Ecological Costs of Alarm Signalling in Aphids
蚜虫警报信号的生态代价
- 关键词：
- 来源：
- Symposium on Aphids
- 类型：
- 会议论文
- 语种：
- 英语
- 原文发布日期：
- 2010-01-01
- 摘要：
- The existence of costs is implicit in the evolution of inducible defences against natural enemies yet attempts to demonstrate such costs have often proved elusive. Ecological costs occur when defence expression results in a change in biotic interactions such that the fitness of the individual expressing the trait is reduced. Aphids have evolved a particular form of inducible anti-predator behaviour that involves the emission of alarm pheromone. This pheromone, whose main component is (E)-β-Farnesene (EBF), is released by individuals attacked by a natural enemy and initiates behavioural responses in other aphid colony members such as escape reactions. We placed colonies of about 250 pea aphids in the field and exposed them daily to artificial EBF or control solvent (hexane). Aphid survival in the experiment was very low mainly due to predation by ants and colonies exposed to artificial EBF showed a reduced survival time (2.35±0.23 days; mean±s.e.) compared to the control treatment (3.51±0.42 days). Our results show that alarm signalling in aphids is associated with the ecological cost of attracting additional natural enemies and demonstrate that a full understanding of the evolution of inducible defences has to consider a species’ complete network of ecological interactions. As EBF, like many other volatile organic compounds mediating organismic interactions, breaks down more quickly at higher ozone levels, global climatic change may result in a change in these interactions.
- 所属专题：
- 60
