Neotropical Entomology (2010) 39, 714-719

Ilka M.F. Soares, Terezinha M.C. Della Lucia, Alice S. Pereira, José E. Serrão, Myriam M.R. Ribeiro and Danival J. de Souza (2010)
Comparative reproductive biology of the social parasite Acromyrmex ameliae de Souza, Soares and Della Lucia and of its host Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus Forel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Neotropical Entomology 39 (5), 714-719
Abstract: Social parasites exhibit several characteristics that allow them to exploit their host species efficiently. The smaller size of parasite species is a trait commonly found in ants. In this work, we investigated several aspects of the reproductive biology of Acromyrmex ameliae De Souza, Soares and Della Lucia, a recently discovered parasite of Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus Forel. Sexuals of A. ameliae are substantially smaller than those from host species. Parasite queens laid significantly less worker eggs than host queens and inhibit sexual production of the host. The sex ratio of parasite species is highly female biased. Interestingly, we have observed parasite coupling on the laboratory, inside the nests and in the ground, opening the possibility to use controlled mating to study genetic approaches of parasitism in the ants.
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Database assignments for author(s): Terezinha M.C. Della Lucia, José Eduardo Serrao

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
environment - cropping system/rotation

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Acromyrmex subterraneus