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Interaction between Mutualisms: Ant-tended butterflies exploit enemy-free space provided by ant-treehopper
Lucas A Kaminski1, André V L Freitas, Paulo S Oliveira
1Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil.
The American Naturalist
|July 22, 2010
Summary
Ant-tended treehoppers create enemy-free space, benefiting butterfly caterpillars. Butterflies prefer to lay eggs on plants with treehoppers, improving offspring survival by reducing natural enemies.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Mutualism
- Insect behavior
Background:
- Indirect effects in mutualistic systems are understudied.
- Ant-tended insects' impact on plant-herbivore interactions is rarely examined.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate indirect effects of co-occurring ant-tended treehoppers on butterfly survival.
- Assess host plant selection and caterpillar survival of Parrhasius polibetes in relation to ant-treehopper mutualisms.
Main Methods:
- Paired trials comparing butterfly oviposition on branches with and without ant-treehopper associations.
- Evaluation of caterpillar survival in the presence and absence of treehoppers.
Main Results:
- Butterflies (Parrhasius polibetes) preferentially oviposit on branches with ant-tended treehoppers (Guayaquila xiphias).
- Treehoppers reduce natural enemy abundance, enhancing caterpillar survival on Schefflera vinosa shrubs.
- Ant-tended treehoppers create an enemy-free space utilized by butterflies for larval protection.
Conclusions:
- Co-occurring ant-tended treehoppers provide a survival advantage for butterfly larvae.
- This interaction highlights the importance of considering multiple mutualisms in ant-plant-herbivore systems.
- Exploiting ant-based mutualisms for oviposition may have driven host plant selection in butterflies.
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