TY - JOUR
T1 - Behavioral differences between two ant cricket species in nansei islands
T2 - Host-specialist versus host-generalist
AU - Komatsu, Takashi
AU - Maruyama, M.
AU - Itino, T.
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments We thank M. Hattori and A. Hirao for their comments on the manuscript; S. Shimamoto and H. Nago for their assistance in sampling; F. Ito, S. Inada, M. Sugimoto, Y. Kida, and M. Muramatsu for providing samples (especially M. Sugimoto for advice on the rearing experiments); and the staff of the Yona Field, Subtropical Field Science Center, Faculty of Agriculture, University of the Ryukyus for assistance with the field census. This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid to Fellows of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (No. 19-6495).
PY - 2009/10
Y1 - 2009/10
N2 - Ant crickets (Orthoptera, Myrmecophilidae) are typical ant guests that obtain nourishment from the ants in their nests. Some ant crickets are host-specific, whereas other species are host-generalists. We investigated the behavioral polarization between the specialist cricket Myrmecophilus albicinctus and generalist Myrmecophilus formosanus. In the field, M. albicinctus was found exclusively in nests of Anoplolepis gracilipes (185/185), whereas 62 M. formosanus were found in nests of 9 ant species from 3 subfamilies. Behavioral observations revealed that M. albicinctus could not survive in the absence of A. gracilipes and was killed when it was introduced into colonies of non-host ant species. In addition, M. albicinctus showed intimate behavior, such as trophallaxis, with its host. In contrast, M. formosanus swiftly avoided frequent attacks by host ants, independently took food, and survived well in the absence of ants. Overall, the specialist adapted its behavior and physiology to those of a specific ant host, whereas the generalist adopted versatile parasitic behaviors, such as quick movements. Our findings revealed interspecific polarization in the degree of host dependence and inquiline-host interaction, and they indicate that trade-offs occur between specialization to specific hosts and retention of generalization in order to exploit alternative hosts.
AB - Ant crickets (Orthoptera, Myrmecophilidae) are typical ant guests that obtain nourishment from the ants in their nests. Some ant crickets are host-specific, whereas other species are host-generalists. We investigated the behavioral polarization between the specialist cricket Myrmecophilus albicinctus and generalist Myrmecophilus formosanus. In the field, M. albicinctus was found exclusively in nests of Anoplolepis gracilipes (185/185), whereas 62 M. formosanus were found in nests of 9 ant species from 3 subfamilies. Behavioral observations revealed that M. albicinctus could not survive in the absence of A. gracilipes and was killed when it was introduced into colonies of non-host ant species. In addition, M. albicinctus showed intimate behavior, such as trophallaxis, with its host. In contrast, M. formosanus swiftly avoided frequent attacks by host ants, independently took food, and survived well in the absence of ants. Overall, the specialist adapted its behavior and physiology to those of a specific ant host, whereas the generalist adopted versatile parasitic behaviors, such as quick movements. Our findings revealed interspecific polarization in the degree of host dependence and inquiline-host interaction, and they indicate that trade-offs occur between specialization to specific hosts and retention of generalization in order to exploit alternative hosts.
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U2 - 10.1007/s00040-009-0036-y
DO - 10.1007/s00040-009-0036-y
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:70350378440
VL - 56
SP - 389
EP - 396
JO - Insectes Sociaux
JF - Insectes Sociaux
SN - 0020-1812
IS - 4
ER -