Abstract
Xenorhabdus Thomas & Poinar (Enterobacterales: Morganellaceae) and Photorhabdus Thomas & Poinar (Enterobacterales: Morganellaceae) bacteria are mutualistically associated with Steinernema Travassos, 1927 (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae) and Heterorhabditis Poinar, 1976 (Rhabditida: Heterorhabditidae) nematodes, respectively, and are known to produce several secondary metabolites that protect nematode-killed insects from different competitors. One of these compounds called “the scavenger deterrent factor” (SDF) is known to deter different arthropod, bird, and fish species from feeding on insects killed by Xenorhabdus or Photorhabdus bacteria. The effects of SDF from five different Xenorhabdus and one Photorhabdus species against the Norway rat, Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769) (Rodentia: Muridae) were investigated using either a one-choice or two-choice experimental design during 2019-2020 in Aydın Adnan Menderes University. Rats were given four-day-old bacteria-killed Galleria mellonella (L., 1758) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae and feeding behavior was observed and recorded. The results demonstrate that the Norway rat is deterred from feeding on insects killed by certain Xenorhabdus and Photorhabdus species and it is likely due to the distastefulness of these cadavers. Ecologically, the data suggest that insects killed by the entomopathogenic nematode/bacterium complex in nature may be protected from attack from insectivorous mammals, especially those that feed on soil-dwelling insects.
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