Trichopsenius

Some nest parasites in social insects are protected because their cuticular chemistry is very similar to that of the hosts. The complex cuticle hydrocarbon blends of parasite and host are virtually identical and the hosts cannot distinguish the parasites from conspecifics (Stowe, 1988). Nest parasites of the genus Trichopsenius biosynthesize their hydrocarbon mixture the pattern matches the species-specific mixture of their termite hosts. In contrast, the scarabaeid beetle, Myr-mecaphodius excavatacollis, which associates with ants, acquires its hydrocarbons by association with the host and can invade the nests of several different species of ants with different hydrocarbon blends (Stowe, 1988). In another bizarre example, larvae of the neuropteran, Chrysopa slosso-nae, cover themselves with wax plucked from their wax-coated aphid prey. The ants that tend these aphids fail to recognize the neuropterans and do not attack them (Stowe, 1988). 

The host-specific staphylinid beetle Trichopsenius frosti has a blend of cuticular hydrocarbons that are identical to those of its host, Reticulitermes flavipes (Howard et al., 1978). The beetle grooms workers and rides on the back of female reproductives. This appears to be a case of chemical mimicry of the species-recognition pheromones of the host. 

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