Cantharidin: Potent Feeding Deterrent to Insects

Carrel, James E.; Eisner, Thomas

doi:10.1126/science.183.4126.755

Cited by 124 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Prime enemies, for instance, could be wood-inhabiting ants. Interestingly, ants have been shown to be orally deterred by as little as 10-5 M cantharidin (3). We calculate the concentration of cantharidin in N. flabellata eggs to be in the order of 10-2-10-3 M.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical basis of courtship in a beetle (Neopyrochroa flabellata): Cantharidin as "nuptial gift".

Eisner

Smedley

Young

et al. 1996

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The amount of cantharidin (Spanish fly) that the Neopyrochroaflabellata male presents to the female as a glandular offering during courtship represents only a small fraction of the total cantharidin the male accumulates systemically following ingestion of the compound. A major fraction of the acquired cantharidin is stored by the male in the large accessory glands of the reproductive system. At mating, the male transfers this supply, presumably as part of the sperm package, to the spermatheca of the female. The female in turn allocates the gift to the eggs. Eggs endowed with cantharidin proved relatively invulnerable to attack by a predaceous beetle larva (Coleomegilla maculata).We demonstrate here that the cantharidin ingested by male Neopyrochroa flabellata (1) is transferred in large measure to the female at mating, and by the female, for protective purposes, to the eggs. Specifically, we demonstrate that (i) cantharidin (Spanish fly), ingested by the male, accumulates primarily in the large accessory glands of the reproductive system; (ii) mating leads to appearance of cantharidin in the sperm receptacle (spermatheca) of the female; (iii) eggs sired by cantharidin-fed males contain cantharidin; and (iv) cantharidin-laden eggs, unlike cantharidin-free eggs, are protected against predation. Preliminary aspects of this study were reported earlier (2). MATERIALS AND METHODSSource and maintenance of beetles, chemical analyses for cantharidin content, and statistical analyses were as described (1). Values (including those in the figures) are given as mean ± SEM.Cantharidin Feeding. Males designated as cantharidin-fed (n = 58) were offered crystalline cantharidin as described (1). Total cantharidin offered to individuals ranged from 5 to 3050 ,ug, given over a span of 1-31 days. Mean quantity per beetle was 766 ± 83 ,ug, given over a period of 8.4 ± 0.9 days.Males designated as cantharidin-unfed (n = 34) were kept unexposed to cantharidin.Dissection. Beetles were killed by freezing and dissected under saline solution. Components of the male reproductive system that were analyzed for cantharidin content were (see Fig. 1A) as follows: testes, including the ducts leading to the seminal vesicles; seminal vesicles; large accessory glands; small accessory glands; and ejaculatory duct. Components of the female reproductive system that were analyzed were (see Fig. 1C) as follows: ovaries, spermatheca, and median oviduct. For both males and females, heads were also analyzed, as well as the alimentary canal, and a sample, designated as remains, consisting of all body parts, minus head, reproductive system, and gut. All samples were weighed immediately after dissection. A small fraction of samples was lost in the course of the analyses (sample sizes for component parts were therefore sometimes variable).Dissection of mated males (n = 7) and mated females (n = 9) was performed, respectively, within 1.0-3.5 h (2.6 ± 0.4 h) and 0.1-2.7 h (1.2 ± 0.3 h) after mating.Matings. These were staged in Petri dishes, as in the co...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical basis of courtship in a beetle (Neopyrochroa flabellata): Cantharidin as "nuptial gift".

Eisner

Smedley

Young

et al. 1996

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…The triungulins are positively phototactic and negatively thermotactic to surface radiated heat (14), factors that predispose them to climb to the tips of plants. Formation of aggregations may have several functions in addition to attracting male bees, such as slowing desiccation of individuals in the group (15)(16)(17) and mutual protection from predation with their chemical defense, cantharidin (18). Triungulins need a high-quality nutrient resource of long duration on which to feed and complete their development.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phoretic nest parasites use sexual deception to obtain transport to their host's nest

Saul-Gershenz¹,

Millar

2006

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Cooperative behaviors are common among social insects such as bees, wasps, ants, and termites, but they have not been reported from insect species that use aggressive mimicry to manipulate and exploit prey or hosts. Here we show that larval aggregations of the blister beetle Meloe franciscanus, which parasitize nests of the solitary bee Habropoda pallida, cooperate to exploit the sexual communication system of their hosts by producing a chemical cue that mimics the sex pheromone of the female bee. Male bees are lured to larval aggregations, and upon contact (pseudocopulation) the beetle larvae attach to the male bees. The larvae transfer to female bees during mating and subsequently are transported to the nests of their hosts. To mimic the chemical and visual signals of female bees effectively, the parasite larvae must cooperate, emphasizing the adaptive value of cooperation between larvae. The aggressive chemical mimicry by the beetle larvae and their subsequent transport to their hosts' nests by the hosts themselves provide an efficient solution to the problem of locating a critical but scarce resource in a harsh environment.aggressive chemical mimicry ͉ cooperative behavior ͉ Habropoda pallida ͉ Meloe franciscanus ͉ phoresy T he phenomenon of phoresy (1-3), in which one organism is transported by another, is common among arthropods. Phoresy provides an effective means of dispersal for organisms with limited mobility, particularly in extreme environments where harsh conditions and the scarcity and patchiness of critical resources present formidable obstacles to survival. The relationship between passenger and host may become obligate, with the passenger being entirely dependent on the host for transport to suitable habitats or resources. Under such circumstances, it is to be expected that the passenger will develop behavioral, morphological, semiochemical, and life history characters that promote effective exploitation of the host. Here we report a well developed, multistep phoretic system in which the passenger species not only rides on the host but actively lures the host to it by mimicking the host's sex pheromone and subsequently parasitizes the host's nest.Our study system was comprised of the blister beetle Meloe franciscanus Van Dyke and its host, the solitary bee Habropoda pallida Timberlake, which inhabit sand dunes in the deserts of the southwestern United States. In this extremely variable habitat, widely distributed patches of plants function as islands in a sea of sand for first-instar larvae of the beetle. The dunes support populations of the psammophytic plant Astragalus lentiginosus var. borreganus M. E. Jones, which provides nectar for the host bee. The flightless adult blister beetles also feed on Astragalus foliage, and female beetles frequently oviposit at the base of the plant.The phoretic first-instar larvae of M. franciscanus, known as triungulins, have evolved a complex four-step mechanism for ensuring their survival, which results in the host species transporting the triungulins back t...

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“…También son conocidos en agricultura ya que algunas especies consituyen plagas ocasionales en su estado adulto, mientras que en estado larvario pueden tener utilidad agrícola como controladores de otras plagas (Dampf, 1925;Horsfall, 1943;Parker & Wakeland, 1957). Otros aspectos de su biología, como sus ciclos biológicos complejos que incluyen hipermetamorfosis y hábitos larvarios parasitoides (Beauregard, 1890;Paoli, 1937;Selander, 1981), sus diversas pautas de cortejo y comportamiento gregario (Horsfall, 1943;Selander, , 1964a y sus defensas químicas (Carrel & Eisner, 1974;Carrel et al, 1993;Dettner, 1997) son excepcionales entre los coleópteros. En áreas donde la alteración ambiental es alta, o donde los usos agrícolas han cambiado, se ha detectado su progresiva desaparición (Nash, 1976;Havelka, 1980) y en los Estados Unidos se han propuesto 5 especies como candidatas para su inclusión en las listas de especies amenazadas a nivel federal (Halstead & Haines, 1992).…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Catálogo taxonómico-geográfico de los coleópteros de la familia Meloidae de México

2007

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Cantharidin: Potent Feeding Deterrent to Insects

Abstract: Cantharidin, the well-known terpenoid compound from the blood of blister beetles (and active principle of Spanish fly), is a feeding deterrent to insects, effective at a concentration of 10(-5) molar.

Cited by 124 publications

References 11 publications

Chemical basis of courtship in a beetle (Neopyrochroa flabellata): Cantharidin as "nuptial gift".

Chemical basis of courtship in a beetle (Neopyrochroa flabellata): Cantharidin as "nuptial gift".

Phoretic nest parasites use sexual deception to obtain transport to their host's nest

Catálogo taxonómico-geográfico de los coleópteros de la familia Meloidae de México

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