Maternal-Care Behaviour in Adomerus variegatus (Hemiptera: Cydnidae)

Subsociality involving provisioning for offspring has been reported for one shield bug and three burrower bug species (Hemiptera: Pentatomoidea: Parastrachiidae and Cydnidae: Sehirinae). We present the first report of subsocial behaviour in the burrower bug Adomerus variegatus (Signoret), focusing on manifestations of maternal-care, specifically the production of trophic eggs, guarding of offspring, and progressive provisioning. In our study, each female produced an egg mass that included some trophic eggs. Prior to nymphal hatch, females remained in their nests and showed egg mass guarding behaviour. Mothers started provisioning behaviour a few hours after nymphal hatch. Each mother dragged a seed (larger than her body) with her proboscis to the nest as food for the nymphs. These findings suggest that A. variegatus shows maternal-care behaviours similar to those reported in some other pentatomoid species and that trophic egg production and nest provisioning have evolved as interrelated processes.