甲虫表皮碳氢化合物研究进展

昆虫表皮碳氢化合物(cuticular hydrocarbons)是正烷烃、不饱和烃以及甲基支链烃的混合物.除了保持水分的基本功能外,还具有多种生物功能.鞘翅目昆虫(俗称甲虫)是多样性最为丰富的昆虫类群,目前对其表皮碳氢化合物研究开展颇多,主要见于化学通讯领域,内容涉及到性信息素、标记信息素、聚集信息素、化学拟态、寄主...     

New myrmecomorphous longhorned beetles from Haiti and the Dominican Republic with a key to Anaglyptini and Tillomorphini of Hispaniola (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Cerambycinae)

First records of the tribes Anaglyptini and Tillomorphini (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae) are documented for Hispaniola. A new genus of a highly myrmecomorphic longhorned beetle (Licracanthagen. n.) is described and illustrated based on one species (Licracantha formicariasp. n.) and provisionally assigned to Tillomorphini. Three other new species of ant mimic longhorned beetles are described and illustrated: Calliclytus macorissp. n. (Tillomorphini), Tilloclytus baorucosp. n., and Tilloclytus neibasp. n. (Anaglyptini). An identification key and distribution map to all known Hispaniolan species of these two tribes are presented.     

DO ANTS ENHANCE DIVERSIFICATION IN LYCAENID BUTTERFLIES? PHYLOGEOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE FROM A MODEL MYRMECOPHILE,JALMENUS EVAGORAS

The ant-tended Australian butterfly, Jalmenus evagoras, has been a model system for studying the ecology and evolution of mutualism. A phylogeographic analysis of mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I sequences from 242 butterflies (615 bp) and 66 attendant ants (585 bp) from 22 populations was carried out to explore the relationship between ant association and butterfly population structure. This analysis revealed 12 closely related butterfly haplotypes in three distinct clades roughly corresponding to three allopatric subpopulations of the butterflies. Minimal genetic diversity and widespread haplotypes within biogeographical regions suggest high levels of matrilineal gene flow. Attendant ants are significantly more diverse than was previously thought, with at least seven well-defined clades corresponding to independent morphological determinations, distributed throughout the range of the butterflies. Nested analysis of molecular variance showed that biogeography, host plant, and ant associate all contribute significantly in explaining variation in butterfly genetic diversity, but these variables are not independent of one another. Major influences appear to come from fragmentation due to large-scale biogeographical barriers, and diversification following a shift in habitat preference. A consequence of such a shift could be codiversification of the butterfly with habitat-adapted ants, resulting in apparent phylogenetic concordance between butterflies and ants. The implications of these results are discussed in terms of possible effects of ant attendance on the diversification of Lycaenidae as a whole.     

Smells like aphids: orchid flowers mimic aphid alarm pheromones to attract hoverflies for pollination

Most insects are dependent on chemical communication for activities such as mate finding or host location. Several plants, and especially orchids, mimic insect semiochemicals to attract insects for unrewarded pollination. Here, we present a new case of pheromone mimicry found in the terrestrial orchid Epipactis veratrifolia. Flowers are visited and pollinated by several species of aphidophagous hoverflies, the females of which also often lay eggs in the flowers. The oviposition behaviour of these hoverflies is mainly guided by aphid-derived kairomones. We show that the flowers produce α- and β-pinene, β-myrcene and β-phellandrene, and that these compounds attract and induce oviposition behaviour in female hoverflies. This floral odour profile is remarkably similar to the alarm pheromone released by several aphid species, such as Megoura viciae. We therefore suggest that E. veratrifolia mimics aphid alarm pheromones to attract hoverflies for pollination; this is the first time, to our knowledge, that such a case of mimicry has been demonstrated.     

A bdelloid rotifer living as an inquiline in leaves of the pitcher plant,Sarracenia purpurea

A new form of Habrotrocha rosa Donner 1949 and aspects of its life as an inquiline of the northern pitcher plant, Sarracenia purpurea L. are described.     

Non-visual crypsis: a review of the empirical evidence for camouflage to senses other than vision

I review the evidence that organisms have adaptations that confer difficulty of detection by predators and parasites that seek their targets primarily using sensory systems other than vision. In other words, I will answer the question of whether crypsis is a concept that can usefully be applied to non-visual sensory perception. Probably because vision is such an important sensory system in humans, research in this field is sparse. Thus, at present we have very few examples of chemical camouflage, and even these contain some ambiguity in deciding whether they are best seen as examples of background matching or mimicry. There are many examples of organisms that are adaptively silent at times or in locations when or where predation risk is higher or in response to detection of a predator. By contrast, evidence that the form (rather than use) of vocalizations and other sound-based signals has been influenced by issues of reducing detectability to unintended receivers is suggestive rather than conclusive. There is again suggestive but not completely conclusive evidence for crypsis against electro-sensing predators. Lastly, mechanoreception is highly understudied in this regard, but there are scattered reports that strongly suggest that some species can be thought of as being adapted to be cryptic in this modality. Hence, I conclude that crypsis is a concept that can usefully be applied to senses other than vision, and that this is a field very much worthy of more investigation.     

Striking cuticular hydrocarbon dimorphism in the mason wasp Odynerus spinipes and its possible evolutionary cause (Hymenoptera: Chrysididae,Vespidae)

Cleptoparasitic wasps and bees smuggle their eggs into the nest of a host organism. Here the larvae of the cleptoparasite feed upon the food provision intended for the offspring of the host. As cleptoparasitism incurs a loss of fitness for the host organism (offspring of the host fail to develop), hosts of cleptoparasites are expected to exploit cues that alert them to potential cleptoparasite infestation. Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) could serve as such cues, as insects inevitably leave traces of them behind when entering a nest. By mimicking the host''s CHC profile, cleptoparasites can conceal their presence and evade detection by their host. Previous studies have provided evidence of cleptoparasites mimicking their host''s CHC profile. However, the impact of this strategy on the evolution of the host''s CHC profile has remained unexplored. Here, we present results from our investigation of a host–cleptoparasite system consisting of a single mason wasp species that serves syntopically as the host to three cuckoo wasp species. We found that the spiny mason wasp (Odynerus spinipes) is able to express two substantially different CHC profiles, each of which is seemingly mimicked by a cleptoparasitic cuckoo wasp (i.e. Chrysis mediata and Pseudospinolia neglecta). The CHC profile of the third cuckoo wasp (Chrysis viridula), a species not expected to benefit from mimicking its host''s CHC profile because of its particular oviposition strategy, differs from the two CHC profiles of its host. Our results corroborate the idea that the similarity of the CHC profiles between cleptoparasitic cuckoo wasps and their hosts are the result of chemical mimicry. They further suggest that cleptoparasites may represent a hitherto unappreciated force that drives the evolution of their hosts'' CHCs.     

黑腹壮猎蝽与其猎物暗翅无刺蜂的声音模拟现象

拟态是自然界中十分常见的一种生态适应现象,是了解自然选择理论最为典型的一类研究案例。目前被报道的拟态案例大多集中在视觉模拟上,而在声音模态方面的报道相对较少。本研究报道了基于捕食关系下暗翅无刺蜂Tetragonilla collina和黑腹壮猎蝽Biasticus ventralis间的声音模拟案例。分别采集了暗翅无刺蜂蜂巢门口的归巢蜂、出巢蜂以及黑腹壮猎蝽飞行时的音频,并对其音频进行提取和分析。随后以基频、第1谐波、第2谐波、第1频率四分位数、第2频率四分位数、第3频率四分位数、频谱标准差等7个声音频率参数来进行多元统计分析,比较它们之间的相似性高低。结果表明,基于7个声音频率参数的偏最小二乘法判别分析无法有效的将黑腹壮猎蝽和暗翅无刺蜂的归巢蜂、出巢蜂发出的声音区分开来。经似然比卡方检验,发现其中黑腹壮猎蝽与暗翅无刺蜂的归巢蜂的7个声音频率参数均无显著性差异（P>0.05）。对比分析发现,在两个与暗翅无刺蜂关联的拟态系统中,暗翅无刺蜂归巢蜂与黑腹壮猎蝽的模拟程度更高。该拟态系统的发现为声音模态方面提供了新的研究案例,进而为从多模态角度了解拟态起源和演化的过程提供了一定的参考依据。