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Effects of the ant F ormica fusca on the transmission of microsporidia infecting gypsy moth larvae
Author(s) -
Goertz Dörte,
Hoch Gernot
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
entomologia experimentalis et applicata
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.765
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1570-7458
pISSN - 0013-8703
DOI - 10.1111/eea.12063
Subject(s) - biology , dispar , predation , lymantria dispar , horizontal transmission , microsporidia , larva , host (biology) , population , zoology , ecology , botany , spore , microbiology and biotechnology , virology , entamoeba histolytica , virus , demography , sociology
Transmission plays an integral part in the intimate relationship between a host insect and its pathogen that can be altered by abiotic or biotic factors. The latter include other pathogens, parasitoids, or predators. Ants are important species in food webs that act on various levels in a community structure. Their social behavior allows them to prey on and transport larger prey, or they can dismember the prey where it was found. Thereby they can also influence the horizontal transmission of a pathogen in its host's population. We tested the hypothesis that an ant species like F ormica fusca L . ( H ymenoptera: F ormicidae) can affect the horizontal transmission of two microsporidian pathogens, N osema lymantriae W eiser ( M icrosporidia: N osematidae) and V airimorpha disparis ( T imofejeva) ( M icrosporidia: B urenellidae), infecting the gypsy moth, L ymantria dispar L . ( L epidoptera: E rebidae: L ymantriinae). Observational studies showed that uninfected and infected L . dispar larvae are potential prey items for F . fusca . Laboratory choice experiments led to the conclusion that F . fusca did not prefer L . dispar larvae infected with N . lymantriae and avoided L . dispar larvae infected with V . disparis over uninfected larvae when given the choice. Experiments carried out on small potted oak, Q uercus petraea ( M attuschka) L iebl. ( F agaceae), saplings showed that predation of F . fusca on infected larvae did not significantly change the transmission of either microsporidian species to L . dispar test larvae. Microscopic examination indicated that F . fusca workers never became infected with N . lymantriae or V . disparis after feeding on infected prey.