TY - JOUR
T1 - The high invasion success of fall armyworm is related to life-history strategies across a range of stressful temperatures
AU - Wu, Pengxiang
AU - Head, Megan L.
AU - Liu, Chang
AU - Haseeb, Muhammad
AU - Zhang, Runzhi
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - BACKGROUND: Insects living in unfavorably high or low temperatures are predicted to display a fast or slow life-history strategy. Here, we examined life histories of fall armyworm (FAW), a globally important invasive species with a broad ecological niche, at five constant temperatures of 13, 19, 25, 31 and 37°C, to study life-history responses to different temperatures. RESULTS: In our experiment, FAW had lower lifetime fecundity at unfavorable temperatures, a finding that is consistent with the idea that FAW can shift resources from reproduction to other functions under stressful conditions—such as heat or cold tolerance. Given the adverse effects of stressful temperatures, life-history strategies arise from individuals having limited remaining resources to allocate towards vital functions like survival or reproduction. Here we show plasticity in life-history strategies adopted at different temperatures. Rather than simply varying along a fast–slow continuum, FAW at unfavorably high temperatures exhibited lower daily fecundity and longer reproductive lifespans, and at unfavorably low temperatures showed a shorter peak in reproduction later in life, compared with FAW at 25°C. Such patterns, if adaptive, could suggest a strategy mitigating reproductive and mortality risk in unfavorable environments, however, this remains to be tested. CONCLUSION: Our analysis suggests that the high invasion success of FAW may result from their ability to adjust life-history strategies, across a range of stressful temperatures, in a way that reduces not only mortality, but also fecundity loss. The adoption of such strategies may be instrumental for the global invasion success of FAW.
AB - BACKGROUND: Insects living in unfavorably high or low temperatures are predicted to display a fast or slow life-history strategy. Here, we examined life histories of fall armyworm (FAW), a globally important invasive species with a broad ecological niche, at five constant temperatures of 13, 19, 25, 31 and 37°C, to study life-history responses to different temperatures. RESULTS: In our experiment, FAW had lower lifetime fecundity at unfavorable temperatures, a finding that is consistent with the idea that FAW can shift resources from reproduction to other functions under stressful conditions—such as heat or cold tolerance. Given the adverse effects of stressful temperatures, life-history strategies arise from individuals having limited remaining resources to allocate towards vital functions like survival or reproduction. Here we show plasticity in life-history strategies adopted at different temperatures. Rather than simply varying along a fast–slow continuum, FAW at unfavorably high temperatures exhibited lower daily fecundity and longer reproductive lifespans, and at unfavorably low temperatures showed a shorter peak in reproduction later in life, compared with FAW at 25°C. Such patterns, if adaptive, could suggest a strategy mitigating reproductive and mortality risk in unfavorable environments, however, this remains to be tested. CONCLUSION: Our analysis suggests that the high invasion success of FAW may result from their ability to adjust life-history strategies, across a range of stressful temperatures, in a way that reduces not only mortality, but also fecundity loss. The adoption of such strategies may be instrumental for the global invasion success of FAW.
KW - Spodoptera frugiperda
KW - life-history strategy
KW - lifespan
KW - reproduction
KW - survival
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85126924421&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1002/ps.6867
DO - 10.1002/ps.6867
M3 - Article
SN - 1526-498X
VL - 78
SP - 2398
EP - 2404
JO - Pest Management Science
JF - Pest Management Science
IS - 6
ER -