Sexually transmitted parasites and sexual selection in the milkweed leaf beetle, Labidomera clivicollis

Milkweed leaf beetles (MLBs; Labidomera clivicollis Chrysomelidae) are parasitized by a subelytral mite, Chrysomelobia labidomerae (Tarsonemina: Podapolipidae). We show that C. labidomerae is transmitted between MLBs when they copulate, and can reduce the survival of nutritionally stressed beetles....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Oikos 2001-01, Vol.92 (1), p.91-100
Main Authors: Abbot, Patrick, Dill, Larry M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACARINA
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
ASCLEPIADACEAE
Autoecology
Beetles
Biological and medical sciences
Biological competition
Chrysomelidae
Chrysomelobia labidomerae
Female animals
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
INSECTE NUISIBLE
INSECTOS DANINOS
Labidomera clivicollis
Male animals
Mating behavior
Mites
ONTARIO
PARASITE
Parasite hosts
PARASITES
Parasitism
PARASITOS
PEST INSECTS
Podapolipidae
Protozoa. Invertebrata
Sexual selection
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Summary:Milkweed leaf beetles (MLBs; Labidomera clivicollis Chrysomelidae) are parasitized by a subelytral mite, Chrysomelobia labidomerae (Tarsonemina: Podapolipidae). We show that C. labidomerae is transmitted between MLBs when they copulate, and can reduce the survival of nutritionally stressed beetles. We investigated the effect of this sexually transmitted parasite on mate choice and male-male competition in MLBs, and the consequences of variation in these behaviours for mite transmission. We found no evidence of parasite avoidance by MLBs, and evidence for high rates of parasitism in the MLB populations we surveyed. In the absence of females, parasitized males contacted unparasitized males more often and for longer than controls, and they tended to displace rival males from females more often than did unparasitized males, a result consistent with the interpretation that parasitized beetles compensate for loss of fitness by increasing reproductive effort. These changes can also benefit mites, because longer and possibly more contacts between beetles provide more opportunities for transmission, but there is no evidence that these changes in male behaviour result from parasite manipulation.
ISSN:0030-1299
1600-0706
DOI:10.1034/j.1600-0706.2001.920111.x