Examining host plant use and ant mutualists of the treehopper Entylia carinata

Monday, November 11, 2024

11:06 AM – 11:18 AM MST

Location: Phoenix Convention Center, 132 A, PCC

Presenting Author(s)

RC

Rebecca Carranza

Graduate Student
University of Illinois
Urbana, Illinois

Co-Author(s)

AS

Andrew Suarez

University of Illinois
Urbana, Illinois

Plant-feeding insects serve as models for the study of behavioral mechanisms that facilitate interspecific relationships. Many species produce substrate-borne vibrational signals to communicate on their host plant, where they feed, mate, and lay eggs. These signals serve both intra- and inter-specific communication roles. Treehoppers, for example, use vibrational signals to attract mutualist ants who provide them with protection in exchange for food. The treehopper Entylia carinata (keeled treehoppers) is a host plant generalist that is tended to by at least six genera of ants throughout North America. We examined ant attendants of Entylia carinata relative to their host plant use in Illinois Prairie populations. We conducted transect surveys and installed pitfall traps to describe host plant use and relative abundance of tending ant species from early and late summer surveys at field sites in central Illinois. We found that ant attendants of Entylia carinata exhibit non-random associations according to the host plant species the treehoppers occupied.