@Article{Dejean_etal2016,
author="Dejean, A.
and Orivel, J.
and Az{\'e}mar, F.
and Herault, B.
and Corbara, B.",
title="A cuckoo-like parasitic moth leads African weaver ant colonies to their ruin",
journal="Scientific Reports",
year="2016",
volume="6",
pages="23778",
abstract="In myrmecophilous Lepidoptera, mostly lycaenids and riodinids, caterpillars trick ants into transporting them to the ant nest where they feed on the brood or, in the more derived {\textquoteright}cuckoo strategy{\textquoteright}, trigger regurgitations (trophallaxis) from the ants and obtain trophic eggs. We show for the first time that the caterpillars of a moth (Eublemma albifascia; Noctuidae; Acontiinae) also use this strategy to obtain regurgitations and trophic eggs from ants (Oecophylla longinoda). Females short-circuit the adoption process by laying eggs directly on the ant nests, and workers carry just-hatched caterpillars inside. Parasitized colonies sheltered 44 to 359 caterpillars, each receiving more trophallaxis and trophic eggs than control queens. The thus-starved queens lose weight, stop laying eggs (which transport the pheromones that induce infertility in the workers) and die. Consequently, the workers lay male-destined eggs before and after the queen{\textquoteright}s death, allowing the colony to invest its remaining resources in male production before it vanishes.",
optnote="Export Date: 22 April 2016",
optnote="exported from refbase (http://php.ecofog.gf/refbase/show.php?record=674), last updated on Tue, 20 Aug 2019 14:21:58 -0300",
doi="10.1038/srep23778",
opturl="https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84962384823&partnerID=40&md5=9fbdc8870a8a1e7568bbaf33963d0d78",
file=":http://php.ecofog.gf/refbase/files/dejean/2016/674\textit{Dejean}etal2016.pdf:PDF"
}