Skip Navigation

EcoEdDL

Home Browse Resources Submission Instructions About Help Advanced Search

A rare valley elderberry longhorn beetle (Desmocerus californicus dimorphus) perches on a leaf of its host plant, blue elderberry (Sambucus mexicana).

Thumbnail
An adult male valley elderberry longhorn beetle (Desmocerus californicus dimorphus) perches on a leaf of its host plant, blue elderberry (Sambucus mexicana). Although classic metapopulations are thought to be uncommon in nature, this rare beetle displays characteristics of such a population dynamic: low local densities, discrete habitat patches, limited movements, and a strongly influenced of stochasticity. Found only within California’s Central Valley, the valley elderberry longhorn beetle was listed as threatened in 1980 under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, mainly due to loss of its riparian habitat. In 2007, it was proposed for delisting despite continued habitat loss, uncertainty about threats to its populations, and insufficient knowledge to accurately predict its occupancy patterns. This photograph originally appeared on the cover of Ecology (88:6) in June of 2007.
Associated files
Temporal and geographic description Central Valley, California, USA.
Format
Primary or BEN resource type
Discipline Specific Core Concepts
Life science discipline (subject)
Keywords rare,endangered,metapopulation,host,plant,insect,beetle,habitat loss,conservation
Key taxa valley elderberry longhorn beetle,Desmocerus californicus dimorphus,blue elderberry,Sambucus mexicana
Audience
Intended End User Role
Language
Educational Language
Pedagogical Use Category
Pedagogical Use Description This photograph can be used to illustrate an endangered species, a species that exhibits characteristics of a metapopulation, or a plant-insect interaction.
Aggregation Level
Structure
Url http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/06-0555
Full Name of Primary Author Theresa Sinicrope Talley
Primary Author Controlled Name
Primary Author Affiliation Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis
Primary Author email tstalley@ucdavis.edu
Added By Id
  • educationintern
Rights Copyright 2007 by the Ecological Society of America.
License
Publisher
Review type
Drought and Water Ecosystem Services Collection Off
Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection Off
Big Data Collection Off
Editors Choice No
Resource Status
Date Of Record Submission 2008-04-08
I Agree to EcoEdDL's Copyright Policy & Terms of Use No
Date Of Record Release 2010-02-12 01:35:23
Last Modified By Id
  • mcmilla
Date Last Modified 2013-03-29 16:16:40
Release Flag Published

Resource Comments

(no comments available yet for this resource)