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Impacts of Dryland Farming Systems on Biodiversity, Plant

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Impacts of Dryland Farming Systems on Biodiversity, Plant IMPACTS OF DRYLAND FARMING SYSTEMS ON BIODIVERSITY, PLANT- INSECT INTERACTIONS, AND ECOSYSTEM SERVICES by Subodh Adhikari A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Ecology and Environmental Sciences MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY Bozeman, Montana January 2018 ©COPYRIGHT by Subodh Adhikari 2018 All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION To my parents, my family, and Montana friends iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS With my sincere gratitude, I would like to thank my major adviser, Dr. Fabián Menalled, for his support, advice, encouragement, and thoughtful guidance. I am very grateful for my co-adviser Dr. Laura Burkle, and committee members, Dr. Kevin O’Neill and Dr. David Weaver for their valuable insights and continuous guidance. Thank you to Drs. Tim Seipel, Judit Barroso, Zach Miller, and Casey Delphia for their various helps. Many thanks to Robert Quinn and Seth Goodman, Mark and Patti Gasvoda, J.R. Labuda, and Frank and Liz Maxwell for providing their farms to conduct my research. My field and lab work could not have been done without the help of Madison Nixon, Ali Thornton, Jesse Hunter, Ceci Welch, Chris Larson, Wyatt Holmes, Sam Leuthold, Andrew Thorson, Kyla Crisps, Megan Hofland, Norma Irish, Katelyn Thornton, Paramjit Gill and Lori Saulsbury. My warm gratitude goes to my labmates Sean McKenzie, Nar Ranabhat, Stephen Johnson, Erin Burns, Krista Elhert, and Tessa Scott for their help and friendship; Sean was exceptional for helping and guiding. Thank you to the Graduate School, College of Agriculture, Institute on Ecosystems, and LRES department (all awesome staffs) for providing various supports to my research. This research was made possible through USDA-NIFA-OREI and Transition to Organic (ORG) grants [MONB00314 and MONB00128] to Dr. Menalled and through the Montana Wheat and Barley Committee [2013-2015] to Dr. Weaver. I would like to thank my family and friends for their support. My sincere thanks go to my wife Anita Adhikari for her love, patience, inspiration, and consistent support throughout my PhD. Finally, thanks to my son Sunay for frequently entertaining with his naïve yet funny language. Thank you all. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................1 Farming Systems and their Roles as Ecological Filters ...................................................1 Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functioning, and Ecosystem Services ......................................3 Weeds ....................................................................................................................5 Cephus cinctus and its Braconid Parasitoids .........................................................6 Bees .......................................................................................................................7 Plant-Insect Interactions....................................................................................................9 Ecosystem Services .........................................................................................................11 Biodiversity-Based Ecosystem Service ..............................................................11 Pest Regulation ...................................................................................................12 Pollination ...........................................................................................................13 Landscape Effects on Biodiversity ..................................................................................14 Significance of the Study .................................................................................................15 Research Objectives .........................................................................................................17 References ........................................................................................................................19 2. FARMING SYSTEMS AND WHEAT CULTIVAR AFFECT INFESTATION OF AND PARASITISM ON CEPHUS CINCTUS IN THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS .............................................................................34 Introduction ......................................................................................................................34 Materials and Methods .....................................................................................................39 Cephus cinctus Infestation, Cut Stems, and Parasitoids in Field Conditions ..........................................................................39 Site Description ....................................................................................39 Field Selection and Cropping History ..................................................39 Wheat Sampling ...................................................................................40 v TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTINUED Cephus cinctus Oviposition Preference and Survival in Greenhouse Conditions ....................................................................41 Insect Material ......................................................................................41 Plant Material .......................................................................................42 Choice Test ...........................................................................................42 No-Choice Test ....................................................................................43 Data Analysis ......................................................................................................44 Results ............................................................................................................................45 Cephus cinctus Infestation, Cut Stems, and Parasitoids in Field Conditions ..........................................................................45 Cephus cinctus Oviposition Preference and Survival in Greenhouse Conditions ...................................................................48 Discussion ......................................................................................................................50 Cephus cinctus Infestation, Cut Stems, and Parasitoids in Field Conditions ..........................................................................50 Cephus cinctus Oviposition Preference and Survival in Greenhouse Conditions ...................................................................53 Conclusion .....................................................................................................................54 References ......................................................................................................................56 3. DRYLAND FARMING SYSTEMS AND LANDSCAPE COMPOSITION INFLUENCE FORB AND BEE COMMUNITIES ...................................................................................................63 Introduction ....................................................................................................................63 Materials and Methods ....................................................................................................66 Site Description and Cropping History ...............................................................66 Forb and Bee Community Sampling ...................................................................68 Data Analysis for Forb and Bee Community ......................................................70 vi TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTINUED Percent Natural Habitat and its Effects on Small-and Large-Bodied Bee Abundance ...........................................................72 Results ..............................................................................................................................74 Forb Communities...............................................................................................74 Bees Communities ..............................................................................................77 Percent Natural Habitat and its Effects on Small-and Large-Bodied Bee Abundance ...........................................................79 Discussion ........................................................................................................................81 Forb Communities...............................................................................................82 Bees Communities ..............................................................................................83 Bee-Flower Networks .........................................................................................85 Percent Natural Habitat and its Effects on Small-and Large-Bodied Bee Abundance ...........................................................86 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................89 References .......................................................................................................................90 4. DRYLAND ORGANIC FARMING ENHANCES FLORAL RESOURCES AND BUMBLE BEE COLONY SUCCESS ........................................99 Introduction ....................................................................................................................99 Materials and Methods ..................................................................................................104 Site Description and Cropping History .............................................................104 Floral Resources ................................................................................................106
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