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Attraction of the larval parasitoid Spintherus dubius (Hymenoptera : Pteromalidae) to feces volatiles from the adult apion weevil host

Faraone, N. LU ; Svensson, G. P. LU and Anderbrant, O. LU (2017) In Journal of Insect Behavior 30(1). p.119-129
Abstract

The behavioral response of the larval parasitoid Spintherus dubius (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) to volatile compounds derived from its Apion weevil hosts was investigated in two-choice bioassays. Odor source candidates were the larval and adult stages of weevils, clover flowers, and feces from adult weevils. Despite S. dubius being a larval parasitoid, the odor of weevil larvae isolated from the clover flowers was not attractive to female parasitoids. Surprisingly, S. dubius females were instead attracted by the odor from the feces of adult weevils. The female parasitoids were similarly attracted to the feces produced by the two main hosts, the red clover weevil (A. trifolii) and the white clover weevil (A. fulvipes). Chemical analysis... (More)

The behavioral response of the larval parasitoid Spintherus dubius (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) to volatile compounds derived from its Apion weevil hosts was investigated in two-choice bioassays. Odor source candidates were the larval and adult stages of weevils, clover flowers, and feces from adult weevils. Despite S. dubius being a larval parasitoid, the odor of weevil larvae isolated from the clover flowers was not attractive to female parasitoids. Surprisingly, S. dubius females were instead attracted by the odor from the feces of adult weevils. The female parasitoids were similarly attracted to the feces produced by the two main hosts, the red clover weevil (A. trifolii) and the white clover weevil (A. fulvipes). Chemical analysis of the volatile composition of feces produced by the two hosts revealed qualitatively similar odor profiles, correlating with the observed attraction by the parasitoid towards both odor sources. Some of the identified volatile compounds are commonly present in clover plant headspace fractions and may function as a kairomone to facilitate orientation by S. dubius to Apion-infested clover flowers. Larval and adult weevils were not attractive for parasitoid females, whereas, for the white clover weevil-plant association, infested flowers were highly attractive. These data show the use by the clover weevil parasitoid of an alternative source of olfactory information for locating its host.

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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Apion fulvipes, Apion trifolii, host feces, kairomone, larval parasitoid, oviposition cues
in
Journal of Insect Behavior
volume
30
issue
1
pages
11 pages
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:85011840711
  • pmid:28255198
  • wos:000394450000009
ISSN
0892-7553
DOI
10.1007/s10905-017-9605-5
project
Biological control of insect pests in clover seed crops
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
d9e9bbf4-9f5e-4e57-8975-56c05b9a5b83
date added to LUP
2017-02-23 07:22:07
date last changed
2024-04-14 06:10:02
@article{d9e9bbf4-9f5e-4e57-8975-56c05b9a5b83,
  abstract     = {{<p>The behavioral response of the larval parasitoid Spintherus dubius (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) to volatile compounds derived from its Apion weevil hosts was investigated in two-choice bioassays. Odor source candidates were the larval and adult stages of weevils, clover flowers, and feces from adult weevils. Despite S. dubius being a larval parasitoid, the odor of weevil larvae isolated from the clover flowers was not attractive to female parasitoids. Surprisingly, S. dubius females were instead attracted by the odor from the feces of adult weevils. The female parasitoids were similarly attracted to the feces produced by the two main hosts, the red clover weevil (A. trifolii) and the white clover weevil (A. fulvipes). Chemical analysis of the volatile composition of feces produced by the two hosts revealed qualitatively similar odor profiles, correlating with the observed attraction by the parasitoid towards both odor sources. Some of the identified volatile compounds are commonly present in clover plant headspace fractions and may function as a kairomone to facilitate orientation by S. dubius to Apion-infested clover flowers. Larval and adult weevils were not attractive for parasitoid females, whereas, for the white clover weevil-plant association, infested flowers were highly attractive. These data show the use by the clover weevil parasitoid of an alternative source of olfactory information for locating its host.</p>}},
  author       = {{Faraone, N. and Svensson, G. P. and Anderbrant, O.}},
  issn         = {{0892-7553}},
  keywords     = {{Apion fulvipes; Apion trifolii; host feces; kairomone; larval parasitoid; oviposition cues}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{01}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{119--129}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Journal of Insect Behavior}},
  title        = {{Attraction of the larval parasitoid <i>Spintherus dubius</i> (Hymenoptera : Pteromalidae) to feces volatiles from the adult apion weevil host}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10905-017-9605-5}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s10905-017-9605-5}},
  volume       = {{30}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}