Corruption of ant acoustical signals by mimetic social parasites: Maculinea butterflies achieve elevated status in host societies by mimicking the acoustics of queen ants

Recent recordings of the stridulations
of Myrmica ants revealed that their
queens made distinctive sounds from
their workers, although the acoustics of
queens and workers, respectively, were
the same in different species of Myrmica.
Queen recordings induced enhanced
protective behavior when played to workers
in the one species tested. Larvae and
pupae of the butterfly genus Maculinea
inhabit Myrmica colonies as social parasites,
and both stages generate sounds that
mimic those of a Myrmica queen, inducing
similar superior treatments from
workers as their model. We discuss how
initial penetration and acceptance as a
colony member is achieved by Maculinea
through mimicking the species-specific
semio-chemicals of their hosts, and how
acoustical mimicry is then employed to
elevate the parasite’s membership of that
society towards the highest attainable
level in their host’s hierarchy. We postulate
that, if acoustics is as well developed
a means of communication in certain
ants as these studies suggest, then others
among an estimated 10,000 species of
ant social parasite may supplement their
well-known use of chemical and tactile
mimicry to trick host ants with mimicry
of host acoustical systems.