- 期刊
白蟻於臺灣熱帶植物園的多樣性與危害方式
Termite Diversity and Damage Pattern in Tropical Botanical Garden of Taiwan
摘要
Termites were considered as important forest pests in Taiwan. However, no quantitative information on their diversity and damage pattern was available. In current study, we conducted an overall tree inspection focusing on termite damage in the Xiaping Tropical Botanical Garden, National Taiwan University (NTU) Experimental Forest. Of the 3,253 trees, 280 (8.6%) were infested. Five termite species belonged to four genera of three families were collected. The fungus growing termite, Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki), was the most frequently encountered species, and its infestation rate was 7.5%. Of the 244 trees infested by O. formosanus, various shapes of mud tubes were found on the surface or underneath of their barks, and only 23 (8%) was damaged in the trunk. The damage of dampwood termite, Neotermes koshunensis (Shiraki), and drywood termite, Cryptotermes domesticus (Haviland), was limited in the dead tree or the dead branches of living trees, and their infestation rates were 0.8% and less than 0.1%, respectively. Two subterranean termites, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki and C. gestroi (Wasmann), were collected, and their infestation rates were less than 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively. The native species, C. formosanus, was only found on one tree, but the invasive species, C. gestroi, was discovered on 11 trees. C. gestroi built mud tubes on tree barks and also damaged in the trunks of living trees. Based on the abundance and damage pattern, we considered C. gestroi threads the tropical forest most among the five termite species.
並列摘要
Termites were considered as important forest pests in Taiwan. However, no quantitative information on their diversity and damage pattern was available. In current study, we conducted an overall tree inspection focusing on termite damage in the Xiaping Tropical Botanical Garden, National Taiwan University (NTU) Experimental Forest. Of the 3,253 trees, 280 (8.6%) were infested. Five termite species belonged to four genera of three families were collected. The fungus growing termite, Odontotermes formosanus (Shiraki), was the most frequently encountered species, and its infestation rate was 7.5%. Of the 244 trees infested by O. formosanus, various shapes of mud tubes were found on the surface or underneath of their barks, and only 23 (8%) was damaged in the trunk. The damage of dampwood termite, Neotermes koshunensis (Shiraki), and drywood termite, Cryptotermes domesticus (Haviland), was limited in the dead tree or the dead branches of living trees, and their infestation rates were 0.8% and less than 0.1%, respectively. Two subterranean termites, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki and C. gestroi (Wasmann), were collected, and their infestation rates were less than 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively. The native species, C. formosanus, was only found on one tree, but the invasive species, C. gestroi, was discovered on 11 trees. C. gestroi built mud tubes on tree barks and also damaged in the trunks of living trees. Based on the abundance and damage pattern, we considered C. gestroi threads the tropical forest most among the five termite species.