1
|
Potticary AL, Belk MC, Creighton JC, Ito M, Kilner R, Komdeur J, Royle NJ, Rubenstein DR, Schrader M, Shen S, Sikes DS, Smiseth PT, Smith R, Steiger S, Trumbo ST, Moore AJ. Revisiting the ecology and evolution of burying beetle behavior (Staphylinidae: Silphinae). Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70175. [PMID: 39170054 PMCID: PMC11336061 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2024] [Revised: 07/24/2024] [Accepted: 07/29/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Investigating fundamental processes in biology requires the ability to ground broad questions in species-specific natural history. This is particularly true in the study of behavior because an organism's experience of the environment will influence the expression of behavior and the opportunity for selection. Here, we provide a review of the natural history and behavior of burying beetles of the genus Nicrophorus to provide the groundwork for comparative work that showcases their remarkable behavioral and ecological diversity. Burying beetles have long fascinated scientists because of their well-developed parenting behavior, exhibiting extended post-hatching care of offspring that varies extensively within and across taxa. Despite the burgeoning success of burying beetles as a model system for the study of behavioral evolution, there has not been a review of their behavior, ecology, and evolution in over 25 years. To address this gap, we leverage a developing community of researchers who have contributed to a detailed knowledge of burying beetles to highlight the utility of Nicrophorus for investigating the causes and consequences of social and behavioral evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ahva L. Potticary
- Department of BiologyNorthern Michigan UniversityMarquetteMichiganUSA
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | - Mark C. Belk
- Department of BiologyBrigham Young UniversityProvoUtahUSA
| | - J. Curtis Creighton
- Department of Biological SciencesPurdue University NorthwestHammondIndianaUSA
| | - Minobu Ito
- Department of Environmental ScienceToho UniversityFunabashiChibaJapan
| | | | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life SciencesUniversity of GroningenGroningenThe Netherlands
| | - Nick J. Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Faculty of Environment, Science & the EconomyUniversity of ExeterCornwallUK
| | - Dustin R. Rubenstein
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental BiologyColumbia UniversityNew York CityNew YorkUSA
| | - Matthew Schrader
- Department of BiologySewanee, The University of the SouthSewaneeTennesseeUSA
| | | | - Derek S. Sikes
- University of Alaska Museum and Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
| | - Per T. Smiseth
- Institute of Ecology and EvolutionThe University of EdinburghEdinburghUK
| | - Rosemary Smith
- Department of Biological SciencesIdaho State UniversityPocatelloIdahoUSA
- Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColoradoUSA
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Stephen T. Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ConnecticutWaterburyConnecticutUSA
| | - Allen J. Moore
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Ratz T, Leissle L, Smiseth PT. The presence of conspecific intruders alters the magnitude of sex differences in care in a burying beetle. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
|
3
|
Prang MA, Zywucki L, Körner M, Steiger S. Differences in sibling cooperation in presence and absence of parental care in a genus with interspecific variation in offspring dependence. Evolution 2022; 76:320-331. [PMID: 34875109 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The widely spread evolutionary strategy of parental care is considered an important driver of social evolution. Although offspring were long thought to primarily interact competitively, recent studies revealed the potential importance of sibling cooperation. Theories suggest that the degree of cooperation in offspring interactions depends on the degree of offspring dependence on parental care: offspring unable to forage on their own should compete more, whereas more independent juveniles may increase the degree of cooperation. In this study, we tested the occurrence of sibling cooperation in the absence of posthatching care in several burying beetle species exhibiting varying degrees of offspring dependence. To this end, we measured larval growth rate and survival in the presence and absence of prehatching care using different brood sizes. We found that sibling cooperation cannot be exclusively explained by offspring dependence on parental care. Although only species with more independent larvae cooperated when receiving prehatching care, larval cooperation occurred across species in the absence of care. The latter result suggests that sibling cooperation was already present in an early ancestor of the genus Nicrophorus. Overall, these findings give important insights into the transition from facultative to obligate family life.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Madlen A Prang
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, DE-95440, Germany
| | - Lena Zywucki
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, DE-95440, Germany
| | - Maximilian Körner
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, DE-95440, Germany
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, DE-95440, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Trumbo ST, Sikes DS. Resource concealment and the evolution of parental care in burying beetles. J Zool (1987) 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S. T. Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Connecticut Waterbury CT USA
| | - D. S. Sikes
- Department of Biology and Wildlife University of Alaska Museum University of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks AK USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Charabidze D, Trumbo S, Grzywacz A, Costa JT, Benbow ME, Barton PS, Matuszewski S. Convergence of Social Strategies in Carrion Breeding Insects. Bioscience 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biab068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Carrion is a highly ephemeral and nutrient rich resource, characterized by extreme biotic and abiotic stressors. We hypothesized that specific constraints of the carrion ecosystem, and especially its nutrient richness, ephemerality, and competition with microbes, have promoted the evolution of social behaviors in necrophagous insects. We show that group living is prevalent among early succession carrion breeding insects, suggesting that this trait has emerged as an adaptation to facilitate survival in the highly competitive environment of fresh carrion. We then highlight how developmental niche construction allows larvae to compete with microbes, efficiently feed on fresh cadavers, and rapidly reach maturity. We observed that larval societies and parental care are two different strategies responding to similar competitive and environmental constraints. We conclude that intra and interspecific competition on carrion are mitigated by social behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Damien Charabidze
- Centre d'Histoire Judiciaire, Université de Lille, Lille, France, with the Unit of Social Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Stephen Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Waterbury, in Waterbury, Connecticut, United States
| | - Andrzej Grzywacz
- Department of Ecology and Biogeography, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Toruń, Poland
| | - James T Costa
- Highlands Biological Station, Highlands, North Carolina, United States, and with the Department of Biology, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina, United States
| | - Mark E Benbow
- Department of Osteopathic Medical Specialties, with the Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior Program, with AgBioResearch, and with the Department of Entomology at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, United States
| | - Philip S Barton
- Future Regions Research Centre, and School of Science, Psychology, and Sport, Federation University, Mount Helen, Victoria, Australia
| | - Szymon Matuszewski
- Laboratory of Criminalistics and with the Centre for Advanced Technologies at Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
A synergism between dimethyl trisulfide and methyl thiolacetate in attracting carrion-frequenting beetles demonstrated by use of a chemically-supplemented minimal trap. CHEMOECOLOGY 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s00049-020-00330-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|