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Science 6 February 2009:
Vol. 323. no. 5915, pp. 782 - 785
DOI: 10.1126/science.1163583
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Reports

Queen Ants Make Distinctive Sounds That Are Mimicked by a Butterfly Social Parasite

Francesca Barbero,1,2 Jeremy A Thomas,2,3* Simona Bonelli,1 Emilio Balletto,1 Karsten Schönrogge3

Ants dominate terrestrial ecosystems through living in complex societies whose organization is maintained via sophisticated communication systems. The role of acoustics in information exchange may be underestimated. We show that Myrmica schencki queens generate distinctive sounds that elicit increased benevolent responses from workers, reinforcing their supreme social status. Although fiercely defended by workers, ant societies are infiltrated by specialist insects that exploit their resources. Sounds produced by pupae and larvae of the parasitic butterfly Maculinea rebeli mimic those of queen ants more closely than those of workers, enabling them to achieve high status within ant societies. We conclude that acoustical mimicry provides another route for infiltration for ~10,000 species of social parasites that cheat ant societies.

1 Dipartimento di Biologia Animale e dell'Uomo Laboratorio di Zoologia, Turin, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123 Turin, Italy.
2 Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 8BB, UK.
3 Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Tinbergen Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: jeremy.thomas{at}zoo.ox.ac.uk

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Acoustical mimicry in a predatory social parasite of ants.
F. Barbero, S. Bonelli, J. A. Thomas, E. Balletto, and K. Schonrogge (2009)
J. Exp. Biol. 212, 4084-4090
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Insect Conservation.
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CATERPILLARS MAKE NOISES LIKE ANTS.
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