Abstract
Interactions between lycaenid butterflies and ants were studied in West Malaysia. The majority of species observed so far are facultative myrmecophiles that interact unspecifically with a broad range of ant taxa. A few cases of obligate myrmecophily have been detected, including the polyphagous herbivore Rapala dieneces and two aphytophagous members of the genus Logania (Miletinae). Myrmecoxeny, i.e. lack of ant-association, is rare among Oriental lycaenids, but was confirmed for two species. Together with data from available literature, these findings suggest that in tropical rainforests the proportion of obligate myrmecophiles is not much higher than in the northern temperate zone. Therefore, myrmecophily has probably contributed little to the speciation events themselves, but its role in maintaining species diversity through resource partitioning and niche segregation remains to be discovered.
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Fiedler, K. (1996). Interactions between lycaenid butterflies and ants in Peninsular Malaysia. In: Edwards, D.S., Booth, W.E., Choy, S.C. (eds) Tropical Rainforest Research — Current Issues. Monographiae Biologicae, vol 74. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-1685-2_28
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