Host age is known to influence the risk of parasite infection, but there is very little experimental evidence on whether parasites show preference towards potential hosts of a specific age. To investigate how host age ...

In organisms using a wide variety of refuges, both the cost and benefits to the users might be refuge-specific. Under these circumstances, users using mechanisms (e.g., behavioral preference) that allow them to find and ...

Cotesia kariyai Watanabe (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is a specialist larval parasitoid of Mythimna separata Walker (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Cotesia kariyai wasps use herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) to locate hosts. ...

1. Parasitoid–host interactions are important components of ecological communities. Although parasitoid–host interactions are strongly shaped by evolutionary history, the abundance of both the parasitoid and the host may ...

The host-associated microbiome is vital to host immunity and pathogen defense. In aquatic ecosystems, organisms may interact with environmental bacteria to influence the pool of potential symbionts, but the effects of these ...

Several mistletoe species are able to grow and reproduce on both deciduous and evergreen hosts, suggesting a degree of plasticity in their ability to cope with differences in intrinsic host functions. The aim of this study ...

Avian obligate brood parasites lay their eggs in nests of host species, which provide all parental care. Brood parasites may be host specialists, if they use one or a few host species, or host generalists, if they ...