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§ The nomenclature of animal associations | 97
role in the subsequent years? Following this path would distort the reality of
the zoocoenosis, creating an impression of stability where none exists. The
advantage of the changeable terminology is that it also mirrors the dynamism
in zoocoenoses, that is reflected in the names.
The zoocoenosis named following the above scheme is an existing reality,
both in space and time. The term Hyphantriaetena cuneae (Mezőtúr 1954)
means that, in the given location and year, the gypsy moth population formed
a catena, ie. colonised only a single host plant. The use of the term is only
justified if we have qualitative and quantitative data about the populations
in question, meaning that we can ascertain the existence of the zoocoenosis.
The term Hyphantriaecium cuneae (Dolinapuszta 1954) means that the same
corrumpent is associated with other corrumpents in at least one sub-biotope,
meaning that it colonised several host plant species, which it had to share
with other corrumpents. Zoocoenoses exist independent of us, but anamed
zoocoenosis assumes that we carried out a census of its populations. This
census is location- and time-specific, and maybe never encountered in the
same way again.
We illustrate the coenologically correct analysis, and the practical
application of the above associational categories, through the following
example.
We complete a census in a wheat field of an arvideserta, using a sweep net.
We catch many individuals of Oscinella frit and a few Meromyza saltatrix.
These are corrumpents, and represent populations of catenaria of the studied
oecus. We also catch several Coelinus niger, and we know these are parasitoids
of the barley gout fly, an obstant of the catena Chloropiditena pumilionis. A
few Alticoptera aenea indicates the formation of the catena Oscinellaetena
frit and we also find a few Cantharis fusca, too. This predator can live on
several species, and we classify it as an obstant element of the arvideserta’s
presocium. A captured Pyrrhidium sanguineum does obviously not belong
to the oecus, and is a peregrinant. A few Halictus spp. and the honey bee,
Apis mellifera, are sustinents, belonging to the presocium. The presence of
several Collyria calcitrator (calcitratrix) and a few Norbanus (Picroscytus)
scabriculus signals - even though no stem sawfly were captured - the
formation, in the wheat stems, of the catena Cephitena pygmaei. The adults
of ladybirds (Coccinella) and hover flies (Syrphus) are obviously attracted by
the population of the aphid Schizaphis (Toxoptera) graminum, that is a
corrumpent of the catenarium. The two predators, on the other hand, can
range over the whole arvideserta; therefore, they are obstant, or sustinent
elements of the presocium, while the few Coccinella septempunctata larvae
are clearly obstant on the catena Toxopteraetena graminum, as well as the
lone Pachyneuron aphidis. The adults of Trissolcus (Microphanurus) semistriatus
are obstant in the presocium, while their larvae, living in the eggs of Eurygaster
maura are obstants in the Eurygastritena maurae catena. The Athalia roase
must have ventured here from another oecus far away, and would be