PHYTOPHAGOUS INSECT ASSEMBLAGES ON NATIVE AND INTRODUCED GYMNOSPERMS ACROSS AN ECOTOPIC GRADIENT IN FERGANA VALLEY
Abstract
Gymnosperms of Central Asia, comprising native Juniperus, Ephedra and Picea taxa together with a growing array of ornamental introductions, support a poorly resolved community of phytophagous insects. We surveyed phytophagous insects across four contrasting ecotopes (urban ecosystems, semi-arid foothills (adir), piedmont juniper woodlands and montane forests) in eastern Uzbekistan and the adjacent south-western provinces of the Kyrgyz Republic between 2022 and 2026. A total of 72 phytophagous insect species were associated with 17 native and introduced gymnosperm taxa. Host plants partitioned into three diversity groups: low (2–5 species; Ephedra spp., Juniperus semiglobosa, J. virginiana, Abies spp., Cupressus spp.), medium (8–12 species; Picea schrenkiana, J. sabina, J. turkestanica, Thuja occidentalis, Platycladus orientalis) and high (17–28 species; Pinus sylvestris, P. nigra subsp. pallasiana, P. brutia var. eldarica, Juniperus seravschanica). Introduced Pinus plantations and the widely distributed native J. seravschanica supported the richest assemblages. Adventive aphids (Cinara palaestinensis, C. pinimaritimae) and the leaf-footed conifer seed bug Leptoglossus occidentalis recorded from the region demonstrate ongoing invasion processes mediated by ornamental plantings. Our results clarify the ecotopic structuring of conifer-feeding insect assemblages in Central Asia and emphasise the role of urban gymnosperm plantings as bridgeheads for alien pests.
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