DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Phylogeny and Natural History of the Flanged Bombardier Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Paussinae)

论文研究：凸缘庞巴迪甲虫的系统发育和自然历史（鞘翅目：步甲科：Paussinae）

基本信息

批准号：
0309221
负责人：
David Maddison
金额：
$ 0.88万
依托单位：
University of Arizona
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Standard Grant
财政年份：
2003
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2003-06-15 至 2004-05-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0309221&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
DISSERTATION RESEARCH Phylogeny Natural History

项目摘要

A NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant has been awarded to Dr. David R. Maddison and Ms. Wendy Moore of the University of Arizona to fund research on ant-loving bombardier beetles, known as paussines. Bombardier beetles have remarkable chemical attributes and behaviors. They deter predators by excreting toxic chemicals at 100 degrees Celsius, the boiling point of water. Paussines are one of only two groups of bombardier beetles. Many paussine species are obligate guests of ants. Circumstantial evidence suggests that the beetles may communicate with their ant hosts via chemicals and substrate borne vibrations. Adult beetles live inside their host ant nests where they feed on ant larvae. Female beetles lay their eggs inside of the ant nest and the ants raise the beetle larvae as if they were their own young. In return, the beetles excrete an unknown substance that the ants consume. Using DNA sequence data, the grantees will determine if the ability to bombard evolved once or twice within beetles. They will also infer the pattern of evolutionary relationship among the major groups of paussine beetles. This work will result in the publication of a branching diagram depicting the evolutionary history of these beetles that will set the foundation for subsequent studies of paussine chemistry and natural history. This grant will also help fund a collecting expedition to Africa to acquire necessary beetle specimens. During this visit Ms. Wendy Moore will present her research on paussine beetles to a variety of audiences at Universities and Natural History museums in Africa. She also helps to enlist African graduate students to join her in the field. Thus this expedition will facilitate relations between US and African academics and institutions, and greatly enhance her graduate training.

NSF博士学位论文的改进赠款已授予亚利桑那大学的David R. Maddison博士和Wendy Moore女士，以资助有关爱好蚂蚁孟买甲虫的研究，称为Paussines。庞巴迪甲虫具有显着的化学属性和行为。它们通过在水的沸点100摄氏度下排出有毒化学物质来阻止捕食者。 Paussines是仅有的两组庞巴迪甲虫之一。许多Paussine物种是蚂蚁的义务客人。间接证据表明，这些甲虫可以通过化学物质和底物传播振动与蚂蚁宿主进行通信。成年甲虫生活在他们的宿主巢中，他们以蚂蚁幼虫为食。雌性甲虫将鸡蛋放在蚂蚁巢内，蚂蚁抬起甲虫幼虫，就好像他们是自己的年轻一样。作为回报，甲虫排泄了蚂蚁消耗的未知物质。使用DNA序列数据，受赠人将确定轰炸甲虫中一次或两次进化的能力。他们还将推断出主要甲虫主要群体之间的进化关系模式。这项工作将导致出版一个分支图，描绘了这些甲虫的进化史，这将为Paussine化学和自然历史的随后研究奠定基础。这项赠款还将帮助资助向非洲的一项收集探险，以获取必要的甲虫标本。在这次访问期间，温迪·摩尔女士将向非洲大学和自然历史博物馆的各种观众介绍她对保障甲虫的研究。她还帮助吸引非洲研究生加入她的领域。因此，这次探险将促进我们与非洲学者与机构之间的关系，并大大增强她的研究生培训。