Chemical Heterogeneity in Inbred European Population of the Invasive Hornet Vespa velutina nigrithorax

Jeremy Gevar , J.-P. Christidès , A.-G. Bagnères (1) , Éric Darrouzet (1)

1 IRBI - Institut de recherche sur la biologie de l'insecte

Invasive social insect populations that have been introduced to a new environment through a limited number of introduction events generally exhibit reduced variability in their chemical signatures (cuticular hydrocarbons) compared to native populations of the same species. The reduced variability in these major recognition cues could be caused by a reduction of genetic diversity due to a genetic bottleneck. This hypothesis was tested in an inbred European population of the in-vasive hornet Vespa velutina nigrithorax. Our results show that, in spite of the limited amount of genetic diversity present in the European population, the chemical signatures of individuals were highly heterogeneous according to their caste, sex, and colony origin. In queens, some specific saturated and unsaturated hydrocarbons were identified. These results suggest that epi-genetic and/or environmental factors could play a role in modifying cuticular hydrocarbon profiles in this introduced hornet population despite the observed reduction of genetic diversity.

Mots clés: 8 Invasive species; Inbreeding; Cuticular hydrocarbons; Queen pheromone; Yellow-legged

Domaines: Biologie animale

Jeremy Gevar, J.-P. Christidès, A.-G. Bagnères, Éric Darrouzet. Chemical Heterogeneity in Inbred European Population of the Invasive Hornet Vespa velutina nigrithorax. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 2017, 43 (8), pp.763-777. ⟨10.1007/s10886-017-0874-4⟩. ⟨hal-02874908⟩