Rediscovery of the myrmecophilous larvae of Italochrysa italica (Insecta: Neuroptera: Chrysopidae)

Abstract The larvae of Italochrysa italica (Rossi, 1790) were observed in nature for the first time since the original observations by Principi in the 1940s. Several larvae of this species were found in different nests of the arboreal ant Crematogaster scutellaris (Olivier, 1792) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in dead oaks in the Italian Apennines. The present observations agree with the few previous studies on the behaviour of Italochrysa Principi, 1946 species and confirm that the larvae of I. italica spend most of their time within ant nests. The chrysopid larvae were found in loose aggregations within the nest, sometimes just outside the brood chamber. Italochrysa larvae adopt a static behaviour, avoiding ants and using the packet of debris carried on the body to hide and protect themselves from them. The morphology of the larvae is also discussed.

• Publication year

  2022

• Venue

  Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde A

• Publication date

  2022-06-01

• Fields of study

  Not labeled

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.18476/2022.403432
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• The New World Belonopterygini (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae): descriptions of a new genus and species from the West Indies and comparisons among the genera.

  2021cited by this paper
• Larvae of Abachrysa eureka (Banks) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae: Belonopterygini): descriptions and a discussion of the evolution of myrmecophily in Chrysopidae.

  2020cited by this paper
• Evolution of green lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae): an anchored phylogenomics approach

  2019cited by this paper
• Evolution of green lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae): a molecular supermatrix approach

  2018cited by this paper
• Systematics and Evolution of the Family Chrysopidae (Neuroptera), with an Emphasis on their Morphology

  2018cited by this paper
• Myrmecophily in beetles (Coleoptera): evolutionary patterns and biological mechanisms

  2016cited by this paper
• The Ants

  2016cited by this paper
• Third instar of the myrmecophilous Italochrysa insignis (Walker) from Australia (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae: Belonopterygini).

  2014influential reference
• Debris-Carrying in Larval Chrysopidae: Unraveling Its Evolutionary History

  2014cited by this paper
• Los estadios larvarios de los Crisópidos ibéricos (Insecta, Neuroptera, Chrysopidae), nuevos elementos sobre la morfología larvaria aplicables a la sistemática de la familia

  2012cited by this paper
• The rare Chrysopidae (Neuroptera) of southwestern Europe

  2007cited by this paper
• Berchmansus elegans (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae): Larval and adult characteristics and new tribal affiliation

  2006cited by this paper
• Lacewings in the Crop Environment: Natural food and feeding habits of lacewings

  2001cited by this paper
• Extrafloral Nectar Consumption and Its Influence on Survival and Development of an Omnivorous Predator, Larval Chrysoperla plorabunda (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae)

  2001cited by this paper
• Lacewings in the Crop Environment: Lacewings in vegetables, forests, and other crops

  2001cited by this paper
• Lacewings in the Crop Environment: Comparative plant substrate specificity of Iberian Hemerobiidae, Coniopterygidae, and Chrysopidae

  2001cited by this paper
• Rote Liste der gefährdeten Netzflügler der Schweiz

  1994cited by this paper
• Author’s Addresses

  1993cited by this paper
• The green lacewings of the world: a generic review (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae).

  1990cited by this paper
• A Neuropterous Myrmecophile, Nadiva valida Erichs

  1942cited by this paper

• NEW FOSSIL LACEWING LARVAE WITH TRUMPET-SHAPED ELONGATE EMPODIA PROVIDE INSIGHT INTO THE EVOLUTION OF THIS ATTACHMENT STRUCTURE

  2024cites this paper