0000000000039888
AUTHOR
Isabelle Kleeberg
Electronic supplement from The influence of slavemaking lifestyle, caste and sex on chemical profiles in Temnothorax ants: insights into the evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons
Electronic supplement including additional figures and tables
Temnothorax pilagens sp. n. – a new slave-making species of the tribe Formicoxenini from North America (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)
A new species of the ant genus Temnothorax Forel, 1890 – Temnothorax pilagens sp. n. is described from eastern North America. T. pilagens sp. n. is an obligate slave-making ant with two known hosts: T. longispinosus (Roger, 1863) and T. ambiguus (Emery, 1895). A differential diagnosis against Temnothorax duloticus (Wesson, 1937), the other dulotic congener from the Nearctic, is presented and a biological characteristics of the new species is given.
Forewarned is forearmed: aggression and information use determine fitness costs of slave raids
Many animals use reliable indicators of upcoming events such as antagonistic interactions to prepare themselves. In group-living animals, not only the cue perceiving individuals are involved in mobilization, but the entire group can use this information. In this study, we analyze whether social insects, which perceive reliable information on an upcoming social parasite attack, can use this knowledge to better defend their colony. We focus on the interaction between the ant Temnothorax longispinosus and the slave-making ant Protomognathus americanus, which conducts destructive raids on host colonies to steal their brood. As a behavioral defense, host colonies show aggression, which has a con…
The ecological success of a social parasite increases with manipulation of collective host behaviour.
Many parasites alter the behaviour of their host to their own advantage, yet hosts often vary in their susceptibility to manipulation. The ecological and evolutionary implications of such variation can be profound, as resistant host populations may suffer lower parasite pressures than those susceptible to manipulation. To test this prediction, we assessed parasite-induced aggressive behaviours across 16 populations of two Temnothorax ant species, many of which harbour the slavemaker ant Protomognathus americanus. This social parasite uses its Dufour's gland secretions to manipulate its hosts into attacking nestmates, which may deter defenders away from itself during invasion. We indeed find…
The influence of slavemaking lifestyle, caste and sex on chemical profiles in Temnothorax ants: insights into the evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons
Chemical communication is central for the formation and maintenance of insect societies. Generally, social insects only allow nest-mates into their colony, which are recognized by their cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs). Social parasites, which exploit insect societies, are selected to circumvent host recognition. Here, we studied whether chemical strategies to reduce recognition evolved convergently in slavemaking ants, and whether they extend to workers, queens and males alike. We studied CHCs of three social parasites and their related hosts to investigate whether the parasitic lifestyle selects for specific chemical traits that reduce host recognition. Slavemaker profiles were characterize…
Collective defence portfolios of ant hosts shift with social parasite pressure
Host defences become increasingly costly as parasites breach successive lines of defence. Because selection favours hosts that successfully resist parasitism at the lowest possible cost, escalating coevolutionary arms races are likely to drive host defence portfolios towards ever more expensive strategies. We investigated the interplay between host defence portfolios and social parasite pressure by comparing 17 populations of two Temnothorax ant species. When successful, collective aggression not only prevents parasitation but also spares host colonies the cost of searching for and moving to a new nest site. However, once parasites breach the host's nest defence, host colonies should resor…
Geographic Variation in Social Parasite Pressure Predicts Intraspecific but not Interspecific Aggressive Responses in Hosts of a Slavemaking Ant
Variation in community composition over a species' geographic range leads to divergent selection pressures, resulting in interpopulation variation in trait expression. One of the most pervasive selective forces stems from antagonists such as parasites. Whereas hosts of microparasites developed sophisticated immune systems, social parasites select for behavioural host defences. Here, we investigated the link between parasite pressure exerted by the socially parasitic slavemaking ant Protomognathus americanus and colony-level aggression in Temnothorax ants from 17 populations. We studied almost the entire geographic range of two host species, including unparasitized populations. As previous s…
Data from: The influence of slavemaking lifestyle, caste and sex on chemical profiles in Temnothorax ants: insights into the evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons
Chemical communication is central for the formation and maintenance of insect societies. Generally, social insects only allow nest-mates into their colony, which are recognized by their cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs). Social parasites, which exploit insect societies, are selected to circumvent host recognition. Here, we studied whether chemical strategies to reduce recognition evolved convergently in slavemaking ants, and whether they extend to workers, queens and males alike. We studied CHCs of three social parasites and their related hosts to investigate whether the parasitic lifestyle selects for specific chemical traits that reduce host recognition. Slavemaker profiles were characterized…
Data from: Collective defence portfolios of ant hosts shift with social parasite pressure
Host defences become increasingly costly as parasites breach successive lines of defence. Because selection favours hosts that successfully resist parasitism at the lowest possible cost, escalating coevolutionary arms races are likely to drive host defence portfolios towards ever more expensive strategies. We investigated the interplay between host defence portfolios and social parasite pressure by comparing 17 populations of two Temnothorax ant species. When successful, collective aggression not only prevents parasitation but also spares host colonies the cost of searching for and moving to a new nest site. However, once parasites breach the host's nest defence, host colonies should resort…