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Related Experiment Videos

Superparasitism evolution: adaptation or manipulation?

Sylvain Gandon1, Ana Rivero, Julien Varaldi

  • 1Génétique et Evolution des Maladies Infectieuses, Unité Mixte de Recherche 2724, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, 911 avenue Agropolis, 34394 Montpellier Cedex 5, France. sylvain.gandon@mpl.ird.fr

The American Naturalist
|February 14, 2006
PubMed
Summary

Parasitoid wasps sometimes lay eggs in hosts already containing other eggs, a behavior called superparasitism. This study models how viruses manipulate this behavior, creating conflict and altering parasitoid evolution.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Behavioral ecology
  • Theoretical ecology

Background:

  • Superparasitism, where parasitoid females lay eggs in already parasitized hosts, leads to larval competition.
  • The evolutionary drivers for this seemingly counterintuitive behavior remain incompletely understood.
  • Microparasites can manipulate host behavior to enhance their own transmission.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To model the evolution of superparasitism in solitary parasitoids under resource limitations.
  • To analyze the coevolutionary dynamics between a parasitoid and a virus that manipulates superparasitism.
  • To quantify the conflict arising from virus-induced behavioral manipulation.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a continuous-time mathematical model for host-parasitoid interactions.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analysis of evolutionary stable strategies for parasitoid oviposition behavior.
  • Incorporation of a virus that alters host parasitoid behavior for transmission.

    • Main Results:

    • The model predicts conditions under which superparasitism evolves, considering time and egg constraints.
    • Virus-induced manipulation of superparasitism creates a conflict with the parasitoid's own evolutionary interests.
    • Uninfected parasitoids are predicted to decrease superparasitism after coevolution with the manipulative virus.

    Conclusions:

    • The study provides a theoretical framework for understanding microparasite manipulation of parasitoid life-history traits.
    • Coevolution with manipulative viruses can lead to significant shifts in parasitoid behaviors like superparasitism.
    • The findings offer testable predictions regarding the impact of virus manipulation on parasitoid behavior.