Pre-ingestive treatment of bombardier beetles by jays: food preparation by “anting” and “sand-wiping” |
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Authors: | Thomas Eisner Maria Eisner Daniel Aneshansley |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA;(2) Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA |
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Abstract: | Summary. Evidence is presented, obtained with two species of jays, that these birds differ in the ways in which they prepare bombardier
beetles for ingestion. Blue Jays subject bombardiers to “anting,” a procedure by which the beetles are induced to eject their
spray into the plumage of the birds. Florida Scrub Jays, in contrast, which live in an area where the soil is sandy, subject
bombardiers to “sand-wiping,” causing the beetles to eject their spray into the substrate. Both strategies lend themselves
also to pre-ingestive treatment of other chemically protected arthropods. Anting is a strategy widely practiced by birds,
possibly because it can be put to use no matter what the nature of the terrain. Sand-wiping, as implied by its name (which
we here coin), may be of more restricted occurrence, given that it can be carried out only on loose, penetrable soil. |
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Keywords: | Cyanocitta cristata Aphelocoma coerulescens chemical defense coevolution predation 1 4-benzoquinones |
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