Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Fire ants are aggressive Neotropical ants that are extensively similar in general biology and morphology, making species identification difficult. Some fire ant species are top-rated pests spreading throughout the world by trade vessels. Many researchers attempted to sort between invasive and native...

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Main Authors: Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox, Adriana Pianaro, Daniel Russ Solis, Jacques Hubert Charles Delabie, Bruno Cunha Vairo, Ednildo de Alcântara Machado, Odair Correa Bueno
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2012-01-01
Series:Psyche: A Journal of Entomology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/398061
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author Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox
Adriana Pianaro
Daniel Russ Solis
Jacques Hubert Charles Delabie
Bruno Cunha Vairo
Ednildo de Alcântara Machado
Odair Correa Bueno
author_facet Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox
Adriana Pianaro
Daniel Russ Solis
Jacques Hubert Charles Delabie
Bruno Cunha Vairo
Ednildo de Alcântara Machado
Odair Correa Bueno
author_sort Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox
collection DOAJ
description Fire ants are aggressive Neotropical ants that are extensively similar in general biology and morphology, making species identification difficult. Some fire ant species are top-rated pests spreading throughout the world by trade vessels. Many researchers attempted to sort between invasive and native species by using chemical characters, including patterns of venom alkaloids. The present study is the first to report intraspecific variation in some chemical characters, namely, cuticular hydrocarbons and venom alkaloids, within the Brazilian fire ant species Solenopsis saevissima and also reports on within-nest variations among members of different castes. Two different haplotypes (cryptic species) of S. saevissima were clearly identified, one presenting a predominant combination of the venom alkaloids cis- and trans-2-methyl-6-undecylpiperidine with the cuticular hydrocarbons C23, 3-Me-C23, 10-C25 : 1, C25, and 3-Me-C25, and the other a predominant combination of cis- and trans-2-methyl-6-tridecenylpiperidine with predominance of 12-C25 : 1, C25, 11-Me-C25, 3-Me-C25, 13-C27 : 1, C27, and 13-Me-C27. Intranest variations revealed that the proportions among these compounds varied sensibly among workers of different sizes, gynes, and males (no alkaloids were detected in the latter). Larva contained vestiges of the same compounds. The recorded chemical profiles are quite different from previous reports with S. saevissima samples from São Paulo. The finds thus support other recent claims that S. saevissima includes cryptic species; the study, moreover, adds the find that they can occur in the same geographical location.
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spelling doaj-art-271bed832bc247b0bf57d4b3e300d0bc2025-08-20T03:54:48ZengWileyPsyche: A Journal of Entomology0033-26151687-74382012-01-01201210.1155/2012/398061398061Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox0Adriana Pianaro1Daniel Russ Solis2Jacques Hubert Charles Delabie3Bruno Cunha Vairo4Ednildo de Alcântara Machado5Odair Correa Bueno6Laboratório de Entomologia Médica e Molecular, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (IBCCF/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, BrazilInstituto de Quimica, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (IQ/UNICAMP), 13083-862 Campinas, SP, BrazilInstituto de Biociencias, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Campus de Rio Claro and Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais (CEIS), 13506-900 Rio Claro, SP, BrazilLaboratório de Mirmecologia, Centro de Pesquisas do Cacau (CEPLAC), Itabuna, BA, BrazilLaboratório de Tecido Conjuntivo, Instituto de Bioquímica Médica, UFRJ, RJ, BrazilLaboratório de Entomologia Médica e Molecular, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (IBCCF/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, BrazilInstituto de Biociencias, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Campus de Rio Claro and Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais (CEIS), 13506-900 Rio Claro, SP, BrazilFire ants are aggressive Neotropical ants that are extensively similar in general biology and morphology, making species identification difficult. Some fire ant species are top-rated pests spreading throughout the world by trade vessels. Many researchers attempted to sort between invasive and native species by using chemical characters, including patterns of venom alkaloids. The present study is the first to report intraspecific variation in some chemical characters, namely, cuticular hydrocarbons and venom alkaloids, within the Brazilian fire ant species Solenopsis saevissima and also reports on within-nest variations among members of different castes. Two different haplotypes (cryptic species) of S. saevissima were clearly identified, one presenting a predominant combination of the venom alkaloids cis- and trans-2-methyl-6-undecylpiperidine with the cuticular hydrocarbons C23, 3-Me-C23, 10-C25 : 1, C25, and 3-Me-C25, and the other a predominant combination of cis- and trans-2-methyl-6-tridecenylpiperidine with predominance of 12-C25 : 1, C25, 11-Me-C25, 3-Me-C25, 13-C27 : 1, C27, and 13-Me-C27. Intranest variations revealed that the proportions among these compounds varied sensibly among workers of different sizes, gynes, and males (no alkaloids were detected in the latter). Larva contained vestiges of the same compounds. The recorded chemical profiles are quite different from previous reports with S. saevissima samples from São Paulo. The finds thus support other recent claims that S. saevissima includes cryptic species; the study, moreover, adds the find that they can occur in the same geographical location.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/398061
spellingShingle Eduardo Gonçalves Paterson Fox
Adriana Pianaro
Daniel Russ Solis
Jacques Hubert Charles Delabie
Bruno Cunha Vairo
Ednildo de Alcântara Machado
Odair Correa Bueno
Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Psyche: A Journal of Entomology
title Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
title_full Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
title_fullStr Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
title_full_unstemmed Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
title_short Intraspecific and Intracolonial Variation in the Profile of Venom Alkaloids and Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Fire Ant Solenopsis saevissima Smith (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
title_sort intraspecific and intracolonial variation in the profile of venom alkaloids and cuticular hydrocarbons of the fire ant solenopsis saevissima smith hymenoptera formicidae
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/398061
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