Open AccessChemical basis of courtship in a beetle (Neopyrochroa flabellata): Cantharidin as "nuptial gift".
Author(s) -
Thomas Eisner,
Scott R. Smedley,
Daniel K. Young,
Maria Eisner,
Braden Roach,
Jerrold Meinwald
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.93.13.6499
Subject(s) - cantharidin , biology , spermatheca , courtship , mating , zoology , larva , insect , toxicology , pest analysis , sperm , ecology , botany
The amount of cantharidin (Spanish fly) that the Neopyrochroa flabellata male presents to the female as a glandular offering during courtship represents only a small fraction of the total cantharidin the male accumulates systemically following ingestion of the compound. A major fraction of the acquired cantharidin is stored by the male in the large accessory glands of the reproductive system. At mating, the male transfers this supply, presumably as part of the sperm package, to the spermatheca of the female. The female in turn allocates the gift to the eggs. Eggs endowed with cantharidin proved relatively invulnerable to attack by a predaceous beetle larva (Coleomegilla maculata).