Recent investigations conducted on several tritrophic systems have demonstrated that egg parasitoids, when searching for host eggs, may exploit plant synomones that have been induced as a consequence of host oviposition. In this article we show that, in a system characterized by host eggs embedded in the plant tissue, naive females of the egg parasitoid Anagrus breviphragma Soyka (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) responded in a Y-tube olfactometer to volatiles from leaves of Carex riparia Curtis (Cyperaceae) containing eggs of one of its hosts, Cicadella viridis (L.) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae). The wasp did not respond to host eggs or to clean leaves from non-infested plants compared with clean air, whereas it showed a strong preference for the olfactometer arm containing volatiles of leaves with embedded host eggs, compared with the arm containing volatiles of leaves from a non-infested plant or host eggs extracted from the plant. When the eggs were removed from an infested leaf, the parasitoid preference was observed only if eggs were added aside, suggesting a synergistic effect of a local plant synomone and an egg kairomone. The parasitoid also responded to clean leaves from an egg-infested plant when compared with leaves from a non-infested plant, indicating a systemic effect of volatile induction.
Role of volatile semiochemicals in host location by the egg parasitoid Anagrus breviphragma.
SALERNO, Gianandrea;IACOVONE, ALESSIA;CONTI, Eric
2012
Abstract
Recent investigations conducted on several tritrophic systems have demonstrated that egg parasitoids, when searching for host eggs, may exploit plant synomones that have been induced as a consequence of host oviposition. In this article we show that, in a system characterized by host eggs embedded in the plant tissue, naive females of the egg parasitoid Anagrus breviphragma Soyka (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) responded in a Y-tube olfactometer to volatiles from leaves of Carex riparia Curtis (Cyperaceae) containing eggs of one of its hosts, Cicadella viridis (L.) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae). The wasp did not respond to host eggs or to clean leaves from non-infested plants compared with clean air, whereas it showed a strong preference for the olfactometer arm containing volatiles of leaves with embedded host eggs, compared with the arm containing volatiles of leaves from a non-infested plant or host eggs extracted from the plant. When the eggs were removed from an infested leaf, the parasitoid preference was observed only if eggs were added aside, suggesting a synergistic effect of a local plant synomone and an egg kairomone. The parasitoid also responded to clean leaves from an egg-infested plant when compared with leaves from a non-infested plant, indicating a systemic effect of volatile induction.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
