DOI: 10.5061/dryad.2rbnzs7xn
title: Data from: The scent of offspring: chemical profiles of larvae change during development and affect parental behavior in a burying beetle

description: Chemical cues and signals, especially in insects, play a pivotal role in
 mediating interactions between individuals. Past studies have largely
 focused on adult semiochemicals and have neglected those of juvenile
 stages. Especially in the context of parental care, larval odor might have
 a profound impact on parenting behavior, guiding parents in how much
 resources they should allocate to the different developmental stages.
 However, whether ontogenetic changes occur in subsocial species and
 whether larval-emitted scents influence parent-offspring interactions is
 largely unknown. Using three different sampling techniques, we analyzed
 the cuticular and VOC profile of the three larval instars of the burying
 beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides, which is known for its elaborate parental
 care. We found distinct differences in the cuticular and VOC profiles
 across the three larval stages. Second instar larvae, which receive more
 frequent feedings from parents than the other larval stages, released
 greater amounts of acetophenone, methyl geranate, and octanoic acid
 isopropyl ester than the first and third instar. Additionally, using a
 newly developed bioassay with automated video tracking, we found that
 adding the odor of second instar larvae to first instar larvae increased
 the number of maternal feeding trips. Our results suggest that the odor
 produced by larvae plays an important role in mediating parent-offspring
 interactions. Given these findings, burying beetles might emerge as a
 promising candidate for identifying a potential begging pheromone.
description: #### Excel sheet: Cuticular lipids * Sample = The identification code of
 each larval sample in the experiment * instar = developmental instar of N.
 vespilloides larvae In columns C to AR = percentages of each surface
 substance per sample #### Excel sheet: Heatmap cuticular lipids *
 Substances = surface compounds which differs most between larval instars
 (calculated over Simper tests) * L1 = mean relative amount of the
 substances found in first larval instar * L2 = mean relative amount of the
 substances found in second larval instar * L3 = mean relative amount of
 the substances found in third larval instar #### Excel sheet: VOCs active
 headspace * Sample = The identification code of each larval sample in the
 experiment * instar = developmental instar of N. vespilloides larvae In
 columns C to BU = percentages of each surface substance per sample #####
 Excel sheet: VOCs passive headspace * ID = The identification code of each
 larval sample in the experiment * Instar_stage = developmental instar of
 N. vespilloides larvae In columns C to L = percentages of each surface
 substance per sample #### Excel sheet: heatmap VOCs passive headspace *
 substances = passive headspace substances which differs most between
 larval instars (calculated over Simper tests) * L1 = mean relative amount
 of the substances found in first larval instar * L2 = mean relative amount
 of the substances found in second larval instar * L3 = mean relative
 amount of the substances found in third larval instar #### Excel sheet:
 uni vs bi MG * ID = The identification code of each larval sample in the
 experiment * Treatment = larvae were either raise under uniparental or
 under biparental care before analysing their methyl geranate levels * MG =
 methyl geranate peak areas measured using GC-MS * MG in ng = amount of
 methyl geranate in nanogram (calculated using the internal standard in our
 samples) #### Excel sheet: Bioassay 10 vs 1 * SampleID = The
 identification code of each female in the experiment * CamID = The
 identification code of the camera recording each female in the experiment
 * Visits_10larvae = Number of visits by each female recorded in the petri
 dish containing 10 larvae * Visits_1larva = Number of visits by each
 female recorded in the petri dish containing 1 larva #### Excel sheet:
 Bioassy L2 vs carrion extracts * SampleID = The identification code of
 each male in the experiment * CamID = The identification code of the
 camera recording each female in the experiment * Visits_L2extracts =
 Number of visits by each female recorded in the petri dish containing 2
 larvae and a septum with extracts of second instar larvae *
 Visits_carrionextracts = Number of visits by each female recorded in the
 petri dish containing 2 larvae and a septum with carrion extracts