HONEYDEW FLICKING BY TREEHOPPERS PROVIDES CUES TO POTENTIAL TENDING ANTS

The honeydew-producing treehopper, Guayaquila xiphias, is frequently t ended by ants on shrubs of Didymopanax vinosum in the Brazilian savann ah. Field experiments showed that the flicking of accumulated honeydew by untended treehoppers provides cues to ground-dwelling ants. Upon f inding scattered honeydew droplets on the ground, the ants climb onto the host plant and start tending activity. Honeydew-soaked filter pape rs placed beneath unoccupied host plants induced significantly more an ts to climb onto the plant than water-soaked papers. Because predation and parasitism on G. xiphias can be severe at early stages, and tendi ng ants protect the homopterans against predators and parasitoids, the capacity to attract ants early in life can be crucial for treehopper survival. (C) 1996 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.