Vicente Hernandez-Ortiz | Instituto de Ecología, A.C. (original) (raw)

Papers by Vicente Hernandez-Ortiz

Acta Zoologica Mexicana, 1995

Anales del Instituto de Biología. UNAM. Serie zoología, 1989

Folia entomológica mexicana, 1990

Folia entomológica mexicana, 1998

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, Apr 27, 2022

Brazilian Species of AF Complex type specimen, the morphometric analysis indicated that the type ... more Brazilian Species of AF Complex type specimen, the morphometric analysis indicated that the type specimen would correspond to a male of A. sp.2 aff. fraterculus. The information provided by this report is not only useful for taxonomic purposes, but also reveals aspects to be considered in any reconstruction of an evolutionary scenario of the Anastrepha fraterculus complex.

Journal of Economic Entomology, Dec 1, 2003

ABSTRACT Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) is recognized as a pest of citrus, apples, and blackb... more ABSTRACT Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) is recognized as a pest of citrus, apples, and blackberries in South America. In Mexico, it is mainly found in fruit of the family Myrtaceae and has never been reported infesting citrus. Here, we sought to determine whether females stemming from Mexican A. fraterculus populations (collected in the state of Veracruz) would lay eggs in 'Valencia' oranges and 'Ruby Red' grapefruit and, if so, whether larvae would hatch and develop. We worked under laboratory and seminatural conditions (i.e., gravid females released in fruit-bearing, bagged branches in a commercial citrus grove) and used Anastrepha ludens (Loew), a notorious pest of citrus, as a control species. Under laboratory conditions, A. ludens readily accepted both oranges and grapefruit as oviposition substrates, but A. fraterculus rarely oviposited in these fruit (but did so in guavas, a preferred host) and no larvae ever developed. Eggs were deposited in the toxic flavedo (A. fraterculus) and nontoxic albedo (A. ludens) regions. Field studies revealed that, as was the case in the laboratory, A. fraterculus rarely oviposited into oranges or grapefruit and that, when such was the case, either no larvae developed (oranges) or of the few (13) that developed and pupated (grapefruit), only two adults emerged that survived 1 and 3 d, respectively (5-17% of the time necessary to reach sexual maturity). In sharp contrast, grapefruit exposed to A. ludens yielded up to 937 pupae and adults survived for >6 mo. Therefore, the inability of Mexican A. fraterculus to successfully develop in citrus renders the status of Mexican A. fraterculus as a pest of citrus in Mexico as unsubstantiated.

Entomological News, Mar 1, 2016

The genus cuterebra Clark comprises sixty New World species (Pape, 2010) with approximately 13 kn... more The genus cuterebra Clark comprises sixty New World species (Pape, 2010) with approximately 13 known to occur in Mexico (Papavero and Guimaraes, 2009). cuterebra bot fly larvae are obligate, subcutaneous parasites of rodents (mice, rats, tree squirrels, chipmunks, etc.) and lagomorphs (rabbits and hares) in the Americas (Sabrosky, 1986), with the exception of c. baeri Shannon & Greene that parasitizes howler monkeys in Costa Rica and Panama (Zeledón et al., 1957; Milton, 1996). cuterebra species have a strong host specificity (Baird, 1979) but there are records of some incidental hosts such as cats (Stunkard and Landers, 1956), dogs (Crumley et al., 2011; Tieber et. al., 2006), rattlesnakes (Gar rigues, 1964) and even humans (Cornet et al., 2003; Keth, 1999). In the United States, four species have been recorded parasitizing lagomorphs (rabbits and hares) and apparently, they seem to be host-species-specific.

Entomologia Experimentalis Et Applicata, Jul 7, 2023

The biological control of weeds requires the successful introduction and establishment of natural... more The biological control of weeds requires the successful introduction and establishment of natural enemies into other regions, to reduce population densities of target species. Potential biocontrol agents are sought in the native region of target weed and should be highly specialized. The gall‐inducing fly Eutreta xanthochaeta Aldrich (Diptera: Tephritidae) is native to Mexico and has been brought into other regions of the world – such as Hawaii (USA), South Africa, and Australia – for the biological control of Lantana camara L. (Verbanaceae), although this not always proved to be successful. Here we investigate the trophic interactions of this fly species with two host plants inhabiting in sympatry, L. camara and Lippia myriocephala Schltdl. & Cham. (Verbenaceae), evaluating its preference through infestation rates, the gall distribution in the plant architecture, as well as the indirect impact upon production of inflorescences affecting the reproductive capacity of the plants. We found that the fly was not monophagous in its native range, and under natural conditions it preferred the wild host L. myriocephala in the presence of L. camara. Moreover, we found that gall formation was linked to changes in the host architecture along with the potential for reproduction, leading to increased terminal buds and a reduction in the inflorescences produced on the twigs where galls develop. Lantana camara consists of both horticultural hybrids and wild varieties resulting in unresolved taxonomic ambiguities. Hence, there may be adaptive limitations of this fly to distinct geographic races or climatic conditions in the various regions, which needs further investigation.

Arthropod-plant Interactions, Apr 24, 2021

Gall induction is one of the main life strategies of endophagous insects, which serves to provide... more Gall induction is one of the main life strategies of endophagous insects, which serves to provide food and protection against natural enemies. It is proposed that gall size is one of the most important traits in the life history of the inducer insect, since a balance exists between the protection afforded by the gall and exposure to natural enemies. The aims of this study were first to describe the trophic interactions between E. xanthochaeta and its native parasitoids on a new host plant Lippia myriocephala, and then to assess the relationships between gall size, location on the plant architecture and parasitism rates. A community of seven native parasitoid morphospecies was found, representing 22.2% of the overall parasitism, highlighting two wasp species, Torymus sp. (Torymidae) and Pteromalinae (Pteromalidae) as the most abundant. Gall size exhibited significant variations related to their distribution within the plant architecture, with a gradual reduction in size found from the main stem toward the peripheral branches. Such differences were associated with an increase in parasitized pupae and smaller galls were found to be more susceptible to parasitoid attack. Parasitism rates revealed that Torymus sp. uses a broader gall size range than Pteromalinae, and we hypothesized that such variations may be related to certain morphological traits of the parasitoids such as ovipositor length, since the former presents an ovipositor nearly four times longer than the latter. Thus, we infer that growth of bigger galls reduced the likelihood of parasitism of the flies.

Insectes Sociaux, Apr 30, 2020

Cecropia (Urticaceae) trees continuously shed their old large leaves, which fall directly on the ... more Cecropia (Urticaceae) trees continuously shed their old large leaves, which fall directly on the forest floor (ground stratum) or accumulate on the aboveground vegetation under Cecropia canopies (vegetation stratum). Since twig-nesting ants are expected to be more nest site limited in the higher forest strata than at ground level, we predict that richness, abundance, and colonization frequency of ant nests in Cecropia petioles are greater in the vegetation stratum when compared with ground stratum. During June 2019, fifteen trees of C. obtusifolia were sampled in a tropical rainforest, in Veracruz, Mexico. For each tree, we collected ten dry fallen petioles per stratum, for 300 petioles in total. We recorded 44 ant nests from 21 ant species. Forty-two nests were found in individual petioles, although in one case a single petiole housed two different ant species. Thirty-four (23%) petioles were colonized in the vegetation stratum and only nine (6%) in the ground stratum. At tree scale, ant nest richness and abundance were significantly greater in the vegetation stratum. Furthermore, frequency of petiole colonization per tree was greater in the vegetation stratum (14 trees; 93.3%) when compared with the ground stratum (5 trees; 33.3%). A stratified pattern of ant occupation in natural nesting sites was observed, supporting that twig-nesting ants are more nest site limited in the upper forest strata than at ground level. Because nesting sites are a limiting resource for arboreal twig-nesting ants, we suggest that Cecropia trees are key components of tropical forests that maintain arboreal ant diversity by promoting nesting sites through dry fallen petioles.

Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata

ABSTRACT A comparative study of the anatomy of the reproductive system of mature males and female... more ABSTRACT A comparative study of the anatomy of the reproductive system of mature males and females of the following species was performed: A. serpentina (Wiedemann), A striata Schiner, A cordata Aldrich, A. ludens (Loew), A. obliqua (Macquart) and A. fraterculus (Wiedemann). The study material came from diverse regions of the states of Veracruz and Chiapas, Mexico. In females, several important differences among species were observed: in the number of ovarioles, morphology of the ventral receptacle, signum, spermathecae and aculeus. In males, differences were apparent in the accessory glands, ejaculatory apodeme of the sperm pump, distiphallus and surstyli. For the first time, the real location of the seminal vesicles is shown and the aedeagal gland is described. A comparative discussion ensues regarding terminology and the location of various structures in both sexes.

Research Square (Research Square), Apr 19, 2021

Ferns are the second largest lineage of vascular plants, yet our understanding of their interacti... more Ferns are the second largest lineage of vascular plants, yet our understanding of their interactions with phytophagous insects is very limited. Which insects feed on ferns? Do insects prefer speci c fern taxa? Which feeding habit is the most common on ferns? Is there any evidence for coevolution between insects and ferns? Is our current knowledge on fern-insect interactions biased? To answer these questions, we analyzed 2,318 records of fern-insect interactions from 122 literature sources, based on the feeding habit of insects, fern taxa, and geographic location. We found evidence for interactions comprising 809 insect species (mainly Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, and Coleoptera) and 382 fern species (mainly Dennstaedtiaceae, Dryopteridaceae, and Pteridaceae). Leaf chewers contributed over 50% of the species, followed by sapsucking insects (29.1%) and spore feeders (6.5%). The overall interaction analyses revealed that the entire fern-insect network had medium levels of nestedness (NODF = 43.37) and relatively low levels of specialization (H2' = 0.24). The interaction networks of fern-feeding Coleoptera were the most specialized at family (H2' = 0.40) and genus level (H2' = 0.65), whereas 6 out of 10 most specialized insect families were Lepidoptera (d' ≥ 0.44). At the genus level, all networks had a fern-biased asymmetry. Although fernfeeding generalists were common, few cases of coevolutionary radiation have been documented. We discuss the possible biases of our dataset, which also highlight gaps to perform future research, and suggest that many more phytophagous insects on ferns remain to be discovered, especially sap-sucking, gall-forming, and spore-feeding insects on modern fern groups. We thank Elda Catalina Flores-Galván for her assistance in data capture. Funding: Research was funded by the Instituto de Ecología A.C. (projects 20030-10796 to KM and 20030-10128 to VHO). JFJ thanks CONACyT for his doctorate scholarship (no. 589325).

Zootaxa, Sep 11, 2012

New taxa of the family Ropalomeridae from Costa Rica are described, and additional records of rop... more New taxa of the family Ropalomeridae from Costa Rica are described, and additional records of ropalomerid flies from Mexico and Central America are provided. The new genus and species Acrocephalomyia zumbadoi can be easily distinguished from all other ropalomerid genera by the following combination of characters: angular forward projection of head, absence of ocelli, flat face, bare arista, long scutum, and scutellum triangular-shaped and dorsally flattened with only one pair of apical bristles with bases approximated. The new species Ropalomera aterrima can be recognized from congeners by remarkable differences of the head, the shape of the scutellum, the absence of scutal vittae, fumose wings, and by the black coloration of the body, ocellar bristles large, one postpronotal bristle, scutum without pollinose vittae and flat scutellum. Lenkokroeberia chryserea Prado and Kroeberia fuliginosa Lindner are newly confirmed for Costa Rica.

Naturwissenschaften, Oct 1, 2020

Many arthropods modify parts of plants through the construction of domiciles or by consuming plan... more Many arthropods modify parts of plants through the construction of domiciles or by consuming plant tissues that, after abandoned, can be used as shelter by other arthropods in a facilitating interaction process. We examined, for the first time, the potential of leaf-rolling mites to indirectly influence arthropod communities in natural forests by providing shelter sites. In early June 2019, we found a high density of leaves of Amphitecna tuxtlensis (Bignoniaceae) rolled by an undetermined leaf-rolling mite species in a tropical rainforest, in Mexico. We tested whether the species richness, abundance, and colonization frequency of arthropods was greater in rolled compared with expanded leaves. We collected 5 rolled leaves and 5 fully expanded leaves from 15 A. tuxtlensis trees (N = 150 sampled leaves) and recorded all arthropods on each leaf. We recorded 1421 arthropods from 67 unique morphospecies. We found 39 individuals from 23 morphospecies of arthropods in expanded leaves, and 1382 individuals from 56 morphospecies in rolled leaves. Ants were the most abundant and frequent group and utilized the rolled leaves mainly as nesting sites; 1260 ant individuals were found in 30 nests from three species. Arthropod species richness, abundance, and colonization frequency were greater in rolled leaves compared with expanded leaves. We concluded that the ecosystem engineering effect of leaf-rolling mites may be an important structuring element for arthropod communities on plants through an increase of high quality food resources and shelter sites for other arthropods, as well as nesting sites for ants.

Insects, Nov 15, 2019

The South American fruit fly Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) is a complex of cryptic species, ... more The South American fruit fly Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) is a complex of cryptic species, the so-called "Anastrepha fraterculus complex", for which eight morphotypes are currently recognized. A previous analysis of ITS1 in samples of the Anastrepha fraterculus complex, while revealing high distinctiveness among samples from different localities of South America, Central America, and Mexico, no direct association was made between sequence type and morphotype. In the present report, a correlated analysis of morphometry and ITS1 data involved individuals belonging to the same population samples. Although showing a low level of intra-populational nucleotide variability, the ITS1 analysis indicated numerous inter-population sequence type variants. Morphotypes identified by morphometric analysis based on female wing shape were highly concordant with ITS1 genetic data. The correlation of genetic divergence and morphological differences among the tested samples gives strong evidence of a robust dataset, thereby indicating the existence of various taxonomic species within the A. fraterculus complex. However, the data revealed genetic and morphological variations in some regions, suggesting that further analysis is still required for some geographic regions.

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), Jan 31, 1999

A New Genus and Species of the Picture-Winged Flies (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Otitinae) from Mexico. H... more A New Genus and Species of the Picture-Winged Flies (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Otitinae) from Mexico. Hernândez-Ortiz V., Kameneva E. P. & Korneyev V. A. Proteseia Korneyev & Hernandez, gen. n. (type species: Proteseia steyskali Hernandez 6c Kameneva, sp. n.) is described from Mexico (Veracruz: Los Tuxtlas). The new species superficially resembles species of the genus Pseudoseioptera Stackelberg in the wing pattern, completely setulose vein Rj, and in the head and body coloration, differing from them by having 2 supraalar, 2 anepisternal and 1 katepisternal setae, long spinulose phallus in a male and 3 subsphaerical spermathecae in a female. HoBbift poa h BHfl Myx-jieHTOKpbi.ioK (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Otitinae) H3 Mckchkh. SpHaH/tec-Oprac B ., KaMeHeBa È. II. h KopiteeB B. A. Proteseia Korneyev 6c Hernandez, gen. n. (thiioboh bh/i : Proteseia steyskali Hernandez 6c Kameneva, sp. n.) oriHCbiBaeTca hb MeKCHKH (TunoBaa MecTnocib: Bepanpyc: TyKCTjiac). Hobmh bh/i bhcuihc iiaiioMtmaeT BH/ibi poaa Pseudoseioptera Stackelberg pncyHKOM Kpw/ia, /khjikoh no Beeil /uihhc noKpbiToft BO/iocKaMH, a TaioKe OKpacKoft Te/ia, OT/iHuaHCb or unx na/nmneM 2 cynpaa/mpHbix, 2 aHsnHCTepiia/ibHbix h 1 KaTanncTepHa/ibHOH meTHHKM, iioKpwToro /uihhhhmh nmnaMH 4>a/uiyca y caMiia h 3 no/iyctfiepHHecKHX cnepMUTeK y cumkh.

Zootaxa, Sep 29, 2021

Based on a large series of specimens found in several localities in Mexico Euphara loculata n. sp... more Based on a large series of specimens found in several localities in Mexico Euphara loculata n. sp. is described. It is the second species of this Neotropical genus, and includes for the first time a description and illustration of the male and female genitalia of the genus.