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2,390 results for “butterflies”
Data from: Genomic evidence for panmixia of eastern and western North American migratory monarch butterflies
Monarch butterflies are known for their spectacular annual migration in eastern North America, with millions of monarchs flying up to 4,500 kilometers to overwintering sites in central Mexico. Monarchs also live west of the Rocky Mountains, where they travel shorter distances to overwinter along the Pacific Coast. Monarch numbers have recently dwindled, and monarch migration may be on the brink of extinction. It is often assumed that eastern and western monarchs form distinct evolutionary units that require specific protection, but genomic studies to support this notion are lacking. We used a tethered flight mill to show that migratory eastern monarchs have greater flight performance than western monarchs. However, analyzing more than 20 million SNPs in 43 monarch genomes, we found no evidence for genomic differentiation between eastern and western monarchs, suggesting the existence of one panmictic migratory population. Our genomic analysis also showed identical and low levels of genetic diversity, and a lack of singleton alleles, indicating a shared history of decline of eastern and western monarchs. Gene expression analysis of a subset of candidate genes during active flight revealed differential gene expression related to non-muscular motor activity. Our results demonstrate that North American monarchs form one panmictic and declining population, and that differences in migration distance and destination are therefore likely driven by environmentally induced differential gene expression. Our study indicates that eastern and western monarchs do not form distinct genetic populations, suggesting that preservation of eastern monarchs could potentially rescue western migration and vice versa.
Quantifying the effects of species traits on predation risk in nature: a comparative study of butterfly wing damage
<p>1) Evading predators is a fundamental aspect of the ecology and evolution of all prey animals. In studying the influence of prey traits on predation risk, previous researchers have shown that crypsis reduces attack rates on resting prey, predation risk increases with increased prey activity, and rapid locomotion reduces attack rates and increases chances of surviving predator attacks. However, evidence for these conclusions is nearly always based on observations of selected species under artificial conditions. In nature, it remains unclear how defensive traits such as crypsis, activity levels, and speed influence realized predation risk across species in a community. Whereas direct observations of predator-prey interactions in nature are rare, insight can be gained by quantifying bodily damage caused by failed predator attacks. 2) We quantified how butterfly species traits affect predation risk in nature by determining how defensive traits correlate with wing damage caused by failed predation attempts, thereby providing the first robust multi-species comparative analysis of predator-induced bodily damage in wild animals. 3) For 34 species of fruit-feeding butterflies in an African forest, we recorded wing damage and quantified crypsis, activity levels, and flight speed. We then tested for correlations between damage parameters and species traits using comparative methods that account for measurement error. 4) We detected considerable differences in the extent, location, and symmetry of wing surface loss among species, with smaller differences between sexes. We found that males (but not females) of species that flew faster had substantially less wing surface loss. However, we found no correlation between cryptic colouration and symmetrical wing surface loss across species. In species in which males appeared to be more active than females, males had a lower proportion of symmetrical wing surface loss than females. 5) Our results provide evidence that activity greatly influences the probability of attacks and that flying rapidly is effective for escaping pursuing predators in the wild, but we did not find evidence that cryptic species are less likely to be attacked while at rest. 15-Oct-2019</p>
Data from: Multidimensional plasticity in the Glanville fritillary butterfly: larval performance is temperature, host and family specific
<p>Variation in environmental conditions during development can lead to changes in life-history traits with long-lasting effects. Here, we study how variation in temperature and host plant, i.e. the consequences of potential maternal oviposition choices, affects a suite of life-history traits in pre-diapause larvae of the Glanville fritillary butterfly. We focus on offspring survival, larval growth rates and relative fat reserves, and pay specific attention to intraspecific variation in the responses (GxExE). Globally, thermal performance and survival curves varied between diets of two host plants, suggesting that host modifies the temperature impact, or <i>vice versa</i>. Additionally, we show that the relative fat content has a host-dependent, discontinuous response to developmental temperature. This implies that a potential switch in resource allocation, from more investment in growth at lower temperatures to storage at higher temperatures, is dependent on the larval diet. Interestingly, a large proportion of the variance in larval performance is explained by differences among families, or interactions with this variable. Finally, we demonstrate that these family-specific responses to the host plant remain largely consistent across thermal environments. Altogether, the results of our study underscore the importance of paying attention to intraspecific trait variation in the field of evolutionary ecology.</p>
Cambridge butterfly collection - Loreto, Peru 2018 batch2
<p>EN: This upload contains photographs taken by Eva van der Heijden at the Butterfly Genetics Group at the University of Cambridge, from a butterfly wing collection from Loreto, Peru, in collaboration with Green Gold Forestry (batch2). Individual sample names can be found in the information sheet. Further Information on individual samples from the Butterfly Genetics Group Collection can be found on the public database Earthcape (<a href="https://heliconius.ecdb.io/">click here for the database</a>, and <a href="https://heliconius.zoo.cam.ac.uk/databases/earthcape-specimen-database/">here for FAQ</a>). Please contact Chris Jiggins (c.jiggins[at]zoo.cam.ac.uk) or Gabriela Montejo-Kovacevich (gmontejokovacevich[at]gmail.com) for further information.</p> <p> </p> <p>ES: Este repositorio contiene fotografías tomadas por Eva van der Heijden en el Butterfly Genetics Group de la Universidad de Cambridge, de mariposas de Loreto (Peru), en colaboración con la compañía Green Gold Forestry. Puede encontrar información sobre muestras individuales de Butterfly Genetics Group Collection en la base de datos pública Earthcape (<a href="https://heliconius.ecdb.io/">haga clic aquí para la base de datos</a>, y <a href="https://heliconius.zoo.cam.ac.uk/databases/earthcape-specimen-database/">aquí para preguntas frecuentes</a>) Por favor, póngase en contacto con Chris Jiggins (c.jiggins [arroba] zoo.cam.ac.uk) o Gabriela Montejo-Kovacevich (gmontejokovacevich[at]gmail.com) con sus preguntas o peticiones.</p>
Cambridge butterfly collection - Loreto, Peru 2018 batch3
<p>EN: This upload contains photographs taken by Eva van der Heijden at the Butterfly Genetics Group at the University of Cambridge, from a butterfly wing collection from Loreto, Peru, in collaboration with Green Gold Forestry (batch3). Individual sample names can be found in the information sheet. Further Information on individual samples from the Butterfly Genetics Group Collection can be found on the public database Earthcape (<a href="https://heliconius.ecdb.io/">click here for the database</a>, and <a href="https://heliconius.zoo.cam.ac.uk/databases/earthcape-specimen-database/">here for FAQ</a>). Please contact Chris Jiggins (c.jiggins[at]zoo.cam.ac.uk) or Gabriela Montejo-Kovacevich (gmontejokovacevich[at]gmail.com) for further information.</p> <p> </p> <p>ES: Este repositorio contiene fotografías tomadas por Eva van der Heijden en el Butterfly Genetics Group de la Universidad de Cambridge, de mariposas de Loreto (Peru), en colaboración con la compañía Green Gold Forestry. Puede encontrar información sobre muestras individuales de Butterfly Genetics Group Collection en la base de datos pública Earthcape (<a href="https://heliconius.ecdb.io/">haga clic aquí para la base de datos</a>, y <a href="https://heliconius.zoo.cam.ac.uk/databases/earthcape-specimen-database/">aquí para preguntas frecuentes</a>) Por favor, póngase en contacto con Chris Jiggins (c.jiggins [arroba] zoo.cam.ac.uk) o Gabriela Montejo-Kovacevich (gmontejokovacevich[at]gmail.com) con sus preguntas o peticiones.</p>
Butterflies fly using efficient propulsive clap mechanism owing to flexible wings
<p class="Teaser">Butterflies look like no other flying animal, with unusually short, broad and large wings relative to their body size. <span>Previous studies have suggested butterflies use several unsteady aerodynamic mechanisms</span> <span>to </span>boost force <span>produc</span>tion with <span>upstroke wing</span> <span>clap </span>being a prominent feature<span>.</span> When the wings clap together at the end of upstroke the air between the wings is pressed out, creating a jet, pushing the animal in the opposite direction. <span>Although </span>viewed, for the last 50 years, <span>as a </span>crucial <span>mechanism</span> in insect flight<span>, quantitative </span>aerodynamic <span>measurements of the clap in freely flying animals are lacking</span>. Using quantitative flow measurements behind freely flying butterflies during take-off and a mechanical clapper, we provide aerodynamic performance estimates for the wing clap. We show that flexible butterfly wings, forming a cupped shape during the upstroke and clap, thrust the butterfly forwards, while the downstroke is used for weight support. We further show that flexible wings dramatically increase the useful impulse (+22%) and efficiency (+28%) of the clap compared to rigid wings. Combined, our results suggest butterflies evolved a highly effective clap, which provides a mechanistic hypothesis for their unique wing morphology. Furthermore, our findings could aid the design of manmade flapping drones, boosting propulsive performance.</p>
Variation of chemical compounds in wild Heliconiini reveals ecological and historical contributions to the evolution of chemical defences in mimetic butterflies
<p>Evolutionary convergence of colour pattern in mimetic species is tightly linked with the evolution of chemical defences. Yet, the evolutionary forces involved in natural variations of chemical defences in aposematic species are still understudied. Herein, we focus on the evolution chemical defences in the butterfly tribe Heliconiini. These neo-tropical butterflies contain large concentrations of cyanogenic glucosides, cyanide-releasing compounds acting as predator deterrent. These compounds are either <i>de novo </i>synthesized or sequestered from their <i>Passiflora</i> host-plant, so that their concentrations may depend on host-plant specialization and host-plant availability. We sampled 375 wild Heliconiini butterflies across Central and South America, covering 43% species of this clade, and quantify individual variations in the different cyanogenic glucosides using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. We detected new compounds and important variations in chemical defences both within and among species. Based on the most recent and well-studied phylogeny of Heliconiini, we show that ecological factors such as mimetic interactions and host-plant specialization have a significant association with chemical profiles, but these effects are largely explained by phylogenetic relationships. Our results therefore suggest that shared ancestries largely contribute to chemical defence variation, pointing out at the interaction between historical and ecological factors in the evolution of Müllerian mimicry.</p>
Questionnaire "Butterfly Monitoring Germany"
<p>Results of a questionnaire sent out to participants of the Citizen Science Project "Butterfly Monitoring Germany"</p>
Predictability of temporal variation in climate and the evolution of seasonal polyphenism in tropical butterflies
<p>Phenotypic plasticity in heterogeneous environments can provide tight environment-phenotype matching. However, the pre-requisite is a reliable environmental cue(s) that enables organisms to use current environmental information to induce the development of a phenotype with high fitness in a forthcoming environment. Here we quantify predictability in the timing of precipitation and temperature change to examine how this is associated with seasonal polyphenism in tropical Mycalesina butterflies. Seasonal precipitation in the tropics typically results in distinct selective environments, the wet- and dry seasons, and changes in temperature can be a major environmental cue. We sampled communities of Mycalesina butterflies from two seasonal and one aseasonal location. Quantifying environmental predictability using wavelet analysis and Colwell's indices confirmed a strong periodicity of precipitation over a 12-month period at both seasonal locations compared to the aseasonal one. However, temperature seasonality and periodicity differed between the two seasonal locations. We further show that: (1) most females from both seasonal locations synchronise their reproduction with the seasons by breeding in the wet season but arresting reproduction in the dry season. In contrast, all species breed throughout the year in the aseasonal location, and (2) species from the seasonal locations, but not those from the aseasonal location, exhibited polyphenism in wing pattern traits (eyespot size). We conclude that seasonal precipitation and its predictability are primary factors shaping the evolution of polyphenism in Mycalesina butterflies, and populations or species secondarily evolve local adaptations for cue use that depend on the local variation in the environment.</p>
Data from: Microevolutionary selection dynamics acting on immune genes of the green veined white butterfly, Pieris napi
Insects rely on their innate immune system to successfully mediate complex interactions with their microbiota, as well as the microbes present in the environment. Previous work has shown that components of the canonical immune gene repertoire evolve rapidly and have evolutionary characteristics originating from interactions with fast-evolving microorganisms. Although these interactions are likely to vary among populations, there is a poor understanding of the microevolutionary dynamics of immune genes, especially in non-Dipteran insects. Here we use the full set of canonical insect immune genes to investigate microevolutionary dynamics acting on these genes between and among populations by comparing three allopatric populations of the Green Veined White butterfly, Pieris napi (Lepidoptera, Pieridae). Immune genes showed increased genetic diversity compared to genes from the rest of the genome and various functional categories exhibited different types of signatures of selection, at different evolutionary scales, presenting a complex pattern of selection dynamics. Signatures of balancing selection were identified in 10 genes, and 17 genes appear to be under positive selection. Genes involved with the cellular arm of the immune response as well as the Toll pathway appear to be enriched among our outlier loci, regardless of functional category. This suggests that the targets of selection might focus upon an entire pathway, more than on functional subsets across pathways. Our microevolutionary results are similar to previously observed macroevolutionary patterns from diverse taxa, suggesting that either the immune system is robust to dramatic differences in life history and microbial communities, or that diverse microbes exert similar selection pressures.
Data from: Sexual dimorphism and retinal mosaic diversification following the evolution of a violet receptor in butterflies
Numerous animal lineages have expanded and diversified the opsin-based photoreceptors in their eyes underlying color vision behavior. However, the selective pressures giving rise to new photoreceptors and their spectral tuning remain mostly obscure. Previously, we identified a violet receptor (UV2) that is the result of a UV opsin gene duplication specific to Heliconius butterflies. At the same time the violet receptor evolved, Heliconius evolved UV-yellow coloration on their wings, due to the pigment 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-OHK) and the nanostructure architecture of the scale cells. In order to better understand the selective pressures giving rise to the violet receptor, we characterized opsin expression patterns using immunostaining (14 species) and RNA-Seq (18 species), and reconstructed evolutionary histories of visual traits in five major lineages within Heliconius and one species from the genus Eueides. Opsin expression patterns are hyperdiverse within Heliconius. We identified six unique retinal mosaics and three distinct forms of sexual dimorphism based on ommatidial types within the genus Heliconius. Additionally, phylogenetic analysis revealed independent losses of opsin expression, pseudogenization events, and relaxation of selection on UVRh2 in one lineage. Despite this diversity, the newly evolved violet receptor is retained across most species and sexes surveyed. Discriminability modeling of behaviorally preferred 3-OHK yellow wing coloration suggests that the violet receptor may facilitate Heliconius color vision in the context of conspecific recognition. Our observations give insights into the selective pressures underlying the origins of new visual receptors.
Data from: Anthropogenic increases in nutrients alter sexual selection dynamics: a case study in butterflies
Anthropogenic increases in nutrient availability offer opportunities to study evolutionary shifts in sexual selection dynamics in real time. A rapid increase in nutrient availability may reduce the utility of condition-dependent ornaments as signals of quality and lessen any nutritional benefits to females from re-mating. We explored these ideas using cabbage white butterflies, focusing on nitrogen as a nutrient, as it is important to this species in not only in ornamentation but also as a key macronutrient transferred in spermatophores. We compared a non-agricultural population to an agricultural population, which has seen an increase in nitrogen availability over the last 40 years due in part to fertilizer application. When reared in a common garden, both male and female butterflies from the agricultural population allocate significantly more to nitrogen-rich wing pigments used in mate choice. However, this increase in allocation is not correlated with an increase in the ability to assimilate nitrogen from their diet. Spermatophore counts from wild females show that females in the agricultural population rarely mate more than once, while those in the non-agricultural population are much more likely to be polyandrous. Similarly, the structure in the female reproductive tract that processes spermatophores has evolved lower tooth density in the agricultural population, consistent with the idea that these females benefit less from high throughput of spermatophores. These results suggest that anthropogenic increases in nutrient availability have altered sexual selection dynamics and the evolution of sexual traits: investment in ornamentation has increased, and there has been a decline in the nutritional benefits of re-mating in females.
Lack of sibling avoidance during mate selection in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana
<p>Species susceptible to inbreeding depression are hypothesized to combat this problem through a number of different mechanisms, including kin recognition. For species with kin recognition, it is unknown if filial recognition is innate or due to prior juvenile experience with siblings. Here, we first test for the presence of kin recognition, and then test these two hypotheses for the development of filial recognition, in the butterfly <em>Bicyclus anynana</em>, a species that suffers from inbreeding depression when forcibly inbred but recovers within a few generations when allowed to breed freely. We evaluate whether the rapid recovery from inbreeding depression is associated with either innate or learned filial recognition. First, we determined whether females innately prefer unrelated males over sibling males using females reared in isolation and then given a choice between an unrelated and a sibling male. Then, we determined if females raised with siblings learned to detect and avoid mating with siblings as adults when provided a choice between an unrelated male and a sibling male. Finally, we determined if females raised with siblings could learn to detect and avoid mating with familiar siblings when given a choice between familiar and unfamiliar siblings. We found that females mated randomly in all three choice combinations. Observed male behavior also did not influence female mating outcome. Our results suggest that adult females do not innately avoid or learn to avoid siblings during mate selection, and that filial detection may not be as critical to reproductive fitness in <em>B. anynana</em> as previously thought.</p>
Data from: Phylogenomics reveals the evolutionary timing and pattern of butterflies and moths
Butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) are one of the major super-radiations of insects, comprising nearly 160,000 described extant species. As herbivores, pollinators, and prey, Lepidoptera play a fundamental role in almost every terrestrial ecosystem. Lepidoptera are also indicators of environmental change and serve as model organisms for research on mimicry and genetics. They have been central to the development of co-evolutionary hypotheses, such as butterflies with flowering plants, and moths' evolutionary arms race with echolocating bats. However, these hypotheses have not been rigorously tested because a robust lepidopteran phylogeny and timing of evolutionary novelties are lacking. To address these issues, we inferred a comprehensive phylogeny of Lepidoptera, using the largest data set assembled for the order (2,098 orthologous protein-coding genes from 186 species representing nearly all superfamilies), and dated it with carefully evaluated synapomorphy-based fossils. The oldest members of the Lepidoptera crown group appeared in the Late Carboniferous (~300 million years ago [Ma]) and fed on non-vascular land plants. Lepidoptera evolved the tube-like proboscis in the Middle Triassic and the proboscis allowed them to acquire nectar from flowering plants. This key morphological innovation, along with other traits, likely promoted the extraordinary diversification of superfamily-level lepidopteran crown groups. The ancestor of butterflies was likely nocturnal, and our results indicate that butterflies became day-flying in the Late Cretaceous. Moth hearing organs arose multiple times prior to the evolutionary arms race between moths and bats, perhaps initially detecting a wide range of sound frequencies before being co-opted to specifically detect bat sonar.
Data from: Monarch butterflies use an environmentally sensitive, internal timer to control overwintering dynamics
The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) complements its iconic migration with diapause, a hormonally controlled developmental program that contributes to winter survival at overwintering sites. Although timing is a critical adaptive feature of diapause, how environmental cues are integrated with genetically-determined physiological mechanisms to time diapause development, particularly termination, is not well understood. In a design that subjected western North American monarchs to different environmental chamber conditions over time, we modularized constituent components of an environmentally-controlled, internal diapause termination timer. Using comparative transcriptomics, we identified molecular controllers of these specific diapause termination components. Calcium signaling mediated environmental sensitivity of the diapause timer, and we speculate that it is a key integrator of environmental condition (cold temperature) with downstream hormonal control of diapause. Juvenile hormone (JH) signaling changed spontaneously in diapause-inducing conditions, capacitating response to future environmental condition. Although JH is a major target of the internal timer, it is not itself the timer. Epigenetic mechanisms are implicated to be the proximate timing mechanism. Ecdysteroid, JH, and insulin/insulin-like peptide (IIS) signaling are major targets of the diapause program used to control response to permissive environmental conditions. Understanding the environmental and physiological mechanisms of diapause termination sheds light on fundamental properties of biological timing, and also helps inform expectations for how monarch populations may respond to future climate change.
Data from: Patterns of divergence across the geographic and genomic landscape of a butterfly hybrid zone associated with a climatic gradient
Hybrid zones are a valuable tool for studying the process of speciation and for identifying the genomic regions undergoing divergence and the ecological (extrinsic) and non-ecological (intrinsic) factors involved. Here, we explored the genomic and geographic landscape of divergence in a hybrid zone between Papilio glaucus and Papilio canadensis. Using a genome scan of 28,417 ddRAD SNPs, we identified genomic regions under possible selection and examined their distribution in the context of previously identified candidate genes for ecological adaptations. We showed that differentiation was genome-wide, including multiple candidate genes for ecological adaptations, particularly those involved in seasonal adaptation and host plant detoxification. The Z-chromosome and four autosomes showed a disproportionate amount of differentiation, suggesting genes on these chromosomes play a potential role in reproductive isolation. Cline analyses of significantly differentiated genomic SNPs, and of species diagnostic genetic markers, showed a high degree of geographic coincidence (81%) and concordance (80%) and were associated with the geographic distribution of a climate-mediated developmental threshold (length of the growing season). A relatively large proportion (1.3%) of the outliers for divergent selection were not associated with candidate genes for ecological adaptations and may reflect the presence of previously unrecognized intrinsic barriers between these species. These results suggest that exogenous (climate-mediated) and endogenous (unknown) clines may have become coupled and act together to reinforce reproductive isolation. This approach of assessing divergence across both the genomic and geographic landscape can provide insight about the interplay between the genetic architecture of reproductive isolation and endogenous and exogenous selection.
Data from: Adult nutritional stress decreases oviposition choosiness and fecundity in female butterflies
Despite the benefits of careful decision-making, not all animals are choosy. One explanation is that choosiness can cost time and energy and thus depend on nutrition. However, it is not clear how allocation to choosiness versus other components of life history shifts in the face of nutritional stress. We tested two hypotheses about the effects of nutritional stress on choosiness and other life history traits: 1) poor nutrition leads to compensatory shifts in life history strategy towards greater investment per offspring in terms of choosy oviposition behavior and egg resources, and 2) poor nutrition negatively affects a range of life history traits. Cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) females were reared under low or high nutrition conditions during the larval and adult stage in a fully factorial design. Choosiness was quantified as avoidance of conspecific models during oviposition. Adult life history traits included egg number, egg size, and thorax protein. Females that experienced nutritional stress as adults were less choosy and less fecund, in support of the second hypothesis. Yet females that were stressed as larvae invested more in thorax muscle, consistent with the first hypothesis. Overall, adult nutritional stress decreased investment in multiple reproductive traits, including a behavioral trait, but larval stress increased investment in flight, potentially to disperse away from nutritionally poor environments.
Data from: Cold adaptation across the elevation gradient in an alpine butterfly species complex
<p><span><span>1. Temperature acts as a major factor on the timing of activity and behaviour in butterflies, and it might represent a key driver of butterfly diversification along elevation gradients. Under this hypothesis, local adaptation should be found along the elevation gradient, with butterflies from high elevation populations able to remain active at lower ambient temperature than those from low elevation. </span></span></p> <p><span><span>2. We recorded the warming-up rate and the thoracic temperature at take-off of 123 individuals of the Alpine butterfly species complex <i>Coenonympha arcania - C. macromma - C. gardetta</i> in controlled conditions. </span></span></p> <p><span><span>3. Warming-up rate increased with elevation within <i>C. arcania</i>: high elevation males of <i>C. arcania</i> were able to warm-up more quickly, as compared to low elevation ones.</span></span></p> <p><span><span>4. High elevation <i>C. gardetta</i> had a darker underwing pattern than low elevation ones. This high-elevation species was significantly smaller (lower weight and wing surface) than the two other species, and had a faster warming up rate.</span></span></p> <p><span><span>5. Our results suggest that the ability to warm-up quickly and to take-flight at a high body temperature evolved adaptively in the high-altitude <i>C. gardetta</i>, and that low temperature at high altitude may explain the absence there of <i>C. arcania</i>, while the hybrid nature of <i>C. macromma</i> is probably the explanation of its elevation overlap with both other species, and its local replacement of <i>C. gardetta</i>.</span></span></p>
Data from: From cryptic to colourful: evolutionary decoupling of larval and adult colour in butterflies
<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Many animals undergo complete metamorphosis, where larval forms change abruptly in adulthood. Colour change during ontogeny is common, but there is little understanding of evolutionary patterns in these changes. Here we use data on larval and adult colour for 246 butterfly species (61% of all species in Australia) to test whether the evolution of colour is coupled between life stages. We show that adults are more variable in colour across species than caterpillars and that male adult colour has lower phylogenetic signal. These results suggest that sexual selection is driving colour diversity in male adult butterflies at a broad scale. Moreover, colour similarities between species at the larval stage do not predict colour similarities at the adult stage, indicating that colour evolution is decoupled between young and adult forms. Most species transition from cryptic coloration as caterpillars to conspicuous colouration as adults, but even species with conspicuous caterpillars change to different conspicuous colours as adults. The use of high-contrast coloration is correlated with body size in caterpillars but not adults. Taken together, our results suggest a change in the relative importance of different selective pressures at different life stages, resulting in the evolutionary decoupling of coloration through ontogeny. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
Data from: Female mate choice is a reproductive isolating barrier in Heliconius butterflies
In sexually reproducing organisms, speciation involves the evolution of reproductive isolating mechanisms that decrease gene flow. Premating reproductive isolation, often the result of mate choice, is a major obstacle to gene flow between species because it acts earlier in the life cycle than other isolating barriers. While female choice is often considered the default mode in animal species, research in the butterfly genus Heliconius, a frequent subject of speciation studies, has focused on male mate choice. We studied mate choice by H. cydno females by pairing them with either conspecific males or males of the closely related species H. pachinus. Significantly more intraspecific trials than interspecific trials resulted in mating. Because male courtship rates did not differ between the species when we excluded males that never courted, we attribute this difference to female choice. Females also performed more acceptance behaviours towards conspecific males. Premating isolation between these two species thus entails both male and female mate choice, and female choice may be an important factor in the origin of Heliconius species.
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Allen Brain Atlas
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Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
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