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Université de Fribourg

What can sown wildflower strips contribute to butterfly conservation?: an example from a Swiss lowland agricultural landscape

Haaland, Christine ; Bersier, Louis-Félix

In: Journal of Insect Conservation, 2011, vol. 15, no. 1-2, p. 301-309

The objective of this study was to compare butterfly abundances and diversity between wildflower strips and extensively used meadows to identify which butterfly species can be supported by establishing wildflower strips. Butterflies were recorded along transects during one season in twenty-five sown wildflower strips and eleven extensively used meadows in a Swiss lowland agricultural landscape...

Université de Fribourg

The phylogeography of an alpine leaf beetle: Divergence within Oreina elongata spans several ice ages

Borer, Matthias ; Alvarez, Nadir ; Buerki, Sven ; Margraf, Nicolas ; Rahier, Martine ; Naisbit, Russell E.

In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 2010, vol. 57, no. 2, p. 703-709

The genetic landscape of the European flora and fauna was shaped by the ebb and flow of populations with the shifting ice during Quaternary climate cycles. While this has been well demonstrated for lowland species, less is known about high altitude taxa. Here we analyze the phylogeography of the leaf beetle Oreina elongata from 20 populations across the Alps and Apennines. Three mitochondrial and...

Université de Fribourg

The importance of plant provenance and genotypic diversity of seed material used for ecological restoration

Bischoff, Armin ; Steinger, Thomas ; Müller-Schärer, Heinz

In: Restoration Ecology, 2009///doi:10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00454.x

The increased translocation of plant species for biodiversity restoration and habitat creation has provoked a debate on provenance and genotypic diversity of the used plant material. Nonlocal provenances are often not adapted to the local environmental conditions, and low population genotypic diversity may result in genetic bottlenecks hampering successful establishment. We tested provenance...

Université de Fribourg

Functional responses: a question of alternative prey and predator density

Tschanz, Britta ; Bersier, Louis-Félix ; Bacher, Sven

In: Ecology, 2007, vol. 88, no. 5, p. 1300–1308

Throughout the study of ecology, there has been a growing realization that indirect effects among species cause complexity in food webs. Understanding and predicting the behavior of ecosystems consequently depends on our ability to identify indirect effects and their mechanisms. The present study experimentally investigates indirect interactions arising between two prey species that share a...

Université de Fribourg

Density and nutritional condition of carabid beetles in wildflower areas of different age

Frank, Thomas ; Kehrli, Patrik ; Germann, Christoph

In: Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 2007, vol. 120, no. 2-4, p. 377-383

Density and nutritional condition of the five carabid beetle species Agonum mülleri, Anchomenus dorsalis, Anisodactylus binotatus, Pterostichus vernalis and Poecilus cupreus was studied. Carabids were caught in sixteen 1–4-year-old wildflower areas, identified and counted, their nutritional condition was calculated and calculations were related to habitat...

Université de Fribourg

Seed provenance matters — Effects on germination of four plant species used for ecological restoration

Bischoff, Armin ; Vonlanthen, Beatrice ; Steinger, Thomas ; Müller-Schärer, Heinz

In: Basic and Applied Ecology, 2006, vol. 7, no. 4, p. 347-359

The use of local seed provenances is often recommended in restoration and habitat creation because they are thought to be better adapted to local habitat conditions. However, spatial scales and the degree of population differentiation are not well known and germination is often not included in comparisons between provenances. We analysed germination as a key trait of plant development in five...

Université de Fribourg

Variable success of biological control of Lythrum salicaria in British Columbia

Denoth, Madlen ; Myers, Judith H.

In: Biological Control, 2005, vol. 32, p. 269

Purple loosestrife, Lythrum salicaria, has invaded North American wetlands over the last 200 years. A biological control project was started in British Columbia, Canada, in 1993 with the introduction of Galerucella calmariensis, a leaf- feeding beetle of European origin. To evaluate the success of the biological control project in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, we...