Butterflies aren't often equated with parasites, but the pupae of a European butterfly called the
Mountain Alcon Blue (Maculinea rebeli) mimics one. Science
reports these pupae smell like red ants and so are able to live in the
ants' nest. As they mature into the
caterpillar stage, "they even beg for food like ant larvae" by mimicking the
queen ant's sounds that are signals to worker ants.
Maculinea rebeli
The Mountain Alcon Blue butterfly is part of the Lycaenidae
family, which also includes blues, coppers, hairstreaks, and harvesters. The Mountain Alcon Blue prefers wet
grasslands at altitudes of 600-to-2,250 meters and flies from June-to-July.
Ant Communication 101
Ants mostly communicate by chemical signaling and
touch. The scent emitted by the
butterfly pupae allows them to blend in with the colony. Recently, researchers have discovered that
queen ants also make distinctive sounds – indicating their higher status within
the ant colony. When the butterfly
caterpillars mimic these sounds, they are able to trick the worker ants into
caring for and feeding them.
Biting the Hand that
Feeds
If the caterpillars become hungry enough, nurse ants kill
their own larvae and feed them to the caterpillars that are impersonating queen
ants.
Scientists experimented to see just how far this would
go. They placed one such butterfly pupa
in a chamber with some worker and queen ants.
While the queens promptly attacked and bit the caterpillar, the workers
stung and bit the queens, moving the pupa into the safety of a corner.
Why Ants?
 The Rebel's Large Blue butterfly is an endangered species
that flies among mountainous areas of Europe. The ants that the caterpillars cohabitate
with happen to share this space, along with the plants the butterfly
caterpillars need to eat.
As many as 10,000 species act as "social parasites" to ants,
preying on their efficient colony structures:
- Aphids (plant lice)
secrete liquid called honeydew that ants like to feed on. Ants protect and care for the aphids,
and the aphids harvest the honeydew in turn.
- Stick insects depend on
structures from ant-dispersed seeds for food.
- Ants prey on termites;
some termites form associations with ants to keep away predatory ant
species.
- Cordyceps fungus infects
ants, which more-or-less causes them to commit suicide and become bird
food. Bird droppings from such food
are collected by other ants and the cycle repeats.
Resources:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29038257/
http://www.butterfly-guide.co.uk/species/blues/blue18.htm
http://planetearth.nerc.ac.uk/news/story.aspx?id=316
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant#Relationships_with_other_organisms
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