Eggs of the asparagus beetle attach firmly to waxy plant surfaces using proteinaceous secretions.
“Plant surfaces covered with crystalline epicuticular waxes are known to
be anti-adhesive, hardly wettable and preventing insect
attachment. But there are insects that are capable
of gluing their eggs to these surfaces by means of proteinaceous
secretions.
In this study, we analysed the bonding region
between the eggs of Crioceris asparagi and the plant surface of
Asparagus officinalis…Mean pull-off force was 14.7 mN,
which is about 8650 times higher than the egg
weight…Our results support the hypothesis that the mechanism of insect egg
adhesion
on micro- and nanostructured hydrophobic plant
surfaces is related to the proteinaceous nature of adhesive secretions
of insect
eggs. The secretion wets superhydrophobic surfaces
and after solidifying builds up a composite, consisting of the
solidified
glue and wax crystals, at the interface between the
egg and plant cuticle.” (Voigt and Gorb 2010:895)
