Alarm communication predates eusociality in termites.
David Sillam-Dussès, Vojtěch Jandák, Petr Stiblik, Olivier Delattre, Thomas Chouvenc, Ondřej Balvín, Josef Cvačka, Delphine Soulet, Jiří Synek, Marek Brothánek, Ondřej Jiříček, Michael S Engel, Thomas Bourguignon, Jan Šobotník
Author Information
David Sillam-Dussès: University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France.
Vojtěch Jandák: Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
Petr Stiblik: Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic.
Olivier Delattre: University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France.
Thomas Chouvenc: Entomology and Nematology Department, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.
Ondřej Balvín: Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic.
Josef Cvačka: Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, 166 10, Prague, Czech Republic. ORCID
Delphine Soulet: University Sorbonne Paris Nord, Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology UR4443, 93430, Villetaneuse, France.
Jiří Synek: Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic.
Marek Brothánek: Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic. ORCID
Ondřej Jiříček: Czech Technical University in Prague, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, 166 27, Prague 6, Czech Republic.
Michael S Engel: Division of Entomology, Natural History Museum, and Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 1501 Crestline Drive-Suite 140, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, 66045, USA. msengel@ku.edu. ORCID
Thomas Bourguignon: Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic.
Jan Šobotník: Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, 165 21, Prague 6 - Suchdol, Czech Republic. sobotnik@ftz.czu.cz. ORCID
Termites (Blattodea: Isoptera) have evolved specialized defensive strategies for colony protection. Alarm communication enables workers to escape threats while soldiers are recruited to the source of disturbance. Here, we study the vibroacoustic and chemical alarm communication in the wood roach Cryptocercus and in 20 termite species including seven of the nine termite families, all life-types, and all feeding and nesting habits. Our multidisciplinary approach shows that vibratory alarm signals represent an ethological synapomorphy of termites and Cryptocercus. In contrast, chemical alarms have evolved independently in several cockroach groups and at least twice in termites. Vibroacoustic alarm signaling patterns are the most complex in Neoisoptera, in which they are often combined with chemical signals. The alarm characters correlate to phylogenetic position, food type and hardness, foraging area size, and nesting habits. Overall, species of Neoisoptera have developed the most sophisticated communication system amongst termites, potentially contributing to their ecological success.
References
Curr Biol. 2019 Mar 18;29(6):R209-R212
[PMID: 30889392]
