Gut bacteria symbiosis affects cuticular hydrocarbon profile and mating success in wild <scp><i>Ceratitis capitata</i></scp> (Diptera: Tephritidae) males

Abstract Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a highly polyphagous species and a seriously pest with a significant economic importance, having a great number of studies focused in its management. Recently, there has been a surge of interest in the symbiotic relationship between gut bacteria and their insect hosts. In this context, the objective of this work was to evaluate the role of gut microbiota on symbiotic and aposymbiotic wild medfly adult sexual behaviour, especially on mate choice and mating success. We also evaluate latency and mating time, sperm transference, testes and ovarian sizes and female fecundity. Finally, we compared cuticular hydrocarbon profiles to explore other possible mechanisms that mediate medfly mating success. For this purpose, teneral wild medfly adults were separated into two groups, symbiotic and aposymbiotic. Aposymbiotic adults were treated with an antibiotic mixture (tetracycline plus ciprofloxacin) until sexual maturity. Results of sexual behaviour assays showed that symbiotic males were more successful in mating in comparison with aposymbiotic males, and female preference could be related with a greater sexual organ development of symbiotic females and differences in male hydrocarbon cuticular profiles. Results support the hypothesis that the presence of gut bacteria can play a beneficial role on the sexual behaviour. Knowledge about the importance of cuticular hydrocarbons acting in mating recognition was obtained. This work is the first to report the influence of gut microbiota on this component of the exoskeleton for wild medfly and might be useful for the improvement of sustainable strategies for pest management such as the sterile insect technique.