Hi everyone!
Remember how I accidentally reared a lot of wasps from fallen branches of valley oak, just about a year ago? https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/149423290
Apparently, this was a good way to rear adults out of otherwise-hard-to-find cryptic bud/twig galls, many of which are actually the missing generations of known species. So this year, with full intention, I’m currently repeating the same process and have already gotten many wasps (both cynipids and chaicids) by now: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?d1=2024-01-28&d2=2024-02-20&place_id=any&taxon_id=47201&term_id=1&term_value_id=2,22,24&user_id=norikonbu&verifiable=any
Also this time, thanks to the ongoing Cynipini Larval Sequencing Pilot Study (https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/megachile/83377-cynipini-and-associates-larval-sequencing-pilot-study) managed by @moneykittens in Forbes Lab at University of Iowa, I have peace of mind that all my specimens will be accepted and analyzed whether they are inducers, inquilines or parasitoids.
Just recently, Dr. James Nicholls, one of the leading cynipid experts and co-authors of many new described species, shared some exciting results from his team’s DNA analyses. He generously granted permission to share his preliminary results with others so that more of us could contribute to this ongoing research collectively.
Here’s an excerpt from his email:
“I am all for open science, especially when it involves the efforts of citizen scientists. Providing feedback about results and possible future routes of exploration, and sharing that with your network, is really important and helps get everyone enthusiastic with the knowledge that what they are finding is useful. The sort of network that Adam [Kranz] has been establishing is an invaluable resource – these days there just aren’t the resources available to universities or museums to undertake the sorts of expeditions that Kinsey used to do, with a large team of assistants and collecting millions of galls. A citizen science network linked in with professionals allows for answering all sorts of interesting questions… But these networks require interaction both ways, so I have no problems with you sharing what we’ve been discussing to get others involved or simply interested in what is around them in nature.”
Most of his report was about amazing discovery from other legendary Gallformers contributors such as @nfurlan and @calconey but also our regional luminaries like Ron Russo and Joyce Gross, so I’ll save those details for better occasions (also because it’s a lot more than I can digest all at once :D). But I’m proud to report that a few of my specimens from last year were included among them, so I’m happy to share these few California-specific results (including one collected by @leslie_flint) here.
• Neuroterus from a stem swelling (NO1; https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/154599224), provisionally identified as N. evolutus. DNA shows it to match Neuroterus fragilis, implying N. evolutus and N. fragilis are alternate generations of the same species. Ideally we’d like to rear, sequence and examine the morphology of more of this species in order to confirm this matching of generations.
• A male specimen reared from a cryptic bud gall on Q.douglasii in California (NO2A; https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/153764258). Cytochrome b and opsin sequences confirm this as the previously unknown sexual generation of Neuroterus quaili.
• A petiole swelling gall on Q. lobata in California (LF1; https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/155030500); a provisional identification as Neuroterus fragilis based on the gall is confirmed based on cytb data.
If you find this discovery interesting, I’d also like many of you to collect some fresh twigs from various oaks, put them in Ziploc bags and see what happens. Apparently it’s this time of the year for many wasps to emerge (right before new leaves come out), and since we’ve been having a series of rainstorms throughout CA, this is a golden opportunity to look for fresh downed branches (true “windfalls”) under oak trees, which may give us a rare glimpse into the diversity of oak canopies that we normally can’t get to. So far I collected a fair amount of Q. lobata twigs but don’t have much else, so if anyone wants to try this experiment with any other oaks, that would also be very cool.
The most important step before you get started is to prepare a few crucial supplies for preserving your specimens for future DNA analyses in mind. The last thing we want is to waste any precious lives and valuable data for science! Here are a few basic supplies you need, and feel free to contact me (either as comments below or DM) if you have any questions along the way:
• 95% (or higher) non-denatured ethanol (@cynestor gave me this info and this is a great place to buy a small amount without paying a lot of money: https://www.ebay.com/itm/225299332864)
• Small plastic tubes (0.5ml is plenty big because those wasps are tiny. You may not need this quantity but I’m sure you can find something similar: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BBV2GJW6/?th=1)
• A small eye dropper or syringe to fill tubes
• Tweezers to transfer insects to tubes
I also want to emphasize that everyone should always check regulations of local trails/parks and collect responsibly. I’d like to share this wonderful “The Insect Collectors’ Code” written by Dr. Carolyn Trietsch and Dr. Andrew Deans at Penn State: https://academic.oup.com/ae/article/64/3/156/5098337
I’ve been wishing to have an ethical guideline like this for a while, so was happy to learn about it during the WaspID Course 2024 I took in January. BTW, this online course (founded/directed by @louisnastasi, taught by @mileszhang and many other Hymenoptera experts around the world) was an awesome learning experience, just in time for documenting all sorts of tiny wasps emerging in my rearing bags! (Thanks @kimberlietx for your recommendation :))
Last but not least, thanks @megachile again for connecting citizen scientists/naturalists with the world’s best experts in such a mutually rewarding way! Those who are not in CA, he also keeps adding his own “wishlists” across the US so check back his journals and observations to see what’s new: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/megachile
Thank you all for taking time to read!
Noriko
Comentarios
@merav @naturesarchive @nancyasquith @garth_harwood @chilipossum @chyroptera @anudibranchmom @graysquirrel @gyrrlfalcon @kdff @hkibak @ocean_beach_goth @alice_abela @kemper @joshuacde @browntrekker @bayareawalker @susanmf @sea-kangaroo @silversea_starsong @kyle_eaton_photography @emmashelton @kelptaylor @samzanita @michaelvoeltz @lorri-gong @suburbanpoison @yerbasanta @vermfly @tiwane @darv @gina-barton @madily @keirmorse @carolblaney @tepary @brnhn @ravendi6
Feel free to share this post, or add others in the comment section below!
Great post @norikonbu! @ericanewman
Thanks @tepary!
Also adding a few more people I forgot to include: @obad-hai @dlbowls @leytonjfreid
Great post! Will be trying this with Q. kelloggii and Q. chrysolepis branches. Any tips on rearing?
Some other folks that might be interested:
@jonaskat @grmorrison @carexobnupta @plantsoflacounty @klicklo @possiblybuddha @margaretgallagher @nvhamlett @scottmarnoy @pleistocene @tchester @botanywoman @efmer @lagoondon @joedecruyenaere @arbonius @euproserpinus @kueda
@leytonjfreid Great, especially there are so many unknowns on Q. chrysolepis that need to be sequenced. I have a feeling that species on Q. chrysolepis will emerge much later than other oaks in CA because they grow at higher elevations, but you never know until you try!
For collection, try to pick fresher twigs with lots of hard buds still intact. Don't pick old decaying twigs off the ground because you'll also get lots of mold and other wood-boring insects from them. Use high-quality breathable ziploc-type freezer bags (not thin wimpy sandwich bags), and don't stuff too many twigs all in one bag because that'll make it harder to keep track of what emerged where and when.
When a wasp emerges, remove it from the bag and check your twigs to see if you can find a fresh emergence hole. (This could be difficult because many of them are tiny and cryptic.) Do your best to photograph it (so you can make iNat observations), and preserve the wasp as soon as possible: Put it in the freezer for a while (10-15 minutes minimum to overnight) just to make it stop moving so that it will be easier to transfer to ethanol (otherwise it’s hard!). Store the ethanol-filled tubes in the freezer until you ship them out to the researchers. Make sure to always keep track of them by labeling, spreadsheet, etc. so that the researchers can use accurate data. (Once you get to that point, I can also guide you in detail.) Remember, specimens without data are pretty much useless and all your efforts could be wasted!
Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions!
@norikonbu Hey, let's go galling together sometime soon!
By the way, I'd like to connect you with my friend @alison_pollack who is the most amazing macro photographer I know, and would be interested in finding and photographing some of the more visually charismatic galls - perhaps the three of us could get together sometime when the season is in full swing?
Very cool. Thanks for adding me @keirmorse. Adding @ianswift and @mickeylong in case they're interested as well.
@graysquirrel I'd love that!! I'll DM you soon!
Great post, will have to get around to reading it soon. Haven't bene able to gal as much recently due to studies taking over and having less free time, but as it warms up I hope to get a chance to hunt every now and then.
Thanks, @graysquirrel for the kind intro. Galls are absolutely beautiful, and a wonderful macro photography subject. I'd love to go out with folks to find and photograph them. It's a whole new rabbit hole for me.....
@norikonbu Absolutely brilliant. I live in the Q. garryana part of the oak world and will start looking for windfalls here.
A good friend at university expressed displeasure that biology, the study of life, means killing things. Thank you for the ethics code, it is a welcome reminder of our responsibilities and our relationship with the natural world.
@keirmorse Thank you for the heads up to the oak study group.
@kemper We miss you but good luck with your studies (and gall hunting)!
@alison_pollack I’ve been a huge fan of your photography so it’ll be amazing if you could capture some beautiful galls with your style and technique. Can’t wait for our joint session!
@carexobnupta Q. garryana is another oak that hosts a variety of unique galls so that’s wonderful. I collected only 3 little random twigs from Q. garryana but surprisingly, I’ve already reared one that matched “the previously unknown sexual generation of Neuroterus quaili” from Dr. Nicholls’ report!
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/199338991
And I’m glad you also appreciate the ethics code. Believe it or not, I was actually anti-rearing just one year ago, up until that point of my “accidental” rearing. But through this process, I learned so much more and now believe in its importance of connecting dots. If we don’t study the inducers of galls, how do we learn to conserve them and their ecology? And now that I know many researchers are interested in collaborating with us, we could really make a difference together!
This is awesome! Thanks for sharing, Noriko! I'll start bagging some oak twigs. I'd also love to meet up on some sort of gall expedition with folks in the Bay Area/NorCal sometime.
@bayareawalker Thanks, and yes, let's do that sometime this spring!
Thanks for tagging me Noriko! I have yet to find Neuroterus quaili in the Chico area, but I have extensively searched that same area for Neuroterus fragilis. I'll keep my eye out for these inconspicuous little bud galls.
I will try to replicate this experiment using breathable ziploc bags as best I can. :)
I would also love to get together with any naturalists in the Northern California Area. If anyone finds themselves in the Chico area please send me a message!
Question: do you use shears to trim off twigs, or only take fallen twigs?
@suburbanpoison Chico is such an amazing place for gall hunting, I wish I could go back there more often. If I do, I’ll let you know! I didn’t know last year but now I believe this is what a unisexual gall of N. quaili would look like, so please also keep an eye out when oak flowers come out: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/156178261
@bayareawalker My twigs are mostly collected from downed branches after rainstorms, and if they are too big, I just trim them to fit in bags. I’ve only clipped a handful of fresh twigs directly from some trees, but if that’s allowed wherever you are, you can try it as well because results may be different.
@merav has announced this year's Spring Gall Week (April 20-28, 2024) so be sure to join and mark your calendar!
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/gall-week-april-2024-event
Añade un comentario