scholarly journals Food–plant niche selection rather than the presence of ant nests explains oviposition patterns in the myrmecophilous butterfly genus Maculinea

2001 ◽  
Vol 268 (1466) ◽  
pp. 471-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Thomas ◽  
G. W. Elmes
Keyword(s):  
Food Plant ◽  
Ant Nests

scholarly journals MyrmicaAnts and Their Butterfly Parasites with Special Focus on the Acoustic Communication

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Barbero ◽  
D. Patricelli ◽  
M. Witek ◽  
E. Balletto ◽  
L. P. Casacci ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Acoustic Emission ◽  
Acoustic Communication ◽  
Food Plant ◽  
Chemical Mimicry ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Social Parasites ◽  
Ant Nests ◽  
Arthropod Species

About 10,000 arthropod species live as ants' social parasites and have evolved a number of mechanisms allowing them to penetrate and survive inside the ant nests.Myrmicacolonies, in particular, are exploited by numerous social parasites, and the presence of their overwintering brood, as well as of their polygyny, contributes to make them more vulnerable to infestation. Butterflies of the genusMaculineaare among the most investigatedMyrmicainquilines. These lycaenids are known for their very complex biological cycles.Maculineaspecies are obligated parasites that depend on a particular food plant and on a specificMyrmicaspecies for their survival.Maculinealarvae are adopted byMyrmicaants, which are induced to take them into their nests by chemical mimicry. Then the parasite spends the following 11–23 months inside the ants' nest. Mimicking the acoustic emission of the queen ants,Maculineaparasites not only manage to become integrated, but attain highest rank within the colony. Here we review the biology ofMaculinea/Myrmicasystem with a special focus on some recent breakthrough concerning their acoustical patterns.

Form and function in ant nests

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter R. R. Tschinkel
Keyword(s):  
Form And Function ◽  
Ant Nests ◽  
And Function

Jumpstarting Health With a 15-Day Whole-Food Plant-Based Program

2021 ◽  
pp. 155982762110063
Author(s):  
Susan M. Friedman ◽  
Carol Hee Barnett ◽  
Robert Franki ◽  
Bruce Pollock ◽  
Beth Garver ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Systolic Blood Pressure ◽  
Blood Sugar ◽  
Low Density Lipoprotein ◽  
Density Lipoprotein ◽  
Food Plant ◽  
Fasting Blood Sugar ◽  
Average Weight ◽  
Low Density ◽  
Average Drop

The 15-day Jumpstart was developed as an evidence-based, affordable, standardized, replicable, and scalable program, designed to demonstrate quickly to patients that changing what they eat can improve their health. The program was designed using the principles of the self-determination theory of motivation and personality. Patients were instructed to eat an Esselstyn-compliant, whole-food plant-based diet consisting of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes. Of the 389 participants in the program from September 2018 to February 2020, average weight loss was 5.8 pounds (7.3 for those whose body mass index was >30), average systolic blood pressure drop was 6.8 points (16.8 points for those with systolic blood pressure >140), average drop in cholesterol was 26 points (44 points for those with a cholesterol >200), average drop in low-density lipoprotein was 19 points (33 points for those with a low-density lipoprotein >100), and average drop in fasting blood sugar was 5.1 points (28.4 points for those starting in the diabetic range); P value was <.005 for fasting blood sugar and <.001 for all other comparisons. A 15-day program that helps patients adopt an Esselstyn-style whole-food plant-based diet, through education, individualized medical feedback, social support, and facilitated small group work, rapidly improves health.

scholarly journals Chance or Necessity—The Fungi Co−Occurring with Formica polyctena Ants

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 204
Author(s):  
Igor Siedlecki ◽  
Michał Gorczak ◽  
Alicja Okrasińska ◽  
Marta Wrzosek
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Identification ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Its Rdna ◽  
The Other ◽  
Formica Polyctena ◽  
Ant Nests ◽  
Mutualistic Fungi ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
High Diversity ◽  
Better Than

Studies on carton nesting ants and domatia−dwelling ants have shown that ant–fungi interactions may be much more common and widespread than previously thought. Until now, studies focused predominantly on parasitic and mutualistic fungi–ant interactions occurring mostly in the tropics, neglecting less−obvious interactions involving the fungi common in ants’ surroundings in temperate climates. In our study, we characterized the mycobiota of the surroundings of Formica polyctena ants by identifying nearly 600 fungal colonies that were isolated externally from the bodies of F. polyctena workers. The ants were collected from mounds found in northern and central Poland. Isolated fungi were assigned to 20 genera via molecular identification (ITS rDNA barcoding). Among these, Penicillium strains were the most frequent, belonging to eight different taxonomic sections. Other common and widespread members of Eurotiales, such as Aspergillus spp., were isolated very rarely. In our study, we managed to characterize the genera of fungi commonly present on F. polyctena workers. Our results suggest that Penicillium, Trichoderma, Mucor, Schwanniomyces and Entomortierella are commonly present in F. polyctena surroundings. Additionally, the high diversity and high frequency of Penicillium colonies isolated from ants in this study suggest that representatives of this genus may be adapted to survive in ant nests environment better than the other fungal groups, or that they are preferentially sustained by the insects in nests.

scholarly journals Moving apart together: co-movement of a symbiont community and their ant host, and its importance for community assembly

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Parmentier ◽  
R. Claus ◽  
F. De Laender ◽  
D. Bonte
Keyword(s):  
Community Assembly ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Spatial Dynamics ◽  
Joint Movement ◽  
Red Wood Ants ◽  
Ant Nests ◽  
Mobile Species ◽  
Directional Movement ◽  
Wood Ants ◽  
Red Wood Ant

Abstract Background Species interactions may affect spatial dynamics when the movement of one species is determined by the presence of another one. The most direct species-dependence of dispersal is vectored, usually cross-kingdom, movement of immobile parasites, diseases or seeds by mobile animals. Joint movements of species should, however, not be vectored by definition, as even mobile species are predicted to move together when they are tightly connected in symbiont communities. Methods We studied concerted movements in a diverse and heterogeneous community of arthropods (myrmecophiles) associated with red wood ants. We questioned whether joint-movement strategies eventually determine and speed-up community succession. Results We recorded an astonishingly high number of obligate myrmecophiles outside red wood ant nests. They preferentially co-moved with the host ants as the highest densities were found in locations with the highest density of foraging red wood ants, such as along the network of ant trails. These observations suggest that myrmecophiles resort to the host to move away from the nest, and this to a much higher extent than hitherto anticipated. Interestingly, functional groups of symbionts displayed different dispersal kernels, with predatory myrmecophiles moving more frequently and further from the nest than detritivorous myrmecophiles. We discovered that myrmecophile diversity was lower in newly founded nests than in mature red wood ant nests. Most myrmecophiles, however, were able to colonize new nests fast suggesting that the heterogeneity in mobility does not affect community assembly. Conclusions We show that co-movement is not restricted to tight parasitic, or cross-kingdom interactions. Movement in social insect symbiont communities may be heterogeneous and functional group-dependent, but clearly affected by host movement. Ultimately, this co-movement leads to directional movement and allows a fast colonisation of new patches, but not in a predictable way. This study highlights the importance of spatial dynamics of local and regional networks in symbiont metacommunities, of which those of symbionts of social insects are prime examples.

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