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Summary: Introduction
Global climate change is expected to have drastic af-
fects on populations through direct impacts on demo-
graphics and through disruption of community interac-
tions (Stireman et al. 2005). Few studies have addressed
the potential impact of changing annual and seasonal tem-
peratures on the interactions and associations of symbi-
otic species within communities (Post et al. 1999, Ness
and Bressmer 2005). Cascading effects from climate
change are increasingly likely in communities where mul-
tiple symbiotic associations occur, and differential re-
sponses of symbiotic species to climate change can dis-
rupt vital associations (Walther et al. 2002). We
experimentally test the effects of temperature on the
abundance and interaction among multiple mutualistic,
commensalistic, and antagonistic associations with a key-
stone species, the southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus
frontalis Zimmermann).
Bark beetles (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) have obli-
gate and facultative associations with many microbial and
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