1978/02/17 by Thomas Eisner, Karen Hicks, Maria Eisner +1 · 4 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Insect-Plant Interactions and Control #Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior #Insect and Pesticide Research
paper · doi:10.1126/science.199.4330.790
openalex publication_date 1978/02/17 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23
The larva of the green lacewing Chrysopa slossonae lives in colonies of the wooly alder aphid Prociphilus tesselatus upon which it feeds. It disguises itself as its prey by plucking some of the waxy "wool" from the bodies of the aphids and applying this material to its own back. The investiture protects it from assault by the ants that ordinarily "shepherd" the aphids. Larvae artifically denuded are seized by the ants and removed from the aphid colonies. A larva requires on the average less than 20 minutes to coat itself with wax. A hungry denuded larva gives the coating procedure about the same behavioral priority as feeding.