Social parasitism, i.e. the parasitic dependence of a social species on another free-living species, is one most intriguing phenomena in insects. It has evolved to various levels, extreme form being inquiline parasites which have lost worker caste, and produce only male female sexual offspring that are reared by host force. The syndrome been reported 4 within ant genus Plagiolepis, Europe. Whet...

How do termite inquilines manage to cohabit termitaria along with the termite builder species? With this in mind, we analysed one of the several strategies that inquilines could use to circumvent conflicts with their hosts, namely, the use of distinct diets. We inspected overlapping patterns for the diets of several cohabiting Neotropical termite species, as inferred from carbon and nitrogen is...

Speciation of two social parasites from their respective hosts is tested using a molecular phylogeny. Alignment of 711 DNA base pairs of mitochondrial cytochrome b gene was used to assess phylogenetic relationships of inquiline species to their hosts and to other members of the genus. We show that the inquiline social parasites of the North American seed harvester ants are monophyletic, descend...

1. Termites (Isoptera) in tropical savannas are known as ecosystem engineers, affecting the spatial and temporal distribution of water, carbon, cations, and nutrients through their mound structures. Their mounds, however, also offer habitation to diverse taxa and feeding guilds of other invertebrates; a keystone role that has not been properly quantified. 2. The aim of this study was to explore...

Phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine and cardiolipin are the major phospholipids in young leaves of black oak (Quercus robor L.). Except for phosphatidylcholine, young, developing cynipid-galls on black oak leaves, i.e. the insect-transformed tissues, contain less phospholipid than normal leaf tissues. Lipid acyl hydrolase activity determined by the cleavage of fr...

Eight new species of cynipid inquilines, Synergus abei Melika & Schwéger, S. belizinellus Schwéger & Melika, S. changtitangi Melika & Schwéger, S. formosanus Schwéger & Melika, S. ishikarii Melika & Schwéger, S. kawakamii Tang & Melika, S. khazani Melika & Schwéger and S. symbioticus Schwéger & Melika, from the Eastern Palaearctic are described. Descriptions, diagnoses, biology, and host associ...

A new species of the genus Euderus Haliday, Euderus setsp. n., is described and illustrated from the southeastern United States, where it parasitizes the crypt gall wasp, Bassettia pallida Ashmead, 1896, on live oaks in the genus Quercus (subsection Virentes). This is the 1st species of the genus reported from the southeastern United States to parasitize cynipid gall wasps and the 3rd species o...