arten weniger geeignet als das Modell für das Widderchen Z. carniolica in das der Anteil an geeignetem Habitat sowie die Vorkommen der beiden Saugpflanzen C. jacea und S. columbaria einfließen. Diese Art wird als standorttreu eingestuft und repräsentiert damit auch die anderen Arten, die typisch für Säume und Halbtrockenrasen sind. Die erhöhte Mobilität von Z. carniolica im Vergleich zu den Heuschrecken garantiert gleichzeitig auch die Erreichbarkeit aller geeigneten Flächen im Gebiet und damit ein Modell, das nur unwesentlich durch Zufallseffekte bei der Besiedlung beeinflusst wird. Neben der Habitatqualität/-quantität spielt vor allem der Austausch zwischen Flächen eine entscheidende Rolle für das Überleben der Metapopulation. Im zweiten Teil meiner Arbeit habe ich mich sowohl theoretisch als auch empirisch, mit dem Ausbreitungsverhalten von Heuschrecken beschäftigt. In Freilandexperimenten konnte ich zeigen, dass die Annahme eines dichotomen Bewegungsverhaltens für Heuschrecken in einer realen Landschaft nicht zutrifft. Vielmehr wird die Bewegung in einer Fläche besser als Kontinuum beschrieben das durch strukturelle Resistenz, Temperatur, Mortalitätsrisiko und Ressourcenverfügbarkeit bestimmt wird. Die jeweilige Kombination dieser Parameter veranlasst die Tiere dann zu einem entsprechenden Bewegungsmuster, das sich zwischen den beiden Extremen gerichteter und zufälliger Lauf bewegt. In Experimenten zum Grenzverhalten von Heuschrecken bestätigte sich dieses Ergebnis. Für verschiedene Grenzstrukturen konnte ich unterschiedliche Übertrittswahrscheinlichkeiten nachweisen. Weiterhin konnte ich feststellen, dass Heuschrecken geeignete Habitate aus einer gewissen Entfernung detektieren können. Da das Ausbreitungsverhalten von Tieren in theoretischen Modellen eine wichtige Rolle spielt, können diese empirischen Daten zur Parametrisierung dieser Modelle verwendet werden. Zusätzlich zum Einfluss des Laufmusters der Tiere auf die Erreichbarkeit geeigneter Habitate, zeigte sich in den von mir durchgeführten Simulationsstudien deutlich, dass der landschaftliche Kontext, in dem die Ausbreitung stattfindet, die Erreichbarkeit einzelner Habitate beeinflusst. Dieser Effekt ist zusätzlich abhängig von der Mortalitätsrate beim Ausbreitungsvorgang. Mit den Ergebnissen aus den Untersuchungen zur Habitateignung lassen sich die für Heuschrecken geeigneten Habitate in einer Landschaft identifizieren. Somit lässt sich die potentielle Eignung einer Fläche als Habitat, basierend auf Vorhersagen über die Änderung des Biotoptyps durch ein Managementverfahren, vorhersagen. Diese Information allein reicht aber nicht aus, um die regionale Überlebenswahrscheinlichkeit einer Art bestimmen zu können. Meine Untersuchungen zum Ausbreitungsverhalten zeigen deutlich, dass die Erreichbarkeit geeigneter Flächen von der räumlichen Anordnung der Habitate und der Struktur der Flächen, die zwischen Habitaten liegen, abhängt. Zusätzlich spielen individuenspezifische Faktoren wie Motivation und physiologische Faktoren eine ausschlaggebende Rolle für die Erreichbarkeit von geeigneten Flächen. N2 - The exploitation of landscapes increases fragmentation of valuable areas with high biodiversity. Consequently, many populations nowadays exist as metapopulations. In such cases, the balance between extinction and colonisation of patches determines the regional survival of species. To determine long term survival of species and to assess the impact of different management regimes proper knowledge of species habitat requirements as well as information on their dispersal behaviour is needed. The aim of this thesis was to develop methods and measures for the identification of suitable areas for grasshoppers and bush crickets, as well as to quantify the reachability of single patches by individuals. The first part of my work focuses on the quantification of habitat suitability for grasshoppers and bush crickets. Based on presence/absence data, I developed statistical habitat suitability models using logistic regression analyses. The resulting models are evaluated and validated in space and time. It turned out that habitat selection of the species mainly took place on an intermediate spatial scale. The relevant scale falls into the same range as the species’ mean dispersal distances. Besides the rather coarse grained factor ‘type of habitat’ structural factors as well as abiotic factors are correlated with the occurrence of the species. The model of S. lineatus, including the parameters ‘type of biotope’ and ‘vegetation height’ was most successful in predicting the occurrences of the bush cricket species. To further test whether the occurrence of species of different insect groups can be predicted with a common model, I tested the usefulness of the orthoptera models for the prediction of butterflies in the same region and vice versa. While transferability of the orthoptera models was poor, the model of the moth Z. carniolica performed quite successful. It included the proportion of suitable habitat as well as the occurrence of the two sucking plants C. jacea and S. columbaria as relevant factors. Z. carniolica is classified as stenoecious and thus represents other species typically found on fringes and mesoxerophytic grasslands. The high mobility of Z. carniolica simultaneously guarantees the reachability of regional suitable areas and thus ensures that the influence of the random effects of colonisation on the model are marginal. Unfortunately, the factors predicting habitat quality for a species are normally not available at the landscape level. Thus, they cannot be used for the prediction of occurrences without extensive censuses in the field. Nevertheless, my results show that the sole use of the variable ‘type of habitat’, which often is available landscape wide, will be sufficient for the classification of habitat suitability in a landscape. I conclude that for practical use in conservation biology the type of biotope can be used to predict occurrence of the studied species. Besides quality/quantity of suitable habitat, dispersal of individuals between patches is a key factor influencing the survival of populations. Thus, the second part of my work concentrates on theoretical as well as empirical studies on the dispersal behaviour of bush crickets. In field experiments I could show that the assumption of a dichotomous movement behaviour does not apply for bush crickets. Instead, movement pattern changes continuously with structural resistance, temperature, mortality risk and resource availability. This result is confirmed in my experiments on the behaviour of bush crickets at habitat borders. For different borders I could demonstrate different edge permeabilities. Additionally, I observed that grasshoppers could detect suitable habitat from a certain distance. Because the dispersal behaviour plays an important role in theoretical models, my empirical data can be used to parameterise such models. In addition to the influence of movement pattern on the reachability of suitable habitats, I could demonstrate, with simulation models, that the influence of the landscape context in which dispersal takes place has a critical impact on the exchange of individuals between patches. This effect is enhanced if mortality risk during dispersal is accounted for. The results from my studies on habitat suitability can be used to identify suitable habitat for grasshoppers and bush crickets in a landscape. Consequently, the potential suitability of an area as habitat, based on predictions on changes in the type of biotope by management regime, can be predicted. But this information alone is not sufficient to determine regional survival probability of a species. My investigations concerning the dispersal behaviour clearly show, that the reachability of suitable areas is dependent on the spatial configuration of patches and the structure of areas between habitats. Additionally, factors specific for individuals, like motivation and physiological factors play a crucial role for the reachability of suitable habitats. KW - Naturschutzgebiet Hohe Wann KW - Heuschrecken KW - Metapopulation KW - Ausbreitung KW - Heuschrecken KW - Habitateignungsmodelle KW - Insekten KW - metapopulation KW - dispersal KW - habitat suitability models KW - insects KW - crickets Y1 - 2004 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-9140 ER -