Hello
Sylvia Cremer who is a Marie Curie fellow is Koos Boomsma's Lab in
Copenhagen will be visiting me this week. She will give a talk on her
work. The title and abstract is below. The work contains both
genetical and ecological (parasitology) data so should be of wide
interest. Sylvia's background can be seen here
http://www.bi.ku.dk/staff/staff-vip-details.asp?ID=94
The talk is at 12.15 in Pt302. On the afternoon of the 15th we will
have a Barbecue in the Animal House (Zoo) from 4pm onwards. This is also
for Marianne Elias who is leaving Oulu at the end of June and
myself who is leaving Oulu at the end of July (though I will definitely
come back for visits).
Hope to see you at the talk and at the Barbecue.
Kiitos
David
Origin of the
invasive garden ant, Lasius neglectus
Lasius neglectus is the newest discovered pest ant
species, and is only known to exist the last 15 years. Due to its cold
resistance, it is the only pest ant in Northern Europe and has
successfully established at least 50 populations in this short period.
Because no native populations
of this species are known so far, we try to determine its geographic and
phylogenetic origin. Traditional methods for taxonomy are difficult to
apply since Lasius neglectus is morphologically extremely similar
to other Lasius species (leading to its name). We therefore
combine morphological and phylogenetic methods with a chemotaxonomic
approach.
Not only the species origin, but also the origin of ?invasive characters?
is poorly understood in L. neglectus and other invasive ants,
which all share a major transition in social organisation: a complete
loss of territorial aggression (unicoloniality). We try to approach this
problem by studying the genetic population structure and chemical
communication of L. neglectus and its closest, non-invasive
relative, L. turcicus.
Finally, it is discussed how the capacity to avoid disease infection and
transmission could contribute to the high success of this new invasive
species.
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David Hughes
Department of Biology
University of Oulu
90014 Oulu
Finland
Ph: + 358 8 5531791
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David Hughes
Department of Biology
University of Oulu
90014 Oulu
Finland
Ph: + 358 8 5531791
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