A Leaf Feeding Beetle Found on Threetip Sagebrush Item Type Article; text Authors Fisser, H.; Lavigne, R. J. Citation Fisser, H., & Lavigne, R. J. (1961). A Leaf Feeding Beetle Found on Threetip Sagebrush. Journal of Range Management, 14(5), 278-279. DOI 10.2307/3894748 Publisher Society for Range Management Journal Journal of Range Management Rights Copyright © Society for Range Management. Download date 01/10/2021 15:37:04 Item License http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Version Final published version Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/649354 278 KINSINGER AND STRICKLER Introduction, Bureau of Plant In- 121. Tech. Bul. 713. dustry, U.S.D.A., Washington, D.C. SAMPSON, ARTHUR W. 1952. Range SMITH, J. C. 1900. Fodder and forage PEARSE, KENNETH.1935. An area-list management principles and prac- plants, exclusive of the grasses. method of measuring range plant tices. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., U. S. Dept. Agr. Div. of Agrost. populations. Ecol. 16: 573-579. New York. Bull. 2. ROBERTSON,JOSEPH H., AND P. B. SHANTZ, H. L., AND R. L. PIEMEISEL. STODDART,L. A., AND ARTHUR D. KENNEDY. 1954. Half-century 1940. Types of vegetation in Es- SMITH. 1943. Range management. changes on northern Nevada calante Valley, Utah as indicators McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., New ranges. Jour. Range Mangt. 7: 117- of soil condition. U. S. Dept. Agr. York. TECHNICAL NOTES A LEAF FEEDING BEETLE ming, in late July 1960, where a tributed 70 percent, grasses 25 FOUND ON THREETIP member of the same genus, Trir- percent, and miscellaneous forbs SAGEBRUSH1 habda attenuata (Say) 3, had in- and shrubs 5 percent. fested threetip sagebrush (Arte- Infested threetip sagebrush H. G. FISSER AND R. J. LAVIGNE misia tripartita Rydb. s u b s p . plants exhibited a dull grey- Instructor, Range Management Sec- rupicola Beetle) in epidemic brown aspect which contrasted tion and Assistant Professor Ento- numbers. sharply with the normal silver- mology Section, respectively, Plant Trirhabda attenuata (Say) green. Only portions of individ- Science Division, Unive’rsity of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyo. was originally described by Say ual leaves had been damaged. (1824) as GaZZeruca attenuata. In However, the areas surrounding In a recent article in this Jour- 1865, LeConte erected the genus these injuries were discolored. nal, Pringle (1960) described the Trirhabda and placed T. attenu- Adult beetles were observed defoliation of big sagebrush (Ar- ata in it. The larva was described feeding on the plants, but, since temisia tridentata Nutt.) over a by Boving (1929) as being dark discoloration was so extensive as large area of range in British bronze dorsally and dark ochre- to give the entire community a Columbia by a Chrysomelid bee- ous ventrally, from specimens brownish aspect, it is probable tle (Trirhabda pCZosa Blake). collected on Artemisia spp. in that the damage resulted from Two issues later, Massey and California. Blake (1931) stated the combined feeding of both the Pierce (1960) reported on the that this species fed both on larval and adult stages of the heavy defoliation of rubber rab- goldenrod and sagebrush and beetle. In addition, seedheads bitbrush (Chrysothamnus nause- had a range from the Great were not present on infested osus (Pall.) Britt.) in New Mex- Plains to Alberta and throughout plants. ico resulting from the larval the northern Rocky Mountain In the approximate center of feeding of Trirhabda nitidicollis Region in the United States. the beetle infestation, 460 adults Lec.2 A similar occurrence was In the case reported here it were collected in 100 sweeps of noted near Thermopolis, Wyo’- was estimated that 2,000 acres a standard 15” diameter insect of a threetip sagebrush com- net. Near the perimeter of the munity were infested with T. defoliated area only 16 adults 1 Published with approval of the Di- attenuata. The area was located were collected per 100 sweeps. rector, Wyoming Agricultural Ex- at an elevation of 6,000 feet on The beetles were present on all periment Station as Journal Ppper plant species of the community No. 163. the north slope of the Owl Creek Mountains near Thermopolis, except Artemisia Zudoviciana 2 It should be noted that Figure 1 of Nutt. Pringle (1960) noted that Pringle (1960) is identical to Figure Wyoming. Associated plant spe- 2 of Masey and Pierce (1960). Upon cies included Agropyron spica- adults of T. pilosa failed to in- close inspection of the photographs turn (Pursh) Scribn. and Smith, fest plants.growing in proximity and associated captions, it appears Poa secunda Presl, Poa fendleri- to anthills. Such was also found that pn erroneous picture was inud- ana (Steud.) Vasey, Phlox hoodii to be the case with the adults of vertently inserted into Pringle’s article. Rich., and Lupinus L. spp. Total T. attenuata. vegetation cover occupied 35 per- Further studies will be con- 3 Specimens were determined by Mr. D. M. Weisman, U. S. Department of cent of the soil surface. Of this ducted during future field sea- Agriculture, Washington, D. C. total, threetip sagebrush con- sons to determine the life cycle, TECHNICAL NOTES 279 food preferences, and other re- in six types of containers ex- Results lated facts concerning this beetle. posed to three periods of drying Soil samples in small cans and under two storage conditions. jars had the greatest loss in LITERATURE CITED The types of containers were as moisture during the period tested BLAKE, D. H. 1931. Revision of the follows: (1) large cans measur- species of beetles of the genus as shown in Table 1. ing 3.75 inches OD by 2.75 inches Trirhabda north of Mexico. Proc. There was a highly significant U. S. Nat. Mus. 79(2) : pp. in height without masking tape, 36 difference (.Ol level) between BOVING,A. G. 1929. Beetle larvae of (2) large cans with masking the subfamily Gallerucinae. Proc. tape, (3) small aluminum cans the periods exposed to drying, U. S. Nat. Mus. 75 (2) : 48 pp. measuring 2.50 inches OD by 1.75 the place of storage and con- LECONTE, J. L. 1865. Trirhabdu at- inches without masking tape, (4) tainers. There was a highly sig- tenuatu IN Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. small cans with tape and (5) nificant interaction between con- Philadelphia: 17: 220. tainers and hours indicating that MASSEY, C. L., AND D. A. PIERCE. quart jars filled one-third full. some containers were better than 1960. Trirhubdu nitidicollis, a pest Large cans and jars contained of rabbitbush in New Mexico. approximately 200 grams of soil others when exposed to periods Jour. Range Mangt. 13: 216-217. while the small cans held about of drying. The analysis of vari- PRINGLE,W. L. 1960. The effect of a 50 grams. The sixth type of con- ance and separation of means is leaf feeding beetle on big sage- shown in Table 2. brush in British Columbia. Jour. tainer was a check sample in- Range Mangt. 13: 139-142. cluded with each group of con- SAY, T. 1824. Gcitlerucu uttenuutu tainers which was taken at the Table 2. Analysis of Variance IN Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila- Showing Separation of Significant delphia: 3: 459. same time as the others but weighed immediately. The others Means were allowed to dry for 4, 8 and Source D.F. S.S. M.S. MOISTURE LOSSES FROM 24 hours. One group was left in Total 179 759.85 SOIL SAMPLES AFFECTED the field and the other stored in Storing 1 18.09 18.09** BY CONTAINERS, TIME, a building for the drying period. Containers 5 264.87 52.97* * AND PLACE OF STORAGE Each container type was repli- sxc 5 6.81 1.36 Hours 44.76** EUGENE E. HUGHES AND cated five times. With six types 89.53 SXH 0.35 0.17 of containers, three periods of WILLIAM P. HATCHETT CXH 10 83.04 8.30* * Assistant Range Speciulist und drying and two places of storage, Reps 4 3.95 0.99 Junior Agronomist respectively, there was a total of 180 samples. RXS 4 8.84 2.21 Texas Agricultural Experiment Stu- All samples were weighed in RXC 20 40.34 2.02 tion, Box 1174, Spur, Texas their respective containers ex- RXH 8 11.03 1.38 cept the jars. These samples were Error 118 233.00 1.97 Though many ways have been removed and placed in cans for ** Significant at the .Ol level. devised to follow soil moisture weighing. Air temperature was trends, the gravimetric method recorded at both places of stor- is still very popular because it Since air temperatures have a age during the test period. All is accurate and inexpensive. Oc- great deal to do with moisture data were analyzed using analy- casionally it may be necessary loss, the temperatures were re- sis of variance with significant for research workers to take soil corded at both places of storage, means separated by Duncan’s moisture samples on areas a inside and outside. These data Method (Le Clerg, 1957). great distance from their labora- are presented in Table 3. .. tory. As much as four or even eight hours may elapse before Table 1. Mean Soil Moisture Percentage by Place of Storage, Type of Con- the samples can be weighed. A tainer and Time Exposed fo Drying. review of literature in this field Place of failed to show any work on this Storage 24 hours Means means subject so a study was initiated storage Containers 4 hours 8 hours to determine how long soil sam- Check 23.88 23.01 23.65 23.51 ples could be exposed to drying Large cans 23.62 23.72 21.64 22.94 23.63 24.72 in different containers without Inside Large & tape 21.75 23.36 22.67 house Small cans 18.58 21.91 21.42 20.64 losing a significant amount of Small & tape 24.45 .