Trophobiosis is a

symbiotic Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term biolo ...

organism An organism is any life, living thing that functions as an individual. Such a definition raises more problems than it solves, not least because the concept of an individual is also difficult. Many criteria, few of them widely accepted, have be ...

s where food is obtained or provided. The provider of food in the association is referred to as a trophobiont. The name is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

τροφή (''trophē''), meaning "nourishment", and -βίωσις (''-biosis''), which is short for the English word ''

symbiosis Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction, between two organisms of different species. The two organisms, termed symbionts, can fo ...

''. Among the more noted trophobiotic groups are

ants Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of ...

and members of a number of

hemiptera Hemiptera (; ) is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising more than 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from ...

n families. A number of ant genera are recorded as tending groups of hemipterans to varying degrees. In most cases the ants collect and transport the honeydew secretions from the hemipterans back to the nest for consumption. Not all examples of ant trophobiotic interactions are mutualistic, with instances such as ants attracted to '' Cacopsylla pyricola'' feeding on both the honeydew and the ''C. pyricola'' individuals. This interaction has been recorded in Ancient Chinese writings and is noted as one of the oldest instances of biological pest control. In mutualistic relationships, the production of honeydew by trophobionts is rewarded by removal of dead hemipterans and protection from a variety of predators by the attendant ants. In some relationships the ants will build shelters for the farmed trophobionts, either to protect them or keep them from leaving the area. Some species of ants construct underground rooms to house the trophobionts and carry them between the host plant and housing area daily. In more complex obligate relationships (where both symbionts entirely depend on each other for survival) the ants will nest with the partner trophobionts in silk constructed leaf shelters or in underground colonies. Several species of migratory ants are noted to bring the trophobiont species with them when they move, transporting the trophobionts to new feeding areas and acting as a quick escape method if danger arises. While aphids, mealybugs and other more sedentary hemipterans are most often used as trophobionts, occasional instances of more active hemipterans such as

leafhopper Leafhopper is the common name for any species from the family (biology), family Cicadellidae: based on the type genus ''Cicadella''. These minute insects, colloquially known as hoppers, are plant feeders that suck plant sap from grass, shrubs, or ...

s have been recorded. In such instances in southern Africa, larger ant genera such as ''

Camponotus Carpenter ants (''Camponotus'' spp.) are a genus of large ants (workers ) indigenous to many parts of the world. True carpenter ants build nests inside wood, consisting of galleries chewed out with their mandibles or jaws, preferably in dead, ...

'' are more successful at herding and containment of the leafhoppers. Smaller ant genera have been observed to tend younger or smaller leafhoppers for short periods, and in some cases, small ant genera were observed visiting herds tended by large ant genera. In these cases it is suggested the small ant genera may have been stealing honeydew droplets from the herd. Ants of the entirely subterranean genus '' Acropyga'' have a noted trophobiotic relationship with

mealybugs Mealybugs are insects in the family Pseudococcidae, unarmored scale insects found in moist, warm habitats. Of the more than 2,000 described species, many are considered pests as they feed on plant juices of greenhouse plants, house plants and su ...

, being considered obligate coccidophiles and living in the same nests with their trophobionts. Queens of at least eleven living ''Acropyga'' species have been observed carrying a "seed" trophobiont in their mandibles during the mating flight, and it is suggested the seed is then used to start the mealybug colony in the queen's new nest. The level of dependency between ''Acropyga'' and their trophobiont is suggested to be such that neither can survive without the other. An experiment using a captive colony of '' A. epedana'' showed that even when the colony was starved the ant refused offered food alternatives. This specific behavior has also been documented in

Dominican amber Dominican amber is amber from the Dominican Republic derived from resin of the extinct tree '' Hymenaea protera''. Dominican amber differentiates itself from Baltic amber by being nearly always transparent, and it has a higher number of fossil in ...

fossils dating back , with queens of the fossil species ''

Acropyga glaesaria ''Acropyga glaesaria'' is an extinct species of ant in the subfamily Formicinae known from a group of possibly Miocene fossils found on Hispaniola. ''A. glaesaria'' is the first species of the ant genus '' Acropyga'' to have been described from ...

'' being found preserved with species of the extinct mealybug genus ''

Electromyrmococcus ''Electromyrmococcus'' is an extinct genus of mealybug in the Pseudococcidae subfamily Rhizoecinae. The genus currently contains three species, all from the early Miocene, Burdigalian stage, Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispanio ...

''. Older trophobiotic associations have been suggested for the

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

fossil ant species '' Ctenobethylus goepperti'' based on a

Baltic amber Baltic amber or succinite is amber from the Baltic region, home of its largest known deposits. It was produced sometime during the Eocene epoch, but exactly when is controversial. It has been estimated that this forested region provided the re ...

fossil entombing thirteen ''C. goepperti'' workers intermingled with a number of aphids. Convergent behavior to that of '' Acropyga'' is displayed by the arboreal ant ''

Tetraponera binghami ''Tetraponera'' is a genus of ants in the subfamily Pseudomyrmecinae that are commonly known as slender ants and are characterized by their arboreal nature and slender bodies. The 96 described species of ''Tetraponera'' all of which live in h ...

''. This species lives in hollow internodes of giant bamboos and new queens will also carry a seed mealybug during the mating flight.

References

{{reflist, 2 Ants Hemiptera Ecology Myrmecology Symbiosis Mutualism (biology) Insect behavior Biological pest control

See also

References