Larvae hatching from these eggs might benefit from the presence of the larvae that were there previously: They could process the food more easily when it has been «pre-digested» by microorganisms
in the frass of their conspecifics.
Not exact matches
For years, chemical ecologist Dawn Luthe and her students wondered why fall armyworm caterpillars (Spodoptera frugiperda) let piles of feces, known as
frass, accumulate on corn, trapped
in the plant's cuplike whorls where the leaves join the stalk.
Weiss put the leaf houses
in small boxes to see what would happen when
frass accumulated.
They found some
frass (the proper terminology for insect poo) and about 30 eggs
in the soil.
The
frass odors are not only species - specific, they are also different
in males and females.
«Cricket manure, or «
frass», is a natural plant food providing balanced nutrients, beneficial bacteria, and chitin for the development of healthy roots, built -
in pest resistance and strong growth.»