Abstract
Many insect hosts are capable of altering their behavior
to reduce the probability, severity, or cost of infection by
parasites. However, plasticity of behavior defense in response to
varying risk of infection or fitness loss has rarely been
addressed, and as a result, few cases have been reported. In
the Drosophila melanogaster system,
females provide trans-generational medication to their offspring
when exposed to parasitoid wasps, and wasp-infected larvae
self-medicate with ethanol. Yet, it is unclear from either study
whether infected larvae or ovipositing adults seek specific ethanol
concentrations or whether such a preference might vary in response
to important risk factors, such as infection intensity, or as a
result of interaction with different wasp species. By comparing the
movement and survival of parasitized and uninfected D.
melanogaster larvae in the presence and absence of
ethanol, we find that D. melanogaster
larvae do prefer particular ethanol concentrations that
optimize their fitness, and that the magnitude of host self-
medication response is plastic in response to infection intensity,
host resistance, and ethanol effectiveness.
Table of Contents
ABSTRACT ... iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... v
LIST OF TABLES ... vii
LIST OF FIGURES ... viii
INTRODUCTION ... 1
MATERIALS AND METHODS ...5
Larval rearing and wasp exposure ...5
Quantitative self-medication response of larvae to L. heterotoma
infection ...6
Adaptive value of self-medication response to L. heterotoma
infection...7
Infection intensity and self-medication response to L. heterotoma
infection...9
Specificity of ethanol-based self-medication behavior against
parasitoid wasps...9
Statistical analysis...11
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION...13
Quantitative self-medication response of larvae to L. heterotoma
infection...13
Adaptive value of self-medication response to L. heterotoma
infection...14
Infection intensity and self-medication response to L. heterotoma
infection...15
Specificity of ethanol-based self-medication behavior against
parasitoid wasps...16
CONCLUSION...17
BIBLIOGRAPHY...18
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