Sustenance and Performance: Nutritional Reserves, Longevity, and Contest Outcomes of Fed and Starved Adult Parasitoid Wasps

Abstract

Dyadic contests for possession of resources occur across a wide range of animal taxa, with contest outcome often being heavily influenced by the energetic reserves of the competitors. The majority of studied parasitoid wasps lack de novo lipogenesis, with adult lipid reserves being limited to those acquired throughout larval development. Carbohydrate-and lipid-rich diets can increase adult parasitoid lifespan and fecundity by potentially acting as a maintenance energy store. However, the effects of such diets on fat reserve compositions and contest outcome have not been examined. This study assesses the effects of a carbohydrate rich diet (honey) on the longevity, metabolic state and contest performance of Goniozus legneri, a bethylid wasp. The longevity of honey-fed adults was typically more than twice that of starved wasps. Compared to similarly-aged starved wasps, honey feeding increased concentrations of common haemolymph sugars and amino acids in 3-day old and 7-day old wasps, and higher concentrations of stored lipid in 7-day old wasps. However, nutritional status did not affect the outcome of dyadic contests over host possession when both contestants were either 3 days or 7 days old. While contest outcome may be unaffected by diet, it remains possible that an enhancing effect of feeding on contest ability is matched by an effect of higher value being placed on winning by starved wasps.

Effects of Adult Feeding Treatments on Longevity, Fecundity, Flight Ability, and Energy Metabolism Enzymes of Grapholita molesta Moths

“…The brownheaded leafroller, Ctenopseustis obliquana (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) lived significantly longer when provided with water or honey solution in comparison with being starved [ 32 ]. Similar observations were made with some Hymenoptera for adults that received food supplements [ 34 , 35 , 36 ]. Starvation reduced the longevity of some adult Lepidoptera significantly [ 37 , 38 ].…”

Fertility life table and biology ofTetrastichus giffardianus(Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) in the larvae ofCeratitis capitata(Diptera: Tephritidae)

“…The highest estimated net reproductive rate (R o ) in this study was 69.96 at 25°C, which indicates that T. giffardianus maintained at this temperature increases by approximately 70 times with each generation. The decrease in R o observed at the other temperatures was probably due to the existence of a trade-off between the reserves used for offspring production and longevity, as reported for other parasitoids by Casas et al (2005) and Snart et al (2018). The net reproductive rate observed in T. giffardianus was much higher than the net reproductive rate of many species of solitary parasitoids, such as D. longicaudata with a R o of 45.56 on C. capitata at 25°C (Meirelles et al, 2013).…”

“…(2005) and Snart et al . (2018). The net reproductive rate observed in T. giffardianus was much higher than the net reproductive rate of many species of solitary parasitoids, such as D. longicaudata with a R o of 45.56 on C. capitata at 25°C (Meirelles et al ., 2013).…”

Food or host: do physiological state and flower type affect foraging decisions of parasitoids?

“…The current study aimed to test the influence of intrinsic physiological factors (life expectancy as a proxy of their energetic reserves (Snart et al 2018), and mating status), as well as extrinsic factors (nectar suitability and flower attractiveness) on the foraging decisions between food and hosts of parasitoid females Aphidius rhopalosiphi (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). This parasitoid species is dominant within aphid-parasitoid community of cereal crops from western part of France, and benefits from cultivated flowering plants used in agricultural landscape (Damien et al 2017).…”