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Summary: 2198
Ecology, 81(8), 2000, pp. 21982210
2000 by the Ecological Society of America
NITROGEN BUDGETS OF PHLOEM-FEEDING BARK BEETLES
WITH AND WITHOUT SYMBIOTIC FUNGI
MATTHEW P. AYRES,1,5
RICHARD T. WILKENS,2
JONATHAN J. RUEL,3
MARiŽA J. LOMBARDERO,1
AND
ERICH VALLERY4
1Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 USA
2Department of Biology, Dowling College, Oakdale, New York 11769-1119 USA
3Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona 86011-5640 USA
4Southern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, 2500 Shreveport Highway, Pineville, Louisiana 71360 USA
Abstract. The nitrogen content of plant tissue is low relative to that of herbivores; as
a consequence, dietary N can limit the growth and reproduction of herbivores and select
for attributes that increase N acquisition. Bark beetles face a particularly severe challenge
because the phloem that they consume is very low in nitrogen and phosphorus relative to
their requirements. We quantified variation in the phloem concentrations of N and P in the
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