6533b856fe1ef96bd12b1cad
RESEARCH PRODUCT
The carabid Pterostichus melanarius uses chemical cues for opportunistic predation and saprophagy but not for finding healthy prey
Giulio BaroneGiulio BaroneGábor L. LöveiMarco Ferrantesubject
insect behaviour0106 biological sciencesArtificial caterpillar Choice test Ground beetle Insect behaviour Scavenging Sentinel prey010603 evolutionary biology01 natural scienceslaw.inventionPredationground beetleSaprophagylawCabbage mothartificial caterpillarCaterpillarPredatorLarvabiologyEcologychoice testscavengingbiology.organism_classificationsentinel prey010602 entomologyAnimal ecologyInsect SciencePlasticineAgronomy and Crop Sciencedescription
The sentinel prey method can quantify predation pressure in various habitats. Real prey is assumed to more realistically mimic the predator experience but the predator can rarely be identified. Artificial prey made of plasticine may lack real chemical cues, but provides information about predator identity. However, the relationship between predation pressure registered by artificial versus real prey is not clear. We tested the relative attractiveness of artificial caterpillars, and intact, wounded, or dead larvae of the cabbage moth (Mamestra brassicae) for the carabid predator Pterostichus melanarius Illiger (Coleoptera: Carabidae). P. melanarius adults were attracted to dead caterpillars more than to live or wounded ones. Coating artificial caterpillars with caterpillar haemolymph increased their attractiveness. However, predators were not attracted more to healthy, real caterpillars than to “untreated” artificial ones. We conclude that using artificial caterpillars does not underestimate predation pressure by this carabid on healthy caterpillars.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-07-04 |