Biodiversity, life-history adaptations, and network structure of army ant-symbiont communities

Infection of army ant pupae by two new parasitoid mites (Mesostigmata: Uropodina)

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.3870 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 ◽

pp. e3870 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Adrian Brückner ◽

Hans Klompen ◽

Andrew Iain Bruce ◽

Rosli Hashim ◽

Christoph von Beeren

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Life History Traits ◽

Scientific Discovery ◽

East Asian ◽

Diverse Group ◽

Immature Stages ◽

Infection Rates ◽

Ant Nests ◽

Army Ant ◽

Basic Biology

A great variety of parasites and parasitoids exploit ant societies. Among them are the Mesostigmata mites, a particularly common and diverse group of ant-associated arthropods. While parasitism is ubiquitous in Mesostigmata, parasitoidism has only been described in the genusMacrodinychus. Yet information about the basic biology of mostMacrodinychusspecies is lacking. Out of 24 formally described species, information about basic life-history traits is only available for three species. Here we formally describe two newMacrodinychusspecies, i.e.Macrodinychus hilpertaeandMacrodinychus derbyensis. In both species, immature stages developed as ecto-parasitoids on ant pupae of the South-East Asian army antLeptogenys distinguenda. By piercing the developing ant with their chelicera, the mites apparently suck ant hemolymph, ultimately killing host individuals. We compare infection rates among all studiedMacrodinychusspecies and discuss possible host countermeasures against parasitoidism. The cryptic lifestyle of living inside ant nests has certainly hampered the scientific discovery ofMacrodinychusmites and we expect that many more macrodinychid species await scientific discovery and description.

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Interrelationships of factors of social development are more complex than Life History Theory predicts

Behavioral and Brain Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0140525x19000177 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 42 ◽

Author(s):

Boris Kotchoubey

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Social Development ◽

Life History Theory ◽

Strong Correlations ◽

Behavioral Features

Abstract Life History Theory (LHT) predicts a monotonous relationship between affluence and the rate of innovations and strong correlations within a cluster of behavioral features. Although both predictions can be true in specific cases, they are incorrect in general. Therefore, the author's explanations may be right, but they do not prove LHT and cannot be generalized to other apparently similar processes.

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