Population Dynamics of the Juniper Bark Beetle Phloeosinus neotropicus in Jamaica

The population ecology of the bark beetle Phloeosinus neotropicus Schedl which attacks only Juniperus barbadensis L. was studied in the Blue Mountains, Jamaica from 1976 to 1980. Mean achieved fecundity was 52.4 eggs/female and greater in logs of circumference > 0.30 m than in logs smaller than this. Fecundity in small logs (< 0.30 m) was negatively correlated to altitude in the range 1075-1688 m. Mean developmental mortality was 88% and the sex-ratio at emergence 0.59 ? 0.08 females. A cyclic population budget gave the estimate that only one in every 3.7 emerging females survived migration to reproduce.