Alchisme grossa is a treehopper species showing maternal care until at least the third nymphal instar. A secondary female treehopper has frequently been observed near a family (primary female guarding its egg clutch). Intraspecific brood parasitism, communal breeding or alloparental care may be suggested as possible mechanisms to explain secondary female presence. To distinguish between these phenomena, we performed relatedness analyses of genetic samples of groups including one A. grossa primary female, a secondary female and the associated offspring using polymorphic microsatellites. Furthermore, we characterized the behavioral interaction between both females during maternal care and the reproductive strategy (monandry or polyandry) of A. grossa females by estimating the number of male parents. We observed the presence of secondary females in 35.9% of monitored families. The behaviors characterized suggest the occurrence of brood parasitism in the interaction between both females. Nevertheless, all offspring within a family were descendants only of the primary female and a single male, thus showing that A. grossa females are monandrous. The results, taken together with data on the reproductive biology reported for other treehoppers, are consistent with the occurrence of brood parasitism in A. grossa.

中文翻译：

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Alchismegrossa（半翅目：Membracidae）的繁殖和育雏策略：亲属关系的遗传分析

Alchisme Grossa 是一种树蝉物种，至少在若虫第三龄前都会表现出母亲的照顾。经常在家庭附近观察到次要的雌性树蝉（主要的雌性守卫其卵窝）。种内繁殖寄生、群落繁殖或异源照顾可能被认为是解释次生雌性存在的可能机制。为了区分这些现象，我们使用多态性微卫星对组的遗传样本进行了相关性分析，这些组包括一个 A.grossa 原代雌性、一个次生雌性和相关后代。此外，我们通过估计男性父母的数量来描述母体护理期间雌性和 A.grossa 雌性的生殖策略（一夫多妻制或一妻多夫制）之间的行为互动。我们观察到 35.9% 的受监测家庭中存在次要女性。所表征的行为表明在两只雌性之间的相互作用中发生了育雏寄生。然而，一个家庭中的所有后代都只是主要雌性和单一雄性的后代，从而表明 A.grossa 雌性是单一的。结果，连同报告的其他树蝉的生殖生物学数据，与 A.grossa 中发生的寄生寄生是一致的。