Chemical mimicry of cuticular hydrocarbons – how does Eremostibes opacus gain access to breeding burrows of its host Parastizopus armaticeps (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae)? |
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Authors: | Stefanie Frauke Geiselhardt Sven Geiselhardt Klaus Peschke |
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Institution: | 1. Institut für Biologie I, Albert-Ludwigs-Universit?t Freiburg i. Br., Hauptstr. 1, 79104, Freiburg, Germany
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Abstract: | Summary. Breeding burrows of Parastizopus armaticeps armaticeps, a fossorial desert tenebrionid beetle, are cleptoparasitised by the closely related Eremostibes opacus. Gas chromatographic analyses show a high congruity of the cuticular hydrocarbons of both species. We compare these hydrocarbon
patterns with those of four other Stizopina species and the Scaurini Herpiscius sommeri. In a bioassay, dummies treated with cuticular hydrocarbon extracts of E. opacus and the P. a. bifidus parasite E. bushmanicus were mostly ignored by P. a. armaticeps, whereas dummies with applied extracts of the remaining species were heavily attacked. We show that there is a correlation
between agonistic behaviour of P. a. armaticeps towards the intruder and the chemical similarity of the cuticular hydrocarbons of the two species. Furthermore, we produced
quantitatively modified hydrocarbon patterns of E. barbatus by changing the temperature at which this species was kept. The new 30 °C type was chemically similar to E. opacus, and was frequently ignored by P. a. armaticeps, whereas a reduction of the temperature to 20 °C only had minor effects on the hydrocarbon pattern. Furthermore, we show
that the addition of one single component, heptacosane, to the cuticular hydrocarbon extract of E. opacus alters the host’s reaction. We discuss the role of cuticular hydrocarbons for the recognition of this host-parasite system
and the relevance of quantitative characters in the hydrocarbon pattern for the discrimination of the host. |
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Keywords: | Chemical mimicry cuticular hydrocarbons species discrimination subsocial behaviour pattern modification Parastizopus Eremostibes Planostibes Herpiscius |
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