Mechanisms directing host plant selection by leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Attini)
Mechanisms directing host plant selection by leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Attini)
There is an obligate symbiotic relationship between leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex (Hymenoptera; Attini) and the fungus Attamyces bromatificus Kreisel. Leaf-cutting ants forage on leaf material which they transport back to the nest where it is processed to form a substrate on which they cultivate Attamyces. There is much controversy surrounding the influence of each symbiotic partner in the selection of host plant material, especially concerning the role of Attamyces in directing foraging effort. Evidence supporting the hypothesis that the ants avoid plants containing fungicidal compounds has been somewhat contradictory, not the least because many plant secondary chemicals possess both fungicidal and insecticidal properties. By the development of a granular bait, a novel method is described whereby the response of Attamyces bromatificus to fungicidal compounds and its subsequent effect on leaf-cutting ant foraging behaviour is investigated. As a result it is demonstrated that leaf-cutting ants learn to reject plant material that contains chemicals injurious to the fungus.
After an initial period of acceptance, laboratory colonies of the ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa rejected a granular bait containing a fungicidal agent (cycloheximide) and orange peel and subsequently ceased foraging on these granules. Taking into account the chemical and physical properties of these granules this response could only be accounted for by ants responding to a signal released by stressed fungus. Colonies rejecting experimental orange granules also rejected control orange granules containing no cycloheximide indicating that the ants become negatively conditioned to some chemical aspect of orange peel and not cycloheximide. Generalization of this response was observed; colonies rejecting orange granules also rejected grapefruit granules.
University of Southampton
1994
Ridley, Philip Stephen
(1994)
Mechanisms directing host plant selection by leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Attini).
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
There is an obligate symbiotic relationship between leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex (Hymenoptera; Attini) and the fungus Attamyces bromatificus Kreisel. Leaf-cutting ants forage on leaf material which they transport back to the nest where it is processed to form a substrate on which they cultivate Attamyces. There is much controversy surrounding the influence of each symbiotic partner in the selection of host plant material, especially concerning the role of Attamyces in directing foraging effort. Evidence supporting the hypothesis that the ants avoid plants containing fungicidal compounds has been somewhat contradictory, not the least because many plant secondary chemicals possess both fungicidal and insecticidal properties. By the development of a granular bait, a novel method is described whereby the response of Attamyces bromatificus to fungicidal compounds and its subsequent effect on leaf-cutting ant foraging behaviour is investigated. As a result it is demonstrated that leaf-cutting ants learn to reject plant material that contains chemicals injurious to the fungus.
After an initial period of acceptance, laboratory colonies of the ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa rejected a granular bait containing a fungicidal agent (cycloheximide) and orange peel and subsequently ceased foraging on these granules. Taking into account the chemical and physical properties of these granules this response could only be accounted for by ants responding to a signal released by stressed fungus. Colonies rejecting experimental orange granules also rejected control orange granules containing no cycloheximide indicating that the ants become negatively conditioned to some chemical aspect of orange peel and not cycloheximide. Generalization of this response was observed; colonies rejecting orange granules also rejected grapefruit granules.
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Published date: 1994
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Local EPrints ID: 458642
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/458642
PURE UUID: fb9ec577-22af-48be-8882-f1f41433d823
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Date deposited: 04 Jul 2022 16:52
Last modified: 04 Jul 2022 16:52
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Author:
Philip Stephen Ridley
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