Walzer Andreas, Schausberger Peter
Group of Arthropod Ecology and Behavior, Division of Plant Protection, Department of Crop Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria.
Anim Behav. 2012 Dec;84(6):1411-1417. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.09.006.
In mutual intraguild predation (IGP), the role of individual guild members is strongly context dependent and, during ontogeny, can shift from an intraguild (IG) prey to a food competitor or to an IG predator. Consequently, recognition of an offspring's predator is more complex for IG than classic prey females. Thus, IG prey females should be able to modulate their oviposition decisions by integrating multiple IG predator cues and by experience. Using a guild of plant-inhabiting predatory mites sharing the spider mite Tetranychus urticae as prey and passing through ontogenetic role shifts in mutual IGP, we assessed the effects of single and combined direct cues of the IG predator Amblyseius andersoni (eggs and traces left by a female on the substrate) on prey patch selection and oviposition behaviour of naïve and IG predator-experienced IG prey females of Phytoseiulus persimilis. The IG prey females preferentially resided in patches without predator cues when the alternative patch contained traces of predator females or the cue combination. Preferential egg placement in patches without predator cues was only apparent in the choice situation with the cue combination. Experience increased the responsiveness of females exposed to the IG predator cue combination, indicated by immediate selection of the prey patch without predator cues and almost perfect oviposition avoidance in patches with the cue combination. We argue that the evolution of the ability of IG prey females to evaluate offspring's IGP risk accurately is driven by the irreversibility of oviposition and the functionally complex relationships between predator guild members.
在相互的种内捕食（IGP）中，各个种内成员的角色强烈依赖于环境，并且在个体发育过程中，可能从种内（IG）猎物转变为食物竞争者或种内捕食者。因此，对于种内捕食者来说，识别后代的捕食者比传统猎物的雌性更为复杂。所以，种内猎物雌性应该能够通过整合多种种内捕食者线索并借助经验来调节其产卵决策。我们利用一群栖息在植物上的捕食螨作为研究对象，它们以二斑叶螨作为共同猎物，并且在相互的种内捕食中经历个体发育角色转变。我们评估了种内捕食者安德森钝绥螨的单一和组合直接线索（例如雌性在基质上留下的卵和痕迹）对未接触过种内捕食者和有过种内捕食者经验的智利小植绥螨的猎物斑块选择和产卵行为的影响。当可供选择的斑块含有捕食者雌性的痕迹或线索组合时，种内猎物雌性优先选择没有捕食者线索的斑块。只有在有线索组合的选择情境中，才明显表现出优先在没有捕食者线索的斑块中产卵。经验增强了接触种内捕食者线索组合的雌性的反应能力，这表现为它们会立即选择没有捕食者线索的猎物斑块，并且在有线索组合的斑块中几乎完全避免产卵。我们认为，种内猎物雌性准确评估后代种内捕食风险能力的进化是由产卵的不可逆性以及捕食者种内成员之间功能复杂的关系所驱动的。
