On Mon, Jun 02, 2003 at 06:52:23PM +1000, jade welch wrote:
> I have been told by a good friend that hooded parrots have a symbiotic
> relationship with a certain species of moth. Is this true? And does
> anyone have any articles or information on this as i would like to
> read into this relationship more. Thankyou in advance.
Sounded interesting so I googled. Apparently want is:
A.J. Turner, A Lepidopterous Scavenger Living in Parrots' Nests,
Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, 1923, pp. 170-175.
but the URLs below may be more convenient
http://savanna.ntu.edu.au/information/ar/squatters_in_termit.html
http://www.tasweb.com.au/bapa/antbed1.htm
http://www.usyd.edu.au/su/macleay/larvae/oeco/scatoph.html
Here is an excerpt from the first:
"Nesting holes provide opportunities for yet more animals. A
particular moth,Trisyntopa scatophaga , lays its eggs in the nests
of golden-shouldered parrots. The larvae feed on the young parrots
droppings and the remains of any nestlings which die. Although this
keeps the nest clean the moths can be harmful. Their pupae, situated
near the entrance, have been known to block attempts by the chicks to
leave the nest. The moths have not been found in any other nests so
it is thought that they depend on golden-shouldered parrots and may,
therefore, be just as endangered as their hosts are."
Andrew
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