Anatomy of disguise : camouflaging structures in nymphs of some Reduviidae (Heteroptera)

Title Variants

Alternative: Camouflage in reduviid nymphs

Alternative: Camouflaging structures in nymphs of some Reduviidae (Heteroptera)

Related Titles

Series: American Museum novitates, no. 3542

By

Weirauch, Christiane

Type

Book

Material

Published material

Publication info

New York, NY American Museum of Natural History c2006

Notes

Caption title.

"December 7, 2006."

Immature stages of Reduvius personatus (Linnaeus) and some other Reduviidae are known to camouflage themselves with a range of materials found in their environment. Even though this behavior has been observed in several species, camouflaging structures have never been studied in a comparative way. This study documents for the first time the structure that is involved in the application of camouflaging material, i.e., the hind tarsal fan, and reveals structures that assure the fastening of the camouflaging material, i.e., anchor setae and trichomes, in eight species representing five subfamilies of Reduviidae. Whereas anchor setae assure the attachment of camouflaging material by their mechanical properties, short-projection trichomes, long-projection trichomes, and grouped trichomes are here proposed to secrete a sticky substance for this purpose. Primary homology hypotheses on the three types of trichomes are proposed. At least in some species, short-projection trichomes appear to be responsible for the fastening of the camouflaging layer close to the integument, whereas long-projection trichomes may hold the outer layer of camouflaging material in place.

Subjects

Anatomy , Assassin bugs , Behavior , Camouflage (Biology) , Insects , Larvae , Nymphs (Insects) , Reduvius personatus

Call Number

QL1 .A436 no.3542 2006

Language

English

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1206/0003-0082(2006)3542[1:AODCSI]2.0.CO;2
OCLC: 76951895