Chemical ecology of figs and fruit bats

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Manfred Ayasse, since 9/2011; Professorin Dr. Elisabeth Kalko, until 9/2011 (†)
• Subject Area: Animal Physiology and Biochemistry
• Term: from 2006 to 2010
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 30449696

By exploring the unique properties of the highly diverse, pantropical genus Ficus (Moraceae), in particular the composition of its fruit odors, this study will provide new insights into the evolution of seed dispersal syndromes, and the sensory ecology of Neo- and Paleotropical fruit bats within the families Phyllostomidae and Pteropodidae, respectively, taxa that have been geographically isolated and phylogenetically independent throughout their adaptive radiation. The aims of this study are twofold: 1) To analyse and compare fruit odors of bat- and bird-dispersed figs in Neo- and Paleotropical rain forests, with the goal to test the hypothesis that odors of bat-dispersed figs are characterized by distinctive chemical compounds that are highly attractive to their main dispersers and are either lacking or differ in bird-dispersed figs; 2) To investigate the foraging behavior of Neo- and Paleotropical fruit bats (Phyllostomidae and Pteropodidae) in relation to the fruit odors of bat-dispersed figs (Ficus spp.), with the goal to test the hypothesis that both groups, which have evolved independently in each hemisphere, are attracted by similar odor-producing chemical compounds - as a result of evolutionary convergence in the chemical ecology of fruit bat foraging behaviour. These goals will be achieved through a combination of field work on Barro Colorado Island, a field station of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, and by research conducted in the Krau Wildlife Reserve in Malaysia, complemented by laboratory work in Germany, including 1) sampling of ripe and unripe fruit odors of bat- and bird-dispersed figs in the field using dynamic headspace absorption techniques; 2) analysis of fruit odors using GC (Gas Chromatography) and GC-MS (Mass Spectrometry); 3) and bioassays on naive fruit bats using odor samples collected from various species of figs and synthesized compounds.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants