Linked Life Data

20593032

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/20593032

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
6
pubmed:dateCreated
2010-7-1
pubmed:abstractText
Plant-ants live in a mutualistic association with host plants known as "myrmecophytes" that provide them with a nesting place and sometimes with extra-floral nectar (EFN) and/or food bodies (FBs); the ants can also attend sap-sucking Hemiptera for their honeydew. In return, plant-ants, like most other arboreal ants, protect their host plants from defoliators. To satisfy their nitrogen requirements, however, some have optimized their ability to capture prey in the restricted environment represented by the crowns of trees by using elaborate hunting techniques. In this study, we investigated the predatory behavior of the ant Azteca andreae which is associated with the myrmecophyte Cecropia obtusa. We noted that up to 8350 ant workers per tree hide side-by-side beneath the leaf margins of their host plant with their mandibles open, waiting for insects to alight. The latter are immediately seized by their extremities, and then spread-eagled; nestmates are recruited to help stretch, carve up and transport prey. This group ambush hunting technique is particularly effective when the underside of the leaves is downy, as is the case for C. obtusa. In this case, the hook-shaped claws of the A. andreae workers and the velvet-like structure of the underside of the leaves combine to act like natural Velcro that is reinforced by the group ambush strategy of the workers, allowing them to capture prey of up to 13,350 times the mean weight of a single worker.
pubmed:commentsCorrections
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
1932-6203
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:volume
5
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
e11331
pubmed:dateRevised
2010-9-30
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2010
pubmed:articleTitle
Arboreal ants use the "Velcro(R) principle" to capture very large prey.
pubmed:affiliation
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Ecologie des Forêts de Guyane (UMR-CNRS 8172), Campus Agronomique, Kourou, France. alain.dejean@wanadoo.fr
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't