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Response of the Aphid Parasitoid Aphidius funebris to Volatiles from Undamaged and Aphid-infested Centaurea nigra

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Abstract

Two issues have hindered the understanding of the ecology and evolution of volatile-mediated tritrophic interactions: few studies have addressed noncrop systems; and few statistical techniques have been applied that are suitable for the analysis of complex volatile blends. In this paper, we addressed both of these issues by studying the noncrop system involving the plant Centaurea nigra, the specialist aphid Uroleucon jaceae, and the parasitoid Aphidius funebris. In a Y-tube olfactometer, A. funebris was attracted to the odor from undamaged C. nigra, but preferred the plant–host complex (PHC) after 3 d of feeding by 200 U. jaceae over the undamaged plant, but not after three or 5 d of feeding by 50 U. jaceae. When aphids were removed, the initial preference for the damaged plant remained, but the final preference was not greater than for the undamaged plant. No qualitative differences were detected between the headspaces of C. nigra and the C. nigra–U. jaceae PHC. For quantitative analysis, we used a compositional approach, which treats each compound produced as part of a blend, and not as a compound released in isolation, thus allowing analysis of the relative contribution of each compound to the blend as a whole. With this approach, subtle increases and decreases of some green leaf volatiles and monoterpenoids on the third day of aphid infestation were detected. Mechanically damaged C. nigra had a volatile profile that differed from undamaged C. nigra and the PHC. One and 10 ng of (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, and 10 or 100 ng of 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one were attractive to the parasitoid when placed in solution on filter paper. A. funebris appears to be using a combination of chemical cues to locate host-infested plants.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to K. Chamberlain, L. Wadhams, and M. Borges for providing help with the chemical analyses, J. Aldrich for providing synthetic standards, V. Brown for advice on the experiments, G. Piaggio for statistical advice and comments on previous versions of the manuscript, and M. Torrance and K. Plumb for help in rearing. We thank two anonymous reviewers and M. Hilker for valuable comments during the review process. This work was funded by a Lawes Trust–University of Reading award to MP. Rothamsted Research receives grant-aided support from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) of the United Kingdom.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plant and Invertebrate Ecology Division, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK

    Martín Pareja & Wilf Powell

  2. Recursos Genéticos e Biotecnologia, EMBRAPA, Parque Estação Biológica, PqEB, Final W5/Norte, Asa Norte, CEP 70770-900, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil

    Martín Pareja & Maria C. B. Moraes

  3. Biomathematics and Bioinformatics Division, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK

    Suzanne J. Clark

  4. Biological Chemistry Division, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK

    Michael A. Birkett

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  1. Martín Pareja
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Correspondence to Martín Pareja.

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Pareja, M., Moraes, M.C.B., Clark, S.J. et al. Response of the Aphid Parasitoid Aphidius funebris to Volatiles from Undamaged and Aphid-infested Centaurea nigra . J Chem Ecol 33, 695–710 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-007-9260-y

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