Functional genomics of bark beetle adaptations to climate and host affecting their distribution and dynamics

Funding period: 2020-2024
Lead: Christopher Keeling
Total GRDI funding: $523,960

Identify life-cycle adaptations to climate: winter is a strong mortality agent of bark beetles. Beetles adapt by synchronizing development with seasonal temperatures so the most cold-adapted life-stages endure winter. Climate change and range expansion disrupt this synchrony, affecting population dynamics. Our research complements on-going cold physiology research by identifying the underlying genetic mechanisms regulating bark beetle life-cycles, key to assessing how climate change affects population dynamics. Identify adaptations favouring successful host colonization: bark beetles use olfactory cues to assess tree species and vigour, and to regulate intra- and inter-specific competition. Successful host colonization depends on pheromone-mediated mass attack, which overwhelms tree defences, and the ability of beetles to tolerate host chemical defences. Climate change-induced range expansion introduces beetles to new hosts. We aim to identify the molecular adaptations that beetles use to overcome native and novel hosts, which will aid in assessing the risk that bark beetles pose to novel hosts.