| Title: | Fatal attraction: sexually cannibalistic invaders attract naive native mantids |
| Author(s): | Fea MP; Stanley MC; Holwell GI; |
| Address: | "School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, , Auckland 1142, New Zealand" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1744-957X (Electronic) 1744-9561 (Print) 1744-9561 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Overlap in the form of sexual signals such as pheromones raises the possibility of reproductive interference by invasive species on similar, yet naive native species. Here, we test the potential for reproductive interference through heterospecific mate attraction and subsequent predation of males by females of a sexually cannibalistic invasive praying mantis. Miomantis caffra is invasive in New Zealand, where it is widely considered to be displacing the only native mantis species, Orthodera novaezealandiae, and yet mechanisms behind this displacement are unknown. We demonstrate that native males are more attracted to the chemical cues of introduced females than those of conspecific females. Heterospecific pairings also resulted in a high degree of mortality for native males. This provides evidence for a mechanism behind displacement that has until now been undetected and highlights the potential for reproductive interference to greatly influence the impact of an invasive species" |
| Keywords: | "Animals *Behavior, Animal Cannibalism Competitive Behavior Female Introduced Species Male Mantodea/*physiology Mating Preference, Animal New Zealand Pheromones/physiology *Predatory Behavior Reproduction/physiology *Sexual Behavior, Animal Species Specifi;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineFea, Murray P Stanley, Margaret C Holwell, Gregory I eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2013/11/29 Biol Lett. 2013 Nov 27; 9(6):20130746. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2013.0746. Print 2013" |
