DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Phylogeny and Evolution of Host Associations and Fighting Behavior in Neotropical Derelomine Weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Cornell Univ - State: Awds Made Prior May 2010, Ithaca NY

Investigators

Abstract

A grant has been awarded to Dr. Bryan Danforth and Mr. Nico Franz of Cornell University to study the evolutionary history of derelomine flower weevils and their diverse interactions with palms and other related plants in the New World tropics. The principal objective of this research is to facilitate an understanding of the evolution of highly specialized behaviors in the weevils, including host plant use, pollination, and seed predation. It will be achieved by synthesizing evidence from a variety of sources in order to reconstruct the relationships among the major weevil groups within the association. The complex fighting behaviors among the males in one particular group of species will be filmed in the field and analyzed in the light of their previously studied structural adaptations for fighting. In addition to establishing the necessary framework for tests of various intriguing hypotheses about the evolutionary history of this insect-plant interaction, the proposed research has several practical implications. Derelomine flower weevils are the primary pollinators of hundreds of palms throughout the tropics, including the African oil palm and many other economically important species that are cultivated for fiber, food, medicine, oil, and ornament. Controlled introductions of specialized weevil pollinators have resulted in substantial increments in crop production in the past. By providing the first comprehensive classification and illustrated identification keys for these weevil groups, the present study constitutes the basis for subsequent field work by any researcher interested in the biology of their host plants.