Hyperparasite
A hyperparasite, also known as a metaparasite, is a
Examples
The most common examples are insects that lay their eggs inside or near parasitoid larvae, which are themselves parasitizing the tissues of a host, again usually an insect larva.
A well-studied case is that of the small white butterfly (
Plant volatiles are emitted from plants as a defense against herbivory. The volatiles emitted attract parasitic wasps that in turn attack the herbivores. Hyperparasitoids are known to find their victims through herbivore-induced plant volatiles emitted in response to attack by caterpillars that in turn had been parasitized by primary parasitoids. The larvae of parasitic wasps developing inside the caterpillar alter the composition of the oral secretions of their herbivorous host and thereby affect the cocktail of volatiles the plant produces.[7] The pupae of primary parasitoid species are parasitized by many hyperparasitoid species.
Hyperparasites are not limited to insects. There are parasitic flatworms that are parasite on crustaceans, themselves parasite on fish. An example is the
Number of levels
There are further levels of parasitoids, beyond secondary, especially among facultative parasitoids. Three levels of parasitism have been observed in
Effect on prey
Hyperparasites can control their hosts' populations, and are used for this purpose
Hyperparasitism is to an extent analogous to predation on herbivores, which in turn eat plants, as there are three trophic levels involved. However, hyperparasites are smaller than predators, breed more rapidly than their hosts and are generally found in larger numbers, while especially in the case of micro-organisms, their hosts can sometimes clear their infection. Hyperparasitism may thus behave differently from three-level predator-prey systems: predators can exert control of prey populations, for instance as keystone species, but given the differences between hyperparasites and predators, their effects may need to be modelled differently.[10]
Attribute | Hyperparasite system | Apex predator system |
---|---|---|
Example lower trophic level | Human (ill) | Grassland, forest (overgrazed) |
Example middle trophic level | Vibrio cholerae bacteria | Herbivore, e.g. moose or antelope |
Example top trophic level | JSF4 bacteriophage virus | Predator, e.g. wolf or lion |
Controlling effect | Virus kills bacteria, allows human recovery |
Predator kills herbivores, allows ecosystem recovery |
Size of top level organism | Very small | Large |
Rate of top level organism reproduction | Faster than their hosts | No faster than their prey |
Population size of top level organism | Large numbers | Small numbers |
Reversibility of effect | Possible, infection may clear | Not possible, prey killed |
In literature
So nat'ralists observe, a flea
Hath smaller fleas that on him prey;
And these have smaller fleas to bite 'em.
And so proceeds ad infinitum.
See also
Notes
- evolutionary strategies within parasitism.[3]
References
- PMID 25174849.
- ^ "Hyperparasite". Biology Online Dictionary. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
- ^ PMID 24229807.
- ^ ISBN 9780123741448.
- PMID 23209379.
- ^ Yong, Ed (2012-11-27). "Enter the hyperparasites – wasps that lay eggs in wasps that lay eggs in caterpillars". Retrieved 3 December 2012.
- PMID 23209379.
- PMID 34096866.
- ^ "Fungi Cubed" (PDF).
- ^ PMID 26784356.
- ^ Swift, Jonathan (1733). On Poetry: A Rapsody. And sold by J. Huggonson, next to Kent's Coffee-house, near Serjeant's-inn, in Chancery-lane; [and] at the bookseller's and pamphletshops. Retrieved 20 May 2013.