Phoretic nest parasites use sexual deception to obtain transport to their host's nest.

ABSTRACT: Cooperative behaviors are common among social insects such as bees, wasps, ants, and termites, but they have not been reported from insect species that use aggressive mimicry to manipulate and exploit prey or hosts. Here we show that larval aggregations of the blister beetle Meloe franciscanus, which parasitize nests of the solitary bee Habropoda pallida, cooperate to exploit the sexual communication system of their hosts by producing a chemical cue that mimics the sex pheromone of the female bee. Male bees are lured to larval aggregations, and upon contact (pseudocopulation) the beetle larvae attach to the male bees. The larvae transfer to female bees during mating and subsequently are transported to the nests of their hosts. To mimic the chemical and visual signals of female bees effecti

SUBMITTER: Saul-Gershenz LS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1599908 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature