Using weapons instead of perfume: chemical association strategies of the myrmecophilous bug Scolopostethus pacificus (Rhyparochromidae)

Brückner, Adrian

doi:10.1007/s00049-022-00374-8

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…CHCs were identified based on their fragmentation patterns and retention indices compared to a standard series of n-alkanes 135 , by comparison to library spectra (NIST 14 library), and comparison of retention indices and fragmentation patterns to known compounds in Drosophila melanogaster 136 and Liometopum occidentale 108 . Unless specified, the double-bond positions for most alkenes, dienes, and trienes were not determined.…”

Section: Identification Of Chemical Compounds and Analysis Of Chc Pro...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Enforced specificity of an animal symbiosis

Wagner,

Wong,

Millar

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Insect diversification has been catalyzed by widespread specialization on novel hosts - a process underlying exceptional radiations of phytophagous beetles, lepidopterans, parasitoid wasps, and inordinate lineages of symbionts, predators and other trophic specialists. The strict fidelity of many such interspecies associations is posited to hinge on sensory tuning to host-derived cues, a model supported by studies of neural function in host-specific model species. Here, we investigated the sensory basis of symbiotic interactions between a myrmecophile rove beetle and its single, natural host ant species. We show that host cues trigger analogous behaviors in both ant and symbiont. Cuticular hydrocarbons - the ant's nestmate recognition pheromones - elicit partner recognition by the beetle and execution of ant grooming behavior, integrating the beetle into the colony via chemical mimicry. The beetle also follows host trail pheromones, permitting inter-colony dispersal. Remarkably, the rove beetle also performs its symbiotic behaviors with ant species separated by ~95 million years, and shows minimal preference for its natural host over non-host ants. Experimentally validated agent-based modeling supports a scenario in which specificity is enforced by physiological constraints on symbiont dispersal, and negative fitness interactions with alternative hosts, rather than via sensory tuning. Enforced specificity may be a pervasive mechanism of host range restriction of specialists embedded within host niches. Chance realization of latent compatibilities with alternative hosts may facilitate host switching, enabling deep-time persistence of obligately symbiotic lineages.

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Section: Identification Of Chemical Compounds and Analysis Of Chc Pro...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Enforced specificity of an animal symbiosis

Wagner,

Wong,

Millar

et al. 2024

Preprint

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show abstract

“…Even though ants are dominant and act as predators, some organisms are able to use chemical strategies with their CHCs and thus are able to maintain specific interactions called myrmecophily. These organisms are called myrmecophiles, and at least part of their life history depends on interactions with ants [18][19][20]. These interactions occur since ants forage on substrates and can influence the life of herbivorous insects, with interactions including commensalism, mutualism, or parasitism depending on the cost for the ant colonies (e.g., [21][22][23]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical Camouflage Induced by Diet in a Pest Treehopper on Host Plants

Lima,

Ceballos-González,

Prato

et al. 2024

Plants

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Ants patrol foliage and exert a strong selective pressure on herbivorous insects, being their primary predators. As ants are chemically oriented, some organisms that interact with them (myrmecophiles) use chemical strategies mediated by their cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) to deal with ants. Thus, a better understanding of the ecology and evolution of the mutualistic interactions between myrmecophiles and ants depends on the accurate recognition of these chemical strategies. Few studies have examined whether treehoppers may use an additional strategy called chemical camouflage to reduce ant aggression, and none considered highly polyphagous pest insects. We analyzed whether the chemical similarity of the CHC profiles of three host plants from three plant families (Fabaceae, Malvaceae, and Moraceae) and the facultative myrmecophilous honeydew-producing treehopper Aetalion reticulatum (Hemiptera: Aetalionidae), a pest of citrus plants, may play a role as a proximate mechanism serving as a protection against ant attacks on plants. We found a high similarity (>80%) between the CHCs of the treehoppers and two of their host plants. The treehoppers acquire CHCs through their diet, and the chemical similarity varies according to host plant. Chemical camouflage on host plants plays a role in the interaction of treehoppers with their ant mutualistic partners.

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Volatiles from male honeydew excretions attract conspecific male spotted lanternflies, Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae)

Faal

Meier

Canlas³

et al. 2022

Front. Insect Sci.

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The spotted lanternfly (SLF), Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae), is a generalist phloem feeder that produces copious amounts of honeydew, which in turn coats the understory. These insects form large aggregations covering the trunks of some trees, while similar trees nearby mysteriously seem unattractive. We investigated whether volatiles from SLF honeydew are attractive to conspecifics by collecting honeydew from the field and testing it for SLF attraction in a two-choice olfactometer. We found that honeydew excreted by adult male SLF was significantly attractive to male SLF, but not female SLF. Although the honeydew excreted by adult female SLF did not significantly attract male or female SLF, both sexes showed a positive trend towards attraction in response to female honeydew in the olfactometer. Analysis of the headspace volatiles of honeydew was conducted, and numerous semiochemicals were identified. Five of which, 2-heptanone, 2-octanone, 2-nonanone, benzyl acetate, and 1-nonanol, were tested in two-choice behavioral assays against a blank control. Benzyl acetate and 2-octanone were attractive to both sexes, whereas 2-heptanone was only attractive to males, and 2-nonanone only to females. The remaining compound, 1-nonanol, repelled females, but not males. Although honeydew has been reported as a source of kairomones for some natural enemies, this may be the first report of sex-specific attractants for conspecific insects found in the honeydew volatiles of a planthopper.

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Using weapons instead of perfume: chemical association strategies of the myrmecophilous bug Scolopostethus pacificus (Rhyparochromidae)

Cited by 3 publications

References 52 publications

Enforced specificity of an animal symbiosis

Enforced specificity of an animal symbiosis

Chemical Camouflage Induced by Diet in a Pest Treehopper on Host Plants

Volatiles from male honeydew excretions attract conspecific male spotted lanternflies, Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae)

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