Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Ectaheteromorph ants also host highly diverse parasitic communities: a review of parasitoids of the Neotropical genus Ectatomma

  • Review Article
  • Published:
Insectes Sociaux Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Despite the diversity of ant-myrmecophile associations, there are few examples of primary parasitism of ants and these are poorly documented, particularly in genera with only a few species such as the genus Ectatomma. We identified 18 associations that involve at least 16 taxa of primary parasitoids distributed in three families belonging to two invertebrate classes, and five of the 15 valid Ectatomma species. Among these, we report for the first time an endoparasitoid fly (probably a phorid) that attacks E. ruidum larvae and constitutes the second record of ant-larva endoparasitism by a dipteran. We provide a brief account of the interactions of these organisms with their hosts and their possible impact at the colonial or population level. Ectatomma ants, though being a small group, serve as a remarkable resource for the evolution of a wide variety of parasitoid organisms which, comparatively, are much more important than those associated with better-studied ant genera such as Myrmica or Formica. Considering the lack of studies dedicated to their parasites and parasitoids, the available information (almost limited to the three most studied Ectatomma species) suggests that, in spite of both their carnivorous diet and the aggressiveness typical of their workers, the diversity of these associations with Ectatomma might be much more important than previously expected. We stress the urgency of performing detailed inventories focused on these associations, not only for the genus Ectatomma, but for all the poorly studied ant communities (ectaheteromorphs, poneromorphs, arboreal ants) and endangered species.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • AntWeb. Available from http://www.antweb.org. Accessed 17 November 2014

  • Arias-Penna T.M. 2008. Subfamilia Ectatomminae. In: Sistemática, Biogeografía y Conservación de las Hormigas Cazadoras de Colombia (Jiménez E., Fernández F., Arias T.M. and Lozano-Zambrano F.H., Eds), Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Bogotá. pp 53–107

  • Baker G.L. and Poinar G.O. Jr. 1995. Agamermis catadecaudata n. sp. (Nematoda: Mermithidae), a parasitoid of Orthoptera in south-eastern Australia. Fundam. Appl. Nematol. 18: 139–148

  • Bolton B. 2003. Synopsis and classification of Formicidae. Mem. Am. Entomol. Inst. 71: 1–370

  • Brady S.G., Schultz T.R., Fisher B.L. and Ward P.S. 2006. Evaluating alternative hypotheses for the early evolution and diversification of ants. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 103: 18172–18177

  • Breed M.D., Cook C. and Krasnec M.O. 2012. Cleptobiosis in social insects. Psyche 2012: Article ID 484765, 7 pages

  • Brown B.V. 2000. Revision of the “Apocephalus miricauda-group” of ant-parasitizing flies (Diptera: Phoridae). Contrib. Sci. 482: 1–62

  • Brown B.V. and Feener D.H. Jr. 1991. Behavior and host location cues of Apocephalus paraponerae (Diptera: Phoridae), a parasitoid of the giant tropical ant, Paraponera clavata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Biotropica 23: 182–187

  • Brown B.V. and Feener D.H. Jr. 1998. Parasitic phorid flies (Diptera: Phoridae) associated with army ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Ecitoninae, Dorylinae) and their conservation biology. Biotropica 30: 482–487

  • Brown B.V., Bragança M.A.L., Gomes D.S., Queiros J.M. and Teixeira M.C. 2012. Parasitoid phorid flies (Diptera: Phoridae) from the threatened leafcutter ant Atta robusta Borgmeier (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 3385: 33–38

  • Brown W.L. Jr. 1958. Contributions toward a reclassification of the Formicidae. II. Tribe Ectatommini (Hymenoptera). Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. 118: 175–362

  • Carey B., Visscher K. and Heraty J. 2012. Nectary use for gaining access to an ant host by the parasitoid Orasema simulatrix (Hymenoptera, Eucharitidae). J. Hym. Res. 27: 47–65

  • Clausen C.P. 1941. The habits of the Eucharidae. Psyche 48: 57–69

  • Cockerell T.D.A. 1909. A new braconid of the genus Elasmosoma. Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 10: 168–169

  • Coman D. 1953. Mermithide freatice în fauna Republicii Populare România, Studii cercet. ştiinţ. 4: 123–152

  • Cook O.F. 1904. Notes on the habits of the Kelep, or Guatemalan cotton-boll-weevil ant. USDA Bull. # 49, pp 15

  • Cook O.F. 1905. The social organization and breeding habits of the cotton-protecting Kelep of Guatemala. USDA Techn. Ser. 10: 1–55

  • Coovert G.A. 2005. The ants of Ohio (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Ohio Biol. Survey Bull. N.S. 15: 1–196

  • Csősz S. 2012. Nematode infection as significant source of unjustified taxonomic descriptions in ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecol. News 17: 27–31

  • Csősz S. and Majoros G. 2009. Ontogenic origin of mermithogenic Myrmica phenotypes (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Insect. Soc. 56: 70–76

  • Czechowski W., Czechowska W. and Radchenko A. 2007a. Strikingly malformed host morphology: Myrmica rugulosa Nyl. and Myrmica sabuleti Mein. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) parasitised by mermithid nematodes. Fragm. Faun. 50: 139–148

  • Czechowski W., Radchenko A. and Czechowska W. 2007b. Mermithid infestation strikingly alters the morphology of Myrmica rubra (L.) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): possible taxonomical involvements. Ann. Zool. 57: 325–330

  • Darling D.C. 2009. A new species of Smicromorpha (Hymenoptera, Chalcididae) from Vietnam, with notes on the host association of the genus. ZooKeys 20: 155–163

  • Davidson D.W. and Fisher B.L. 1991. Symbiosis of ants with Cecropia as a function of light regime. In: Ant—Plant Interactions (Huxley C.R. and Cutler D.F., Eds), Oxford University Press, Oxford. pp 289-309

  • Disney R.H.L. 1979. Natural history notes on some British Phoridae (Diptera) with comments on a changing picture. Entomol. Gaz. 30: 140–150

  • Disney R.H.L. 1994. Scuttle Flies: The Phoridae. Chapman and Hall, London

  • Disney R.H.L. 2000. Revision of European Pseudacteon Coquillet (Diptera, Phoridae). Bonn. Zool. Beitr. 49: 79–91

  • Disney R.H.L. 2002. Revisionary notes and new key to Aenigmatias Meinert (Diptera, Phoridae). Fragm. Faun. 45: 67–72

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1910. Myrmecophilous notes for 1909. Entomol. Rec. J. Var. 22: 15–17

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1913a. Aenigmatias blattoides Meinert, captured in Scotland. Entomol. Rec. J. Var. 25: 277–278

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1913b. Rare myrmecophilous Diptera. Proc. Entomol. Soc. Lond. 1913: lxxv-lxxvi.

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1914. Some notes on the genera Platyphora and Aenigmatias and a species new to Britain. Entomol. Rec. J. Var. 26: 276–278

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1915. British Ants, Their Life-History & Classification. William Brendon and Son Limited, Plymouth

  • Donisthorpe H.St.J.K. 1927. The Guests of British Ants: Their Habits and Life-Histories. G. Routledge and Sons, London

  • Dupont S. and Pape T. 2007. Fore tarsus attachment device of the male scuttle fly, Aenigmatias lubbockii. J. Insect Sci. 7:54.

  • Eggleton P. and Belshaw R. 1992. Insect parasitoids: an evolutionary overview. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B 337: 1–20

  • Eggleton P. and Gaston K.J. 1990. “Parasitoid” species and assemblages: convenient definitions or misleading compromises? Oikos 59: 417–421

  • Emery C. 1890. Studii sulle formiche della fauna neotropica. I. Formiche di Costa Rica. Boll. Soc. Entomol. Ital. 22: 33–80

  • Fahringer J. 1936. Opuscula braconologica. Band 4. Palaearktischen Region. Lieferung 1-3. Opusc. Braconol. 1935: 1–276

  • Falk S.J. and Chandler P.J. 2005. A review of the scarce and threatened flies of Great Britain. Part 2: Nematocera and Aschiza not dealt with by Falk (1991). Species Status 2: 1–189

  • Feener D.H. Jr. 2000. Is the assembly of ant communities mediated by parasitoids? Oikos 90: 79–88

  • Feener D.H. Jr. and Brown B.V. 1997. Diptera as parasitoids. Annu. Rev. Entomol. 42: 73–97

  • Feener D.H. Jr., Jacobs L.F. and Schmidt J.O. 1996. Specialized parasitoids attracted to a pheromone of ants. Anim. Behav. 51: 61–66

  • Fénéron R., Poteaux C., Boilève M., Valenzuela J. and Savarit F. 2013. Discrimination of the social parasite Ectatomma parasiticum by its host sibling species (E. tuberculatum). Psyche 2013: Article ID 573541, 11 pages

  • Fernández F. 1991. Las hormigas cazadoras de género Ectatomma (Formicidae: Ponerinae) en Colombia. Caldasia 16: 551–564

  • Folgarait P.J. 2013. Leaf-cutter ant parasitoids: current knowledge. Psyche 2013: Article ID 539780, 10 pages

  • Forel A. 1874. Les fourmis de la Suisse. Systématique. Notices anatomiques et physiologiques. Architecture. Distribution géographique. Nouvelles expériences et observations de moeurs. Neue Denkschriften der Allgemeinen Schweizerischen Gesellschaft für di gesammten Naturwissenschaften 26: 1–452

  • Forel A. 1890. Un parasite de la Myrmecia forficata Fabr. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Belg. 34: 8–10

  • Gahan A.B. 1940. A contribution to the knowledge of the Eucharidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea). Proc. U.S. Natl Mus. 88: 425–458

  • Gaston K.J. 1991. The magnitude of global insect species richness. Conserv. Biol. 5: 283–296

  • Gaulle J. de 1907. Catalogue systématique & biologique des Hyménoptères de France, suite. Feuille Jeunes Nat. 37: 185–189

  • Giraud J. 1871. Note sur l’Elasmosoma berolinense et description d’une espèce nouvelle (viennense) du même genre. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 1871: 299–302

  • Goater T.M., Goater C.P. and Esch G.W. 2014. Parasitism: The Diversity and Ecology of Animal Parasites, 2nd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambrige

  • Godfray H.C.J. 1994. Parasitoids: Behavioral and Evolutionary Ecology. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey

  • Godfray H.C.J. 2007. Parasitoids. In: Encyclopedia of Biodiversity (Levin S. Ed.), Academic Press. pp 1–13

  • Gómez Durán J.-M. and van Achterberg C. 2011. Oviposition behaviour of four ant parasitoids (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Euphorinae, Neoneurini and Ichneumonidae, Hybrizontinae), with the description of three new European species. ZooKeys 125: 59–106

  • González C.T., Wcislo W.T., Wheeler T., Cambra R. and Fernández-Marín H. 2014. Pseudogaurax sp. (Chloropidae) a novel ectoparasitoid fly to ants, attacking the fungus-growing ant, Apterostigma dentigerum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). In: Memorias 41° Congreso de la Sociedad Colombiana de Entomología (Rodríguez J., Ed.), SOCOLEN 2014, Cali, Colombia. p. 40

  • González V.V.E., Gómez L.L.A., and Mesa C.N.C. 2004. Observaciones sobre la biología y comportamiento del ácaro Macrodinychus sellnicki (Mesostigmata: Uropidae) ectoparasitoide de la hormiga loca Paratrechina fulva (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Rev. Colomb. Entomol. 30: 143–149

  • Gösswald K. 1930. Weitere Beiträge zur Verbreitung der Mermithiden bei Ameisen. Zool. Anz. 90: 13–21

  • Gösswald K. 1934. Über Ameisengäste und –schmarotzer des mittleren Maingebiets. Entomol. Z. 48: 125–127

  • Gösswald K. 1938. Über bisher unbekannte, durch den Parasitismus der Mermithiden (Nemat.) verursachte Formveränderungen bei Ameisen. Z. Parasit. 10: 138–151

  • Gösswald K. 1950. Pflege des Ameisenparasiten Tamiclea globula Meig. (Dipt.) durch den Wirt mit Bemerkungen über den Stoffwechsel in der parasitierten Ameise. Verhandl. Deutsch. Zool. 1949: 256–264

  • Guénard B., Weiser M.D. and Dunn R.R. 2012. Global models of ant diversity suggest regions where new discoveries are most likely are under disproportionate deforestation threat. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 109: 7368–7373

  • Hagmeier A. 1912. Beitrage zur Kenntnis der Mermithiden. I. Biologische Notizen und systematische Bechreibung einiger alter und neuer Arten. Zool. Jahrb. Abt. Syst. Geogr. Biol. Tiere 32: 521–612

  • Hamilton A.J., Basset Y., Benke K.K., Grimbacher P.S., Miller S.E., Novotný V., Samuelson G.A., Stork N.E., Weible G.D. and Yen J.D.L. 2010. Quantifying uncertainty in estimation of tropical arthropod species richness. Am. Nat. 176: 90–95

  • Heraty J.M. 1998. The genus Dilocantha (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae). Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 100: 72–87

  • Heraty J.M. 2002. A revision of the genera of Eucharitidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) of the world. Mem. Am. Entomol. Inst. 68: 1–367

  • Heraty J.M. 2009. Parasitoid biodiversity and insect pest management. In: Insect Biodiversity: Science and Society (Foottit R.G. and Adler P.H. Eds), Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester. pp 445–462

  • Hölldobler B. and Wilson E.O. 1990. The Ants. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts

  • Howard R.W., Pérez-Lachaud G. and Lachaud J.-P. 2001. Cuticular hydrocarbons of Kapala sulcifacies (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae) and its host, the ponerine ant Ectatomma ruidum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 94: 707–716

  • Huddleston T. 1976. A revision of Elasmosoma Ruthe (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) with two new species from Mongolia. Ann. Hist.-Nat. Mus. Nation. Hung. 68: 215–225

  • Hughes D.P., Pierce N.E. and Boomsma J.J. 2008. Social insect symbionts: evolution in homeostatic fortresses. Trends Ecol. Evol. 23: 672–677

  • Ibarra-Núñez G., García J.A., López J.A. and Lachaud J.-P. 2001. Prey analysis in the diet of some ponerine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and web-building spiders (Araneae) in coffee plantations in Chiapas, Mexico. Sociobiology 37: 723–755

  • Jaffe K., Pavis C., Vansuyt G. and Kermarrec A. 1989. Ants visit extrafloral nectaries of the orchid Spathoglotis plicata Blume. Biotropica 21: 278–279

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kathirithamby J. 2009. Host-parasitoid associations in Strepsiptera. Annu. Rev. Entomol. 54: 227–249

  • Keller L. 1995. Parasites, worker polymorphism, and queen number in social insects. Am. Nat. 145: 842–847

  • Kistner D.H. 1982. The social insects’ bestiary. In: Social Insects, vol. 3 (Hermann H.R. Ed.), Academic Press, New York, New York. pp 1–244

  • Kloft W. 1949. Ü-ber den Einfluss von Mermisparasitismus auf den Stoffwechsel und die Organbildung bei Ameisen. Z. Parasit. 14: 390–422

  • Komatsu T. and Konishi K. 2010. Parasitic behaviors of two ant parasitoid wasps (Ichneumonidae: Hybrizontinae). Sociobiology 56: 575–584

  • Lachaud J.-P. and Pérez-Lachaud G. 2009. Impact of natural parasitism by two eucharitid wasps on a potential biocontrol agent ant in southeastern Mexico. Biol. Control 48: 92–99

  • Lachaud J.-P. and Pérez-Lachaud G. 2012. Diversity of species and behavior of hymenopteran parasitoids of ants: a review. Psyche 2012: Article ID 134746, 24 pages

  • Lachaud J.-P., Cerdan P. and Pérez-Lachaud G. 2012a. Poneromorph ants associated with parasitoid wasps of the genus Kapala Cameron (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae) in French Guiana. Psyche 2012: Article ID 393486, 6 pages

  • Lachaud J.-P., Lenoir A. and Hughes D.P. (eds.). 2013. Ants and Their Parasites 2013. Psyche Special Issue. Hindawi Publishing Corporation, New York, New York

  • Lachaud J.-P., Lenoir A. and Witte V. (eds.). 2012b. Ants and Their Parasites. Psyche Special Issue. Hindawi Publishing Corporation, New York, New York

  • Lachaud J.-P., López Méndez J.A., Schatz B., De Carli P. and Beugnon G. 1996. Comparison de l’impact de prédation de deux ponérines du genre Ectatomma dans un agroécosystème néotropical. Actes Coll. Insect. Soc. 10: 67–74

  • Lachaud J.-P., Pérez-Lachaud G. and Heraty J.M. 1998. Parasites associated with the ponerine ant Ectatomma tuberculatum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): First host record for the genus Dilocantha (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae). Fla Entomol. 81: 570–574

  • Lapola D.M., Antonialli Júnior W.F. and Giannotti E. 2003. Arquitetura de ninhos da formiga neotropical Ectatomma brunneum F. Smith, 1858 (Formicidae, Ponerinae) em ambientes alterados. Rev. Bras. Zooci. 5: 177–188

  • Le Breton J., Takaku G. and Tsuji K. 2006. Brood parasitism by mites (Uropodidae) in an invasive population of the pest-ant Pheidole megacephala. Insect. Soc. 53: 168–171

  • Lima L.D. and Antonialli-Junior W.F. 2013. Foraging strategies of the ant Ectatomma vizottoi (Hymenoptera, Formicidae). Rev. Bras. Entomol. 57: 392–396

  • Longino J. 2014. AntWeb. Available from: http://www.antweb.org/specimen.do?name=jtl022350. Accessed 17 November 2014.

  • Marshall T.A. 1899. I. A monograph of British Braconidae. Part VIII. Trans. Entomol. Soc. Lond. 47: 1–79

  • Moreau C.S. and Bell C.D. 2013. Testing the museum versus cradle tropical biological diversity hypothesis: phylogeny, diversification, and ancestral biogeographic range evolution of the ants. Evolution 67: 2240–2257

  • Morehead S.A. and Feener D.H. Jr. 2000a. An experimental test of potential host range in the ant parasitoid Apocephalus paraponerae. Ecol. Entomol. 25: 332–340

  • Morehead S.A. and Feener Jr. D.H. 2000b. Visual and chemical cues used in host location and acceptance by a dipteran parasitoid. J. Insect Behav. 13: 613–625

  • Morehead S.A., Seger J., Feener Jr. D.H. Jr. and Brown B.V. 2001. Evidence for a cryptic species complex in the ant parasitoid Apocephalus paraponerae (Diptera: Phoridae). Evol. Ecol. Res. 3: 273–284

  • Morley C. 1909. Notes on Braconidae, X.: On the Pachylommatinae, with descriptions of new species. Entomol. Month. Mag. 45: 209–214

  • Muesebeck C.F.W. 1941. A new ant parasite (Hymenoptera, Braconidae). Bull. Brooklyn Entomol. Soc. 36: 200–201

  • Naug D. and Camazine S. 2002. The role of colony organization on pathogen transmission in social insects. J. Theor. Biol. 215: 427–439

  • Nickle W.R. and Jouvenaz D.P. 1987. Tetradonema solenopsis n. sp. (Nematoda: Tetradenomatidae) parasitic on the red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta Buren from Brazil. J. Nematol. 19: 311–313

  • Olivier E. 1893. Notes entomologiques. Bull. Séanc. Bull. Bibliogr. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 1: lxx-lxxi

  • Parmentier T., Dekoninck W. and Wenseleers T. 2014. A highly diverse microcosm in a hostile world: a review on the associates of red wood ants (Formica rufa group). Insect. Soc. 61: 229–237

  • Passera L. 1976. Origine des intercastes dans les sociétés de Pheidole pallidula (Nyl.) (Hymenoptera Formicidae) parasitées par Mermis sp. (Nematoda Mermithidae). Insect. Soc. 23: 559–576

  • Passera L., Lachaud J.-P. and Gomel L. 1994. Individual food source fidelity in the neotropical ponerine ant Ectatomma ruidum Roger (Hymenoptera Formicidae). Ethol. Ecol. Evol. 6: 13–21

  • Pérez-Lachaud G. and Lachaud J.-P. 2014. Arboreal ant colonies as ‘hot-points’ of cryptic diversity for myrmecophiles: the weaver ant Camponotus sp. aff. textor and its interaction network with its associates. PLoS ONE 9:e100155.

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., Gates M.W. and Lachaud J.-P. 2013. New host record for Camponotophilus delvarei (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae), a parasitoid of microdontine larvae (Diptera: Syrphidae), associated with the ant Camponotus sp. aff. textor. Psyche 2013: Article ID 230601, 6 pages

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., Heraty J.M., Carmichael A. and Lachaud J.-P. 2006a. Biology and behavior of Kapala (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae) attacking Ectatomma, Gnamptogenys, and Pachycondyla (Formicidae: Ectatomminae and Ponerinae) in Chiapas, Mexico. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 99: 567–576

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., Jervis M.A., Reemer M. and Lachaud J.-P. 2014. An unusual, but not unexpected, evolutionary step taken by syrphid flies: the first record of true primary parasitoidism of ants by Microdontinae. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 111: 462–472

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., López-Méndez J.A. and Lachaud J.-P. 2006b. Eucharitid parasitism of the Neotropical ant Ectatomma tuberculatum: parasitoid co-occurrence, seasonal variation, and multiparasitism. Biotropica 38: 574–576

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., López-Méndez J.A., Beugnon G., Winterton P. and Lachaud J.-P. 2010. High prevalence but relatively low impact of two eucharitid parasitoids attacking the Neotropical ant Ectatomma tuberculatum (Olivier). Biol. Control 52: 131–139

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., Noyes J. and Lachaud J.-P. 2012. First record of an encyrtid wasp (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) as a true primary parasitoid of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Fla Entomol. 95: 1066–1076

  • Pérez-Lachaud G., Valenzuela J.E. and Lachaud J.-P. 2011. Is increased resistance to parasitism at the origin of polygyny in a Mexican population of the ant Ectatomma tuberculatum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)? Fla Entomol. 94: 677–684

  • Philpott S.M., Perfecto I., Vandermeer J. and Uno S. 2009. Spatial scale and density dependence in a host parasitoid system: an arboreal ant, Azteca instabilis, and its Pseudacteon phorid parasitoid. Environ. Entomol. 38: 790–796

  • Pie M.R. 2004. Foraging ecology and behaviour of the ponerine ant Ectatomma opaciventre Roger in a Brazilian savannah. J. Nat. Hist. 38: 717–729

  • Poinar G. Jr. 2004. Behaviour and development of Elasmosoma sp. (Neoneurinae: Braconidae: Hymenoptera), an endoparasite of Formica ants (Formicidae: Hymenoptera). Parasitol. 128: 521–531

  • Poinar G. Jr. 2012. Nematode parasites and associates of ants: past and present. Psyche 2012: Article ID 192017, 13 pages

  • Poinar G. Jr. and Yanoviak S.P. 2008. Myrmeconema neotropicum n. g., n. sp., a new tetradonematid nematode parasitising South American populations of Cephalotes atratus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with the discovery of an apparent parasite-induced host morph. Syst. Parasitol. 69: 145–153

  • Poinar Jr. G., Lachaud J.-P., Castillo A. and Infante F. 2006. Recent and fossil nematode parasites (Nematoda: Mermithidae) of Neotropical ants. J. Invertebr. Pathol. 91: 19–26

  • Poteaux C., Prada-Achiardi F.C., Fernández F. and Lachaud J.-P. (in press). Diversidade genética e fenotípica no gênero Ectatomma. In: Poneromorfas do Brasil (Delabie J.H.C., Feitosa R., Serrão J.E., Mariano C. and Majer J., Eds)

  • Quicke D.L.J. 1997. Parasitic Wasps. Chapman and Hall, London

  • Rettenmeyer C.W., Rettenmeyer M.E., Joseph J. and Berghoff S.M. 2011. The largest animal association centered on one species: the army ant Eciton burchellii and its more than 300 associates. Insect. Soc. 58: 281–292

  • Reuter O.M. 1913. Lebensgewohnheiten und Instinkte der Insekten bis zum Erwachen der Sozialen Instinkte. R. Friedländer & Sohn, Berlin

  • Rocha F.H., Lachaud J.-P. and Pérez-Lachaud G. 2014. Fine individual specialization and elitism among workers of the ant Ectatomma tuberculatum for a highly specific task: intruder removal. Ethology 120: 1185–1198

  • Ruschka F. 1924. Die europäisch-mediterranen Eucharidinae und Perilampinae. (Hym. Chalc.). [Der Chalcididenstudien IV. und V. Teil.]. Deutsche Entomol. Z. 41: 82–96

  • Ruthe J.F. 1858. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Braconiden. Berl. Entomol. Z. 2: 1–10

  • Schmid-Hempel P. 1998. Parasites in Social Insects. Monographs in Behavior and Ecology. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey

  • Schmiedeknecht O. 1914. Die Schlupfwespen (Ichneumonidea). In: Die Insekten Mitteleuropas insbesondere Deutschlands. Zweiter Band. Hymenopteren Zweiter Teil (Schröder C., Ed.), Franckh’sche Verlagshanlung, Stuttgart, Germany. pp 113–256

  • Schmitz H. 1914. Die myrmecophilen Phoriden der Wasmann’schen Sammlung. Zool. Jahrb. 37: 509–566

  • Schmitz H. 1941. Zwei neue Aenigmatistes aus Abessinien, nebst einem Verzeichnis aller bisher beschriebenen Aenigmatiinae. Natuurhist. Maandbl. 30: 104–108

  • Shaw S.R. 1992. Seven new North American species of Neoneurus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 94: 26–47

  • Shaw S.R. 1993. Observations on the ovipositional behavior of Neoneurus mantis, an ant-associated parasitoid from Wyoming (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). J. Insect Behav. 6: 649–658

  • Shaw S.R. 2007. A new species of Elasmosoma Ruthe (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Neoneurinae) from the northwestern United States associated with the western thatching ants, Formica obscuripes Forel and Formica obscuriventris clivia Creighton (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 109: 1–8

  • Tang C., Gu J., Li Q. 1999. Observation on the mermithid larvae from Formica gagates and Amphimermis chinensis in ant colony soil in Korquing pasture of inner Mongolia. Sichuan J. Zool. 18: 152–156

  • Tobias V.I. 1971. Obzor naezdnikov-brakonid (Hymenoptera) fauny SSSR. Trud. Vsesoy. Entomol. Obshch. 54: 156–268

  • Torréns J. 2013. A review of the biology of Eucharitidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) from Argentina. Psyche 2013: Article ID 926572, 14 pages

  • Torréns J. and Heraty J.M. 2012. Description of the species of Dicoelothorax Ashmead (Chalcidoidea, Eucharitidae) and biology of D. platycerus Ashmead. ZooKeys 165: 33–46

  • Vandel A. 1930. La production d’intercastes chez la fourmi Pheidole pallidula sous l’action des parasites du genre Mermis. 1. Étude morphologique des individus parasites. Bull. Biol. Fr. Belg. 64: 457-494

  • Vander Meer R.K., Jouvenaz D.P. and Wojcik D.P. 1989. Chemical mimicry in a parasitoid (Hymenoptera: Eucharitidae) of fire ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). J. Chem. Ecol. 15: 2247–2261

  • Varone L., Heraty J.M. and Calcaterra L.A. 2010. Distribution, abundance and persistence of species of Orasema (Hym: Eucharitidae) parasitic on fire ants in South America. Biol. Control 55: 72–78

  • Wagner H.C., Koschuh A., Schatz I. and Stalling T. 2012. Die Myrmecophilen einer Lawinenrinne im Nationalpark Gesäuse (Steiermark). Abhandl. Zool.-Bot. Gesellsch. Österreich 38: 147–161

  • Wasmann E. 1894. Kritisches Verzeichniss der myrmekophilen und termitophilen Arthropoden. Mit Angabe der Lebensweise und mit Beschreibung neuer Arten. Verlag von Felix L. Dames, Berlin, Germany

  • Wasmann E. 1899. Die psychischen Fähigkeiten der Ameisen. Zoologica 11: 1-133 (1909).

  • Wasmann E. 1908. Weitere Beiträge zum sozialen Parasitismus und der Sklaverei bei den Ameisen. Biol. Zentralbl. 28: 726–731

  • Watanabe C. 1935. On two hymenopterous guests of ants in Japan. Ins. Matsumurana 9: 90–94

  • Weber N.A. 1946. Two common ponerine ants of possible economic significance, Ectatomma tuberculatum (Olivier) and E. ruidum Roger. Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 48: 1–16

  • Wheeler G.C. and Wheeler J. 1952. The ant larvae of the subfamily Ponerinae—Part I. Am. Midl. Nat. 48: 111–144

  • Wheeler G.C. and Wheeler J.N. 1986. The Ants of Nevada. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California

  • Wheeler W.M. 1907. The polymorphism of ants, with an account of some singular abnormalities due to parasitism. Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. 23: 1–93

  • Wheeler W.M. 1910. Ants, Their Structure, Development and Behavior. The Columbia University Press, New York, New York

  • Wheeler W.M. 1930. Two mermithergates of Ectatomma. Psyche 37: 48–54

  • Wilson E.O. 1971. The Insect Societies, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts

  • Wise de Valdez M.R. 2006. Parasitoid-induced behavioral alterations of Aedes aegypti mosquito larvae infected with mermithid nematodes (Nematoda: Mermithidae). J. Vector Ecol. 31: 344–354

  • Witek M., Barbero F. and Markó B. 2014. Myrmica ants host highly diverse parasitic communities: from social parasites to microbes. Insect. Soc. 61: 307–323

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Patricia Chacón de Ulloa, Inge Armbrecht, James Montoya Lerma, Jonathan Rodríguez and all the staff of the SOCOLEN 2014 for their invitation and their initial suggestion for the topic of this paper. We are indebted to Luis Antonio Gómez Laverde for having attracted our attention to the few and very poorly known cases of ant parasitoids in the uropodid mites. We also thank two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments. Although we have attempted to make the review as complete as possible, we may have overlooked some references, and so we would be grateful if readers could send additional information not included in the tables presented here.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Conservación de la Biodiversidad, El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Avenida Centenario Km 5.5, 77014, Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

    J.-P. Lachaud & G. Pérez-Lachaud

  2. Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Université de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, 118 Route de Narbonne, 31062, Toulouse Cedex 09, France

    J.-P. Lachaud

  3. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UMR 5169, CRCA, 118 route de Narbonne, 31062, Toulouse Cedex 09, France

    J.-P. Lachaud

Authors
  1. J.-P. Lachaud
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. Pérez-Lachaud
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to J.-P. Lachaud.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 99 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lachaud, JP., Pérez-Lachaud, G. Ectaheteromorph ants also host highly diverse parasitic communities: a review of parasitoids of the Neotropical genus Ectatomma . Insect. Soc. 62, 121–132 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00040-015-0390-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00040-015-0390-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation