The rise of biological invasions threatens biodiversity and food security,with the vespid family,including Vespa soror,being of particular concern.Our study focused on the alarm pheromone components of V.soror.By usin...The rise of biological invasions threatens biodiversity and food security,with the vespid family,including Vespa soror,being of particular concern.Our study focused on the alarm pheromone components of V.soror.By using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)chemical analyses,electroantennograms,and field bioassays,we identified 5 compounds—2-pentanol,3-methyl-1-butanol,2-heptanol,2-nonanol(2-N),and isopentyl acetate(IPA)—in hornet sting venom that elicited defensive behavior from hornets.IPA and 2-N also serve as alarm pheromone components in multiple honey bee species that are important prey for V.soror.This shared chemical signaling may allow cross-detection by each species on the other's alarm cues.While it should be advantageous for bees to detect V.soror alarm pheromone,the benefits to V.soror of using IPA and 2-N are unclear.V.soror may manipulate bee behavior,potentially distracting defenders,because they mark victim bee colonies by rubbing their abdomens,which contain their sting glands,at bee hive entrances.Our findings pose new evolutionary questions about the role of manipulation in the arms races.展开更多
Distressed western carpenter ants,Camponotus modoc,produce alarm pheromone and substrate-borne vibrations.The alarm pheromone attracts nestmates but the effects of vibratory signals,or of bimodal pheromonal and vibrat...Distressed western carpenter ants,Camponotus modoc,produce alarm pheromone and substrate-borne vibrations.The alarm pheromone attracts nestmates but the effects of vibratory signals,or of bimodal pheromonal and vibratory signals,are not known.Worker ants of two Camponotus congeners reportedly stand still(“freeze”)or run fast in response to engineered drumming vibrations inputted on plastic,but many responses to ant-produced vibratory signals on wood have not yet been investigated.Generally,orientating toward signalers under vertebrate predator attack seems maladaptive and not beneficial to ant colonies.We tested the hypotheses(1)that vibratory alarm signals cause freezing,rapid running but not attraction of nestmates,and(2)that bimodal alarm signals modulate responses to monomodal alarm signals,thereby possibly reducing predation risk.Laser Doppler vibrometry recordings revealed that the ants’vibratory signals readily propagate through ant nest lamellae,and thus quickly inform nest mates of perceived threats.With a speaker modified to record and deliver vibratory signals,we obtained drumming signals of distressed ants on a Douglas fir veneer,and bioassayed signal effects on ants in an arena with a suspended veneer floor.In response playback of vibratory signals,ants ran rapidly,or froze,but did not approach the vibratory signals.Exposed to alarm pheromone,ants frequently visited the pheromone source.However,concurrently exposed to both alarm pheromone and vibratory signals,ants visited the pheromone source less often but spent more time“frozen.”The ants’modulated responses to bimodal signals seem adaptive but the reproductive fitness benefits are still to be quantified.展开更多
Insects have evolved amazing methods of defense to ward off enemies. Many aphids release cornicle secretions when attacked by predators and parasitoids. These se cretions contain an alarm pheromone that alerts other c...Insects have evolved amazing methods of defense to ward off enemies. Many aphids release cornicle secretions when attacked by predators and parasitoids. These se cretions contain an alarm pheromone that alerts other colony members of danger, thereby providing indirect fitness benefits to the releaser. In addition, contact with cornicle se cretions could also threaten an attacker and could provide direct fitness to the releaser. However, cornicle secretions may also be recruited as a kairomonal cue by aphid natural enemies. In this study, we investigated the effect of the cornicle droplet volatiles of the cabbage aphid, Brevicoryne brassicae （L.）, on the hostsearching behavior of naive and experienced female Diaeretiella rapae （M＇Intosh） parasitoids in olfactometer studies. In addition, we evaluated the role ofB. brassicae cornicle droplets on the oviposition prefer ence of the parasitoid in a twochoice bioassay. Naive females did not exhibit any preference between volatiles from aphids secreting cornicle droplets over nonsecreting aphids, while experienced parasitoids exploited the secretions in their host location. Experienced females were also able to choose volatiles from both secreting and nonsecreting aphids over clean air, while this ability was not observed in naive females. Although secretion of cornicle droplets did not influence the percentage of first attack in either naive or experienced females, the success of attack （i.e. resulting in a larva） was significantly different between secreting and nonsecreting aphids in the case of experienced parasitoids.展开更多
基金supported by the CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology,the 14th Five-Year Plan of Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden,Chinese Academy of Sciences(E3ZKFF3B)Innovation Project of Caiyun Postdoctoral Program(E4YN021B06)+1 种基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.32322051)the Yunnan Revitalization Talents Support Plan(XDYC-QNRC-2023-0566).
文摘The rise of biological invasions threatens biodiversity and food security,with the vespid family,including Vespa soror,being of particular concern.Our study focused on the alarm pheromone components of V.soror.By using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)chemical analyses,electroantennograms,and field bioassays,we identified 5 compounds—2-pentanol,3-methyl-1-butanol,2-heptanol,2-nonanol(2-N),and isopentyl acetate(IPA)—in hornet sting venom that elicited defensive behavior from hornets.IPA and 2-N also serve as alarm pheromone components in multiple honey bee species that are important prey for V.soror.This shared chemical signaling may allow cross-detection by each species on the other's alarm cues.While it should be advantageous for bees to detect V.soror alarm pheromone,the benefits to V.soror of using IPA and 2-N are unclear.V.soror may manipulate bee behavior,potentially distracting defenders,because they mark victim bee colonies by rubbing their abdomens,which contain their sting glands,at bee hive entrances.Our findings pose new evolutionary questions about the role of manipulation in the arms races.
文摘Distressed western carpenter ants,Camponotus modoc,produce alarm pheromone and substrate-borne vibrations.The alarm pheromone attracts nestmates but the effects of vibratory signals,or of bimodal pheromonal and vibratory signals,are not known.Worker ants of two Camponotus congeners reportedly stand still(“freeze”)or run fast in response to engineered drumming vibrations inputted on plastic,but many responses to ant-produced vibratory signals on wood have not yet been investigated.Generally,orientating toward signalers under vertebrate predator attack seems maladaptive and not beneficial to ant colonies.We tested the hypotheses(1)that vibratory alarm signals cause freezing,rapid running but not attraction of nestmates,and(2)that bimodal alarm signals modulate responses to monomodal alarm signals,thereby possibly reducing predation risk.Laser Doppler vibrometry recordings revealed that the ants’vibratory signals readily propagate through ant nest lamellae,and thus quickly inform nest mates of perceived threats.With a speaker modified to record and deliver vibratory signals,we obtained drumming signals of distressed ants on a Douglas fir veneer,and bioassayed signal effects on ants in an arena with a suspended veneer floor.In response playback of vibratory signals,ants ran rapidly,or froze,but did not approach the vibratory signals.Exposed to alarm pheromone,ants frequently visited the pheromone source.However,concurrently exposed to both alarm pheromone and vibratory signals,ants visited the pheromone source less often but spent more time“frozen.”The ants’modulated responses to bimodal signals seem adaptive but the reproductive fitness benefits are still to be quantified.
文摘Insects have evolved amazing methods of defense to ward off enemies. Many aphids release cornicle secretions when attacked by predators and parasitoids. These se cretions contain an alarm pheromone that alerts other colony members of danger, thereby providing indirect fitness benefits to the releaser. In addition, contact with cornicle se cretions could also threaten an attacker and could provide direct fitness to the releaser. However, cornicle secretions may also be recruited as a kairomonal cue by aphid natural enemies. In this study, we investigated the effect of the cornicle droplet volatiles of the cabbage aphid, Brevicoryne brassicae （L.）, on the hostsearching behavior of naive and experienced female Diaeretiella rapae （M＇Intosh） parasitoids in olfactometer studies. In addition, we evaluated the role ofB. brassicae cornicle droplets on the oviposition prefer ence of the parasitoid in a twochoice bioassay. Naive females did not exhibit any preference between volatiles from aphids secreting cornicle droplets over nonsecreting aphids, while experienced parasitoids exploited the secretions in their host location. Experienced females were also able to choose volatiles from both secreting and nonsecreting aphids over clean air, while this ability was not observed in naive females. Although secretion of cornicle droplets did not influence the percentage of first attack in either naive or experienced females, the success of attack （i.e. resulting in a larva） was significantly different between secreting and nonsecreting aphids in the case of experienced parasitoids.
