Subject: Re: Mutualism

From: Kevin Tuck <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 9 May 1995 14:38:16 GMT

On Fri, 5 May 1995 10:02:09 -0800,
  KENELM W PHILIP writes:

>        Some Lycaenid larvae coexist with ants. The larvae produce honeydew
>for the ants, and the ants tend the larvae, even moving them from place to
>place. The ants appear to guard the larvae from parasites.
>
>                                                        Ken Philip
>[email-masked]

Lycaenid larvae are not the only lepidoptera to co-exist with ants. A few
years ago I described a new genus of Tortricidae ("Leaf-roller Moths"), the
larvae of which feed on young shoots of giant bamboo. The larvae spin
silken shelters and feed from within these on the surface tissues of young
leaf sheaths. They are attended by ants which touch the larval shelters
with their antennae. In response a larva will extrude its rear end from
its shelter and excrete droplets of a clear liquid containing high
concentrations of carbohydrates; these are readily ingested by the ants.
Young larvae may not have silken shelters but will move freely across the
surface of the bamboo without being attacked by the ants.
--
Kevin Tuck
The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, LONDON, SW7 5BD, UK.
Tel: +44 (0) 171 938 8980.  Fax: 0171-938-8937.
E-mail: JANET: [email-masked]
        INTERNET: [email-masked]

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From: [email-masked] (Marcel Dicke)
Date: 11 May 1995 14:48:18 GMT

Can you give the reference of the paper on the tortricid with mutualistic
interactions with ants?

Marcel.Dicke
[email-masked]

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From: [email-masked] (Charles Younger)
Date: 11 May 1995 22:15:37 GMT

There was a fascinating article relating to this subject in the
  October '92 issue of Scientific American...
 
     Title:  Singing Caterpillars, Ants and Symbiosis   p. 76
 
             "With siren songs and chemical lures, some butterfly 
              caterpillars attract ants to serve as their guardians.
              Those same ants are usually involved in symbioses with
              other insects and plants as well" 
 
    Author:  Philip J. DeVries
 
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 Charles M. Younger
 Philadelphia, PA