Local Agricultural Management Filters Morphological Traits of the South American Palm Weevil (<i>Rhynchophorus palmarum</i> L.; Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Ornamental Palm Plantations
Moises Ponce-Méndez,
Miguel A. García-Martínez,
Ricardo Serna-Lagunes,
Rodrigo Lasa-Covarrubias,
Ehdibaldo Presa-Parra,
Joaquin Murguía-González,
Carlos Llarena-Hernández
Affiliations
Moises Ponce-Méndez
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Miguel A. García-Martínez
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Ricardo Serna-Lagunes
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Rodrigo Lasa-Covarrubias
Red de Manejo Biorracional de Plagas y Vectores, Instituto de Ecologia, A.C., Xalapa 91073, Veracruz, Mexico
Ehdibaldo Presa-Parra
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Joaquin Murguía-González
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Carlos Llarena-Hernández
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Universidad Veracruzana, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez S/N, Peñuela, Amatlan de los Reyes 94945, Veracruz, Mexico
Insect pests show phenotypic plasticity as a function of resource availability and limiting conditions. Although Rhynchophorus palmarum displays high variation in certain morphological traits, it is still not clear how and which of these are being filtered along agricultural management gradients in palm plantations. This study assesses the influence of biophysical structure of ornamental palm plantations and agrochemical use on morphological traits of adults in 15 permanent plots of ornamental palm plantations in Veracruz, Mexico. A total of 4972 adults were and their body length, pronotum width, rostrum length, and mesothorax depth were measured. Body length and mesothorax depth of adults of both sexes were greater in plantations with a high diversity of palm species and frequency of fertilizer use. Rostrum length of females increased as a function of palm density, and pronotum width of both sexes was positively related with the use of insecticides. Local characteristics of agricultural management of palm plantations might filter integrated, adaptative, and environment-specific phenotypes. This is the first ecological study of the south American palm weevil that provides new insights on the current intensive management of ornamental palm plantations that far from controlling, benefits current geographic expansion, demographic outbreak, and economic impact of this pest.
