Zombie bugs? The fungus Purpureocillium cf. lilacinum may manipulate the behavior of its host bug Edessa rufomarginata
William Eberhard, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Department of Biological Sciences, Escuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria, Costa Rica, and Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803 william.eberhard@gmail.com.
Jessica Pacheco-Esquivel, Laboratorio de Ecología de Plantas, Escuela de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontifica Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Apartado 17-01-2184, Quito, Ecuador.
Farah Carrasco-Rueda, Center for Conservation Education and Sustainability, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 705, Washington, DC 20013-7012.
Yuliana Christopher, Center for Biodiversity and Drug Discovery, Institute for Scientific Research and High Technology Science, City of Knowledge, P.O. Box 0843-01103, Panama.
Cely Gonzalez, Center for Biodiversity and Drug Discovery, Institute for Scientific Research and High Technology Science, City of Knowledge, P.O. Box 0843-01103, Panama.
Daniel Ramos, Universidad Laica Eloy Alfaro de Manabí-Manta, Ecuador Calle 12, Vía San Mateo, Manta, Ecuador.
Hector Urbina, Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803.
Meredith Blackwell, Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803.
Abstract
Just before dying, Edessa rufomarginata (Hemiptera, Pentotomidae) individuals that are infected with the fungus Purpureocillium cf. lilacinum (Ascomycota: Ophiocordycipitaceae) move from the leaves onto the stems of their Solanum sp. host and firmly grasp the stems in ways seldom employed by uninfected bugs. These alterations in host behavior probably improve the chances that the subsequently produced fungal spores will be dispersed aerially. Purpureocillium cf. lilacinum is a member of the Ophiocordycipitaceae, a group in which other species also modify the behavior of their hosts. As in the case of newly distinguished relatives of Ophiocordyceps unilateralis associated with "zombie ants" the discovery of P. cf. lilacinum infecting bugs reveals that P. lilacinum may be more diverse than previously appreciated.
