Ladybirds from central Asia act as a Trojan horse for a microscopic killer.
Farmers brought harlequin ladybird beetles (Harmonia axyridis, pictured) to North America and Europe to eat troublesome aphids, but the insects quickly — and mysteriously — began to supplant native ladybirds. Andreas Vilcinskas at Justus Liebig University Giessen in Germany and his colleagues discovered that a parasite lurks within harlequin ladybirds' circulatory system and eggs. And although the parasite does not harm the harlequins, the researchers found that it is deadly to a native ladybird species (Coccinella septempunctata), which, like many beetle species, eats its competitors' eggs and larvae.
When the harlequin ladybird was introduced to new ecosystems, the authors say, its hidden parasites probably became biological weapons that helped it to take over new territory.
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For a longer story on this research, see: http://go.nature.com/cajaty
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Invasive insect's inner weapon. Nature 497, 412 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/497412c
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/497412c
