Influence of landscape structure on endemic cicadas in New Zealand kiwifruit orchards
Version of Record online: 6 DEC 2010
© 2010 The Authors. Agricultural and Forest Entomology © 2010 The Royal Entomological Society
Agricultural and Forest Entomology
Volume 13, Issue 3, pages 259–271, August 2011
How to Cite
Logan, D. P., Hill, M. G., Connolly, P. G., Maher, B. J. and Dobson, S. J. (2011), Influence of landscape structure on endemic cicadas in New Zealand kiwifruit orchards. Agricultural and Forest Entomology, 13: 259–271. doi: 10.1111/j.1461-9563.2010.00517.x
- Issue online: 13 JUL 2011
- Version of Record online: 6 DEC 2010
- Accepted 30 October 2010, First published online 6 December 2010
- Amphipsalta cingulata;
- Amphipsalta zelandica;
- boosted regression trees;
- focal patch study;
- 1The endemic cicada species Amphipsalta cingulata (Fabricius) and Amphipsalta zelandica (Boisduval) are pests of New Zealand kiwifruit.
- 2We determined the abundance of A. cingulata and A. zelandica by counting final-instar exuviae in a block of ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit, the dominant cultivar, on each of 70 blocks on separate orchards in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand.
- 3We used a geographic information system and fragstats to generate predictive variables describing landscape structure in four nested landscapes ranging in size between 6.25 and 400 ha for each site. Other variables described the physical characteristics of the site and management practices. Data were analyzed by boosted regression trees, a method that combines the advantages of regression trees and machine learning.
- 4The most influential variables differed for each species. Modified coastal landscapes with high densities of ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit were most favourable for A. cingulata. For A. zelandica, favourable landscapes contained significant areas of native forest. The 12 most influential variables accounted for 51% and 46% of the total influence of all variables measured for A. cingulata and A. zelandica, respectively.
- 5Landscape structure was more influential than insecticide use and local site factors. Despite the apparent low vagility of cicadas, landscape structure at relatively large scales of ≥25 ha was influential for both A. cingulata and A. zelandica. The ability to use a wide range of hosts within the production landscape may account for this pattern. Key variables need to be confirmed by identifying the same patterns in other landscapes.