Herbivory alters resource allocation and compensation in the invasive tree Melaleuca quinquenervia

Authors

P. D. Pratt, USDA-ARS
M. B. Rayamajhi, USDA-ARS
T. K. Van, USDA-ARS
T. D. Center, USDA-ARS
P. W. Tipping, USDA-ARS

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2005

Comments

Published in Ecological Entomology (2005) 30, 316–326.

Abstract

The Australian native Melaleuca quinquenervia is highly invasive in the Florida Everglades, U.S.A., where it experiences limited competition or herbivory from native species, making it a likely candidate for compensation. The introduced biological control agent Oxyops vitiosa feeds exclusively on the seasonal flushes of developing foliage at branch apices, which represents ~ 15% of the total foliar biomass.