Data from: Host plant water deficit stress impairs reproduction and development of the galling fly (Parafreutreta regalis), a biological control agent of Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata)

Data from choice and no-choice tests associated with the paper cited below. Drought leading to water deficit stress is known to reduce performance of galling insects. The shoot tip-galling fly Parafreutreta regalis has been released for biological control of Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata) in California. Lack of moisture during the dry season causes wilting of Cape-ivy shoots, and subsequent reduced host quantity and quality could influence the fly’s ability to multiply and establish. We imposed water deficit stress on potted Cape-ivy plants, then measured the plant’s and insect’s response to water deficit compared to fully-watered plants. Water deficit stress was imposed during female oviposition (short-term), gall development (long-term), or full insect life cycle (long-term). Plants subjected to long-term water deficit showed declines in shoot growth, leaf area, and total biomass. In choice tests, 72% fewer galls were found on water deficit stressed plants, but there was no difference in the numbers of insects per gall. In no-choice tests, long-term water deficit reduced the number and size of galls by up to 51% and 39%, respectively, and puparia inside the galls were up to 35% smaller. Long-term water deficit also increased the time required for the insect to complete its life cycle (egg to adult) by about 10 days, and up to 80% fewer adults emerged, decreasing the fly’s rate of increase by up to five-fold. Our study shows that P. regalis will oviposit and develop successfully on water deficit-stressed plants, but declines in female preference, insect development and abundance could inhibit fly field establishment and/or population growth under climatic drought conditions. Resources in this dataset:Resource Title: Data from: Host plant water deficit stress impairs reproduction and development of the galling fly (Parafreutreta regalis), a biological control agent of Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata). File Name: CI Fly Drought Stress Biological Control Data Archive.csvResource Description: Tabular data for all choice and no-choice experimentsResource Software Recommended: MS Excel,url: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1 Resource Title: Data dictionary text file describing column headings in the csv data file.. File Name: Data Dictionary for Archiving Feb17-2021.txtResource Description: Data dictionary text file describing column headings in the csv fileResource Software Recommended: MS Word,url: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1

Data and Resources

Field Value
accessLevel public
accrualPeriodicity irregular
bureauCode {005:18}
catalog_@context https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.jsonld
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
catalog_describedBy https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.json
identifier 10.15482/USDA.ADC/1522573
license https://www.usa.gov/publicdomain/label/1.0/
modified 2024-02-16
old-spatial {"type": "Point", "coordinates": [-122.30562269746, 37.88634597527]}
programCode {005:040}
publisher Agricultural Research Service
resource-type Dataset
source_datajson_identifier true
source_hash 2e6b98c154ffb75af7e056db24cd8720e2954fa6ac1eb773cfb9521f3e572524
source_schema_version 1.1
spatial {"type": "Point", "coordinates": [-122.30562269746, 37.88634597527]}
temporal 2020-02-01/2020-04-15
Groups
  • AmeriGEOSS
  • National Provider
  • North America
Tags
  • AmeriGEO
  • AmeriGEOSS
  • CKAN
  • GEO
  • GEOSS
  • National
  • North America
  • United States
  • ars
  • biological-control
  • data-gov
  • diptera
  • drought-stress
  • np304
  • water-deficit-stress
  • weed-management
isopen False
license_id us-pd
license_title us-pd
maintainer Moran, Patrick J.
maintainer_email Patrick.Moran@usda.gov
metadata_created 2025-09-23T17:45:07.407359
metadata_modified 2025-09-23T17:45:07.407366
notes <p>Data from choice and no-choice tests associated with the paper cited below. Drought leading to water deficit stress is known to reduce performance of galling insects. The shoot tip-galling fly <em>Parafreutreta regalis</em> has been released for biological control of Cape-ivy (<em>Delairea odorata</em>) in California. Lack of moisture during the dry season causes wilting of Cape-ivy shoots, and subsequent reduced host quantity and quality could influence the fly’s ability to multiply and establish. We imposed water deficit stress on potted Cape-ivy plants, then measured the plant’s and insect’s response to water deficit compared to fully-watered plants. Water deficit stress was imposed during female oviposition (short-term), gall development (long-term), or full insect life cycle (long-term). Plants subjected to long-term water deficit showed declines in shoot growth, leaf area, and total biomass. In choice tests, 72% fewer galls were found on water deficit stressed plants, but there was no difference in the numbers of insects per gall. In no-choice tests, long-term water deficit reduced the number and size of galls by up to 51% and 39%, respectively, and puparia inside the galls were up to 35% smaller. Long-term water deficit also increased the time required for the insect to complete its life cycle (egg to adult) by about 10 days, and up to 80% fewer adults emerged, decreasing the fly’s rate of increase by up to five-fold. Our study shows that <em>P. regalis</em> will oviposit and develop successfully on water deficit-stressed plants, but declines in female preference, insect development and abundance could inhibit fly field establishment and/or population growth under climatic drought conditions. </p><div><br>Resources in this dataset:</div><br><ul><li><p>Resource Title: Data from: Host plant water deficit stress impairs reproduction and development of the galling fly (Parafreutreta regalis), a biological control agent of Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata).</p> <p>File Name: CI Fly Drought Stress Biological Control Data Archive.csv</p><p>Resource Description: Tabular data for all choice and no-choice experiments</p><p>Resource Software Recommended: MS Excel,url: <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1">https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1</a> </p></li><br><li><p>Resource Title: Data dictionary text file describing column headings in the csv data file..</p> <p>File Name: Data Dictionary for Archiving Feb17-2021.txt</p><p>Resource Description: Data dictionary text file describing column headings in the csv file</p><p>Resource Software Recommended: MS Word,url: <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1">https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365?ms.url=office365com&rtc=1</a> </p></li></ul><p></p>
num_resources 2
num_tags 16
title Data from: Host plant water deficit stress impairs reproduction and development of the galling fly (Parafreutreta regalis), a biological control agent of Cape-ivy (Delairea odorata)