Code and data for Mochizuki (2025) "Olfactory floral mimicry of injured ants mediates the attraction of kleptoparasitic fly pollinators" Current Biology.

Floral mimicry has been a focal point in biological studies, yet the diverse array of mimicry models, especially in fly-pollinated plants, remains underexplored. This study presents the first compelling evidence of olfactory ant mimicry in <i>Vincetoxicum nakaianum </i>(Apocynaceae) flowers, where the floral scent closely resembles the pheromonal compounds of injured common <i>Formica</i><i> </i>ants, thereby attracting kleptoparasitic garss fly (Chloropidae) pollinators.Ant mimicry has independently evolved more than seventy times in arthropods, yet it is exceedingly rare in plants, with no rigorously documented examples to date. Notably, this study also reports the first instance of methyl-6-methyl salicylate (6-MMS), a compound widely used as a hymenopteran pheromone, being exploited in flowers.This study uncovers the unique mimicry model in a poorly understood pollination system, kleptomyiophily, shedding light on the diverse evolutionary outcomes of fly-mediated pollination, an ecologically important but underexplored pollination system.

花拟态（floral mimicry）一直是生物学研究的热点领域，但各类拟态模型，尤其是蝇媒传粉植物中的拟态模型，尚未得到充分探索。本研究首次在南山藤（*Vincetoxicum nakaianum*，夹竹桃科Apocynaceae）的花朵中发现了嗅觉型蚂蚁拟态的确凿证据：其花香与受伤的普通蚁属（*Formica*）蚂蚁的信息素成分高度相似，借此吸引盗食性秆蝇科（Chloropidae）草蝇作为传粉者。蚂蚁拟态在节肢动物中已独立演化超过70次，但在植物中却极为罕见，此前尚无经过严格实证的相关报道。值得注意的是，本研究同时首次报道了6-甲基水杨酸甲酯（methyl-6-methyl salicylate，6-MMS）在花朵中的利用——该化合物此前被广泛用作膜翅目昆虫信息素。本研究在鲜少被认知的盗食蝇传粉（kleptomyiophily）系统中揭示了独特的拟态模型，为阐明蝇媒传粉这一生态功能重要但尚未得到充分探索的传粉系统的多样演化结果提供了新视角。