没错，毛虫能够变成蛾子，但科学家发现，它们竟然还能变成“蚂蚁”。
据美国《科学》杂志在线新闻报道，在偷偷溜进大黑蚁的窝中后，日本高砂燕灰蝶的幼虫能够模拟高级成年雄蚁的气味，从而使那些工蚁热心地喂养它们。这一诡计与杜鹃的把戏非常类似，后者因将卵产在其他鸟类的窝中，并让这些鸟类哺育自己的后代而闻名。研究人员最近在英国《皇家学会学报B：生物科学》（Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences）网络版上报告了这一发现。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原始出处：
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences，Masaru K. Hojo，Ryohei Yamaoka
Chemical disguise as particular caste of host ants in the ant inquiline parasite Niphanda fusca (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)
Masaru K. Hojo1, Ayako Wada-Katsumata2, Toshiharu Akino1, Susumu Yamaguchi3, Mamiko Ozaki4, Ryohei Yamaoka1
1 Division of Applied Biology, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Kyoto 606-8585, Japan
2 Division of Applied Life Science, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
3 Wakamiko, Sutama-cho, Hokuto city, Yamanashi 408-0112, Japan
4 Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe University, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
摘要
The exploitation of parental care is common in avian and insect ‘cuckoos’ and these species engage in a coevolutionary arms race. Caterpillars of the lycaenid butterfly Niphanda fusca develop as parasites inside the nests of host ants (Camponotus japonicus) where they grow by feeding on the worker trophallaxis. We hypothesized that N. fusca caterpillars chemically mimic host larvae, or some particular castes of the host ant, so that the caterpillars are accepted and cared for by the host workers. Behaviourally, it was observed that the host workers enthusiastically tended glass dummies coated with the cuticular chemicals of larvae or males and those of N. fusca caterpillars living together. Cuticular chemical analyses revealed that N. fusca caterpillars grown in a host ant nest acquired a colony-specific blend of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs). Furthermore, the CHC profiles of the N. fusca caterpillars were particularly close to those of the males rather than those of the host larvae and the others. We suggest that N. fusca caterpillars exploit worker care by matching their cuticular profile to that of the host males, since the males are fed by trophallaxis with workers in their natal nests for approximately ten months.
