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van den Berg CP, Santon M, Endler JA, Drummond L, Dawson BR, Santiago C, Weber N, Cheney KL. Chemical defences indicate bold colour patterns with reduced variability in aposematic nudibranchs. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240953. [PMID: 39013421 PMCID: PMC11251778 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 05/31/2024] [Accepted: 05/31/2024] [Indexed: 07/18/2024] Open
Abstract
The selective factors that shape phenotypic diversity in prey communities with aposematic animals are diverse and coincide with similar diversity in the strength of underlying secondary defences. However, quantitative assessments of colour pattern variation and the strength of chemical defences in assemblages of aposematic species are lacking. We quantified colour pattern diversity using quantitative colour pattern analysis (QCPA) in 13 dorid nudibranch species (Infraorder: Doridoidei) that varied in the strength of their chemical defences. We accounted for the physiological properties of a potential predator's visual system (a triggerfish, Rhinecanthus aculeatus) and modelled the appearance of nudibranchs from multiple viewing distances (2 and 10 cm). We identified distinct colour pattern properties associated with the presence and strength of chemical defences. Specifically, increases in chemical defences indicated increases in colour pattern boldness (i.e. visual contrast elicited via either or potentially coinciding chromatic, achromatic and/or spatial contrast). Colour patterns were also less variable among species with chemical defences when compared to undefended species. Our results indicate correlations between secondary defences and diverse, bold colouration while showing that chemical defences coincide with decreased colour pattern variability among species. Our study suggests that complex spatiochromatic properties of colour patterns perceived by potential predators can be used to make inferences on the presence and strength of chemical defences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cedric P. van den Berg
- Marine Sensory Ecology Group, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, Brisbane4072, Australia
- Ecology of Vision Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, BristolBS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Matteo Santon
- Ecology of Vision Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, BristolBS8 1TQ, UK
| | - John A. Endler
- Zoology and Ecology, Tropical Environments Sciences, College of Science & Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD4878, Australia
| | - Leon Drummond
- Marine Sensory Ecology Group, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, Brisbane4072, Australia
| | - Bethany R. Dawson
- Marine Sensory Ecology Group, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, Brisbane4072, Australia
| | - Carl Santiago
- Marine Sensory Ecology Group, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, Brisbane4072, Australia
| | - Nathalie Weber
- Faculty of Biology and Medicine, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
| | - Karen L. Cheney
- Marine Sensory Ecology Group, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, Brisbane4072, Australia
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2
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Burger H, Buttala S, Koch H, Ayasse M, Johnson SD, Stevenson PC. Nectar cardenolides and floral volatiles mediate a specialized wasp pollination system. J Exp Biol 2024; 227:jeb246156. [PMID: 38180227 PMCID: PMC10785657 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.246156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
Specialization in plant pollination systems can arise from traits that function as filters of flower visitors. This may involve chemical traits such as floral volatiles that selectively attract favoured visitors and non-volatile nectar constituents that selectively deter disfavoured visitors through taste or longer-term toxic effects or both. We explored the functions of floral chemical traits in the African milkweed Gomphocarpus physocarpus, which is pollinated almost exclusively by vespid wasps, despite having nectar that is highly accessible to other insects such as honeybees. We demonstrated that the nectar of wasp-pollinated G. physocarpus contains cardenolides that had greater toxic effects on Apis mellifera honeybees than on Vespula germanica wasps, and also reduced feeding rates by honeybees. Behavioural experiments using natural compositions of nectar compounds showed that these interactions are mediated by non-volatile nectar chemistry. We also identified volatile compounds with acetic acid as a main component in the floral scent of G. physocarpus that elicited electrophysiological responses in wasp antennae. Mixtures of these compounds were behaviourally effective for attraction of V. germanica wasps. The results show the importance of both volatile and non-volatile chemical traits as filters that lead to specialization in plant pollination systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Burger
- Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Samantha Buttala
- Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Hauke Koch
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,Kew Green, Richmond TW9 3AE, UK
| | - Manfred Ayasse
- Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Steven D. Johnson
- Centre for Functional Biodiversity, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa
| | - Philip C. Stevenson
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,Kew Green, Richmond TW9 3AE, UK
- Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham Maritime, Kent ME4 4TB, UK
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3
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Sawada K, Inoue T, Mori N, Mori A, Kamijo T. DO Toxic Invasive Prey Become a Toxin Source for Native Consumers? J Chem Ecol 2023:10.1007/s10886-023-01460-z. [PMID: 37882872 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-023-01460-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
Toxic organisms can become food that potentially harms consumers. When these organisms become invasive species, the harm often turns to a serious threat that disrupts native ecosystems. On the other hand, there are consumers that can exploit toxic organisms for food and sequester intact toxins from them for the consumers' own chemical defense. Therefore, it can be expected that toxic invasive prey can become a toxin source for native consumers. Here, we focused on the relationship between toads, which are one of the major toxic invasive organisms and possess bufadienolides (BDs), and Rhabdophis snakes, which sequester BDs from toads. On Sado Island, Japan, R. tigrinus is native, but no toads had inhabited this island until Bufo japonicus formosus was introduced as a domestic invasive species in 1963 and 1964. At present, invasive toads are distributed only in the southwestern part of the island. We collected a total of 25 and 24 R. tigrinus from areas allopatric and sympatric with toads, respectively. Then, we investigated the possession of BDs and the BD profile of these snakes. We found that only R. tigrinus sympatric with toads possessed BDs, whereas all snakes allopatric with toads lacked BDs. Based on the characteristics of the BD profile, the toxin source was identified as B. j. formosus. Our findings show that a new case of impact caused by toxic invasive species, i.e., "toxin supply to native consumers from invasive prey", could occur.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiyoto Sawada
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Ten-nodai, Tsukuba, 305-8572, Ibaraki, Japan.
| | - Takato Inoue
- Division of Applied Life Science, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Sakyo, 606-8502, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Naoki Mori
- Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, 606-8502, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Akira Mori
- Division of Applied Life Science, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Sakyo, 606-8502, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Takashi Kamijo
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Ten-nodai, Tsukuba, 305-8572, Ibaraki, Japan
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4
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Chatelain P, Elias M, Fontaine C, Villemant C, Dajoz I, Perrard A. Müllerian mimicry among bees and wasps: a review of current knowledge and future avenues of research. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2023; 98:1310-1328. [PMID: 36994698 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
Many bees and stinging wasps, or aculeates, exhibit striking colour patterns or conspicuous coloration, such as black and yellow stripes. Such coloration is often interpreted as an aposematic signal advertising aculeate defences: the venomous sting. Aposematism can lead to Müllerian mimicry, the convergence of signals among different species unpalatable to predators. Müllerian mimicry has been extensively studied, notably on Neotropical butterflies and poison frogs. However, although a very high number of aculeate species harbour putative aposematic signals, aculeates are under-represented in mimicry studies. Here, we review the literature on mimicry rings that include bee and stinging wasp species. We report over a hundred described mimicry rings, involving a thousand species that belong to 19 aculeate families. These mimicry rings are found all throughout the world. Most importantly, we identify remaining knowledge gaps and unanswered questions related to the study of Müllerian mimicry in aculeates. Some of these questions are specific to aculeate models, such as the impact of sociality and of sexual dimorphism in defence levels on mimicry dynamics. Our review shows that aculeates may be one of the most diverse groups of organisms engaging in Müllerian mimicry and that the diversity of aculeate Müllerian mimetic interactions is currently under-explored. Thus, aculeates represent a new and major model system to study the evolution of Müllerian mimicry. Finally, aculeates are important pollinators and the global decline of pollinating insects raises considerable concern. In this context, a better understanding of the impact of Müllerian mimicry on aculeate communities may help design strategies for pollinator conservation, thereby providing future directions for evolutionary research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Chatelain
- Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences-Paris (iEES-Paris), Sorbonne Université, CNRS, IRD, INRAE, Université Paris Cité, UPEC, 4 Place Jussieu, Paris, 75005, France
- Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, CP 50, 57 rue Cuvier, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Marianne Elias
- Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, CP 50, 57 rue Cuvier, Paris, 75005, France
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama
| | - Colin Fontaine
- Centre d'Ecologie et des Sciences de la conservation, CESCO UMR 7204, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, 43 rue Cuvier, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Claire Villemant
- Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, CP 50, 57 rue Cuvier, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Isabelle Dajoz
- Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences-Paris (iEES-Paris), Sorbonne Université, CNRS, IRD, INRAE, Université Paris Cité, UPEC, 4 Place Jussieu, Paris, 75005, France
- Université Paris Cité, 45 Rue des Saints-Pères, Paris, F-75006, France
| | - Adrien Perrard
- Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences-Paris (iEES-Paris), Sorbonne Université, CNRS, IRD, INRAE, Université Paris Cité, UPEC, 4 Place Jussieu, Paris, 75005, France
- Université Paris Cité, 45 Rue des Saints-Pères, Paris, F-75006, France
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5
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Segovia JMG, Pekár S. Aversive reactions of two invertebrate predators to European red–black insects. Ethology 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Stano Pekár
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science Masaryk University Brno Czech Republic
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6
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Mohammadi S, Yang L, Bulbert M, Rowland HM. Defence mitigation by predators of chemically defended prey integrated over the predation sequence and across biological levels with a focus on cardiotonic steroids. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220363. [PMID: 36133149 PMCID: PMC9449480 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Predator-prey interactions have long served as models for the investigation of adaptation and fitness in natural environments. Anti-predator defences such as mimicry and camouflage provide some of the best examples of evolution. Predators, in turn, have evolved sensory systems, cognitive abilities and physiological resistance to prey defences. In contrast to prey defences which have been reviewed extensively, the evolution of predator counter-strategies has received less attention. To gain a comprehensive view of how prey defences can influence the evolution of predator counter-strategies, it is essential to investigate how and when selection can operate. In this review we evaluate how predators overcome prey defences during (i) encounter, (ii) detection, (iii) identification, (iv) approach, (v) subjugation, and (vi) consumption. We focus on prey that are protected by cardiotonic steroids (CTS)-defensive compounds that are found in a wide range of taxa, and that have a specific physiological target. In this system, coevolution is well characterized between specialist insect herbivores and their host plants but evidence for coevolution between CTS-defended prey and their predators has received less attention. Using the predation sequence framework, we organize 574 studies reporting predators overcoming CTS defences, integrate these counter-strategies across biological levels of organization, and discuss the costs and benefits of attacking CTS-defended prey. We show that distinct lineages of predators have evolved dissecting behaviour, changes in perception of risk and of taste perception, and target-site insensitivity. We draw attention to biochemical, hormonal and microbiological strategies that have yet to be investigated as predator counter-adaptations to CTS defences. We show that the predation sequence framework will be useful for organizing future studies of chemically mediated systems and coevolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shabnam Mohammadi
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, USA
- Institut für Zell- und Systembiologie der Tiere, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
| | - Lu Yang
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Matthew Bulbert
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Oxford Brookes, Oxford, UK
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
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7
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Mohammadi S, Yang L, Bulbert M, Rowland HM. Defence mitigation by predators of chemically defended prey integrated over the predation sequence and across biological levels with a focus on cardiotonic steroids. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220363. [PMID: 36133149 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6168216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Predator-prey interactions have long served as models for the investigation of adaptation and fitness in natural environments. Anti-predator defences such as mimicry and camouflage provide some of the best examples of evolution. Predators, in turn, have evolved sensory systems, cognitive abilities and physiological resistance to prey defences. In contrast to prey defences which have been reviewed extensively, the evolution of predator counter-strategies has received less attention. To gain a comprehensive view of how prey defences can influence the evolution of predator counter-strategies, it is essential to investigate how and when selection can operate. In this review we evaluate how predators overcome prey defences during (i) encounter, (ii) detection, (iii) identification, (iv) approach, (v) subjugation, and (vi) consumption. We focus on prey that are protected by cardiotonic steroids (CTS)-defensive compounds that are found in a wide range of taxa, and that have a specific physiological target. In this system, coevolution is well characterized between specialist insect herbivores and their host plants but evidence for coevolution between CTS-defended prey and their predators has received less attention. Using the predation sequence framework, we organize 574 studies reporting predators overcoming CTS defences, integrate these counter-strategies across biological levels of organization, and discuss the costs and benefits of attacking CTS-defended prey. We show that distinct lineages of predators have evolved dissecting behaviour, changes in perception of risk and of taste perception, and target-site insensitivity. We draw attention to biochemical, hormonal and microbiological strategies that have yet to be investigated as predator counter-adaptations to CTS defences. We show that the predation sequence framework will be useful for organizing future studies of chemically mediated systems and coevolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shabnam Mohammadi
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, USA
- Institut für Zell- und Systembiologie der Tiere, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
| | - Lu Yang
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Matthew Bulbert
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Oxford Brookes, Oxford, UK
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
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8
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Jeckel AM, Bolton SK, Waters KR, Antoniazzi MM, Jared C, Matsumura K, Nishikawa K, Morimoto Y, Grant T, Saporito RA. Dose-dependent alkaloid sequestration and N-methylation of decahydroquinoline in poison frogs. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY. PART A, ECOLOGICAL AND INTEGRATIVE PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 337:537-546. [PMID: 35201668 DOI: 10.1002/jez.2587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2021] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Sequestration of chemical defenses from dietary sources is dependent on the availability of compounds in the environment and the mechanism of sequestration. Previous experiments have shown that sequestration efficiency varies among alkaloids in poison frogs, but little is known about the underlying mechanism. The aim of this study was to quantify the extent to which alkaloid sequestration and modification are dependent on alkaloid availability and/or sequestration mechanism. To do this, we administered different doses of histrionicotoxin (HTX) 235A and decahydroquinoline (DHQ) to captive-bred Adelphobates galactonotus and measured alkaloid quantity in muscle, kidney, liver, and feces. HTX 235A and DHQ were detected in all organs, whereas only DHQ was present in trace amounts in feces. For both liver and skin, the quantity of alkaloid accumulated increased at higher doses for both alkaloids. Accumulation efficiency in the skin increased at higher doses for HTX 235A but remained constant for DHQ. In contrast, the efficiency of HTX 235A accumulation in the liver was inversely related to dose and a similar, albeit statistically nonsignificant, pattern was observed for DHQ. We identified and quantified the N-methylation of DHQ in A. galactonotus, which represents a previously unknown example of alkaloid modification in poison frogs. Our study suggests that variation in alkaloid composition among individuals and species can result from differences in sequestration efficiency related to the type and amount of alkaloids available in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriana M Jeckel
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Sarah K Bolton
- Department of Biology, Notre Dame College, South Euclid, Ohio, USA
| | - Katherine R Waters
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, Ohio, USA
| | - Marta M Antoniazzi
- Structural Biology Lab, Butantan Institute, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Carlos Jared
- Structural Biology Lab, Butantan Institute, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Kunihiro Matsumura
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Keisuke Nishikawa
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yoshiki Morimoto
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Taran Grant
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Ralph A Saporito
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, Ohio, USA
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9
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Pocius VM, Cibotti S, Ray S, Ankoma-Darko O, McCartney NB, Schilder RJ, Ali JG. Impacts of larval host plant species on dispersal traits and free-flight energetics of adult butterflies. Commun Biol 2022; 5:469. [PMID: 35577926 PMCID: PMC9110344 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03396-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals derive resources from their diet and allocate them to organismal functions such as growth, maintenance, reproduction, and dispersal. How variation in diet quality can affect resource allocation to life-history traits, in particular those important to locomotion and dispersal, is poorly understood. We hypothesize that, particularly for specialist herbivore insects that are in co-evolutionary arms races with host plants, changes in host plant will impact performance. From their coevolutionary arms-race with plants, to a complex migratory life history, Monarch butterflies are among the most iconic insect species worldwide. Population declines initiated international conservation efforts involving the replanting of a variety of milkweed species. However, this practice was implemented with little regard for how diverse defensive chemistry of milkweeds experienced by monarch larvae may affect adult fitness traits. We report that adult flight muscle investment, flight energetics, and maintenance costs depend on the host plant species of larvae, and correlate with concentration of milkweed-derived cardenolides sequestered by adults. Our findings indicate host plant species can impact monarchs by affecting fuel requirements for flight. The growth of muscle and flight performance in monarch butterflies is influenced by the plant species the larvae grow on.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria M Pocius
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
| | - Staci Cibotti
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Swayamjit Ray
- Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Obenewa Ankoma-Darko
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Nathaniel B McCartney
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Rudolf J Schilder
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
| | - Jared G Ali
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
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10
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Stella D, Kleisner K. Visible beyond Violet: How Butterflies Manage Ultraviolet. INSECTS 2022; 13:insects13030242. [PMID: 35323542 PMCID: PMC8955501 DOI: 10.3390/insects13030242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2021] [Revised: 02/12/2022] [Accepted: 02/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Ultraviolet (UV) means ‘beyond violet’ (from Latin ‘ultra’, meaning ‘beyond’), whereby violet is the colour with the highest frequencies in the ‘visible’ light spectrum. By ‘visible’ we mean human vision, but, in comparison to many other organisms, human visual perception is rather limited in terms of the wavelengths it can perceive. Still, this is why communication in the UV spectrum is often called hidden, although it most likely plays an important role in communicating various kinds of information among a wide variety of organisms. Since Silberglied’s revolutionary Communication in the Ultraviolet, comprehensive studies on UV signals in a wide list of genera are lacking. This review investigates the significance of UV reflectance (and UV absorption)—a feature often neglected in intra- and interspecific communication studies—mainly in Lepidoptera. Although the text focuses on various butterfly families, links and connections to other animal groups, such as birds, are also discussed in the context of ecology and the evolution of species. The basic mechanisms of UV colouration and factors shaping the characteristics of UV patterns are also discussed in a broad context of lepidopteran communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Stella
- Global Change Research Institute, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Bělidla 986/4a, 603 00 Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Philosophy and History of Science, Faculty of Science, Charles University, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Karel Kleisner
- Department of Philosophy and History of Science, Faculty of Science, Charles University, 128 44 Prague, Czech Republic
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11
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Whiteman NK. Evolution in small steps and giant leaps. Evolution 2022; 76:67-77. [PMID: 35040122 PMCID: PMC9387839 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The first Editor of Evolution was Ernst Mayr. His foreword to the first issue of Evolution published in 1947 framed evolution as a "problem of interaction" that was just beginning to be studied in this broad context. First, I explore progress and prospects on understanding the subsidiary interactions identified by Mayr, including interactions between parts of organisms, between individuals and populations, between species, and between the organism and its abiotic environment. Mayr's overall "problem of interaction" framework is examined in the context of coevolution within and among levels of biological organization. This leads to a comparison in the relative roles of biotic versus abiotic agents of selection and fluctuating versus directional selection, followed by stabilizing selection in shaping the genomic architecture of adaptation. Oligogenic architectures may be typical for traits shaped more by fluctuating selection and biotic selection. Conversely, polygenic architectures may be typical for traits shaped more by directional followed by stabilizing selection and abiotic selection. The distribution of effect sizes and turnover dynamics of adaptive alleles in these scenarios deserves further study. Second, I review two case studies on the evolution of acquired toxicity in animals, one involving cardiac glycosides obtained from plants and one involving bacterial virulence factors horizontally transferred to animals. The approaches used in these studies and the results gained directly flow from Mayr's vision of an evolutionary biology that revolves around the "problem of interaction."
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah K. Whiteman
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
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12
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Winters AE, Lommi J, Kirvesoja J, Nokelainen O, Mappes J. Multimodal Aposematic Defenses Through the Predation Sequence. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.657740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Aposematic organisms warn predators of their unprofitability using a combination of defenses, including visual warning signals, startling sounds, noxious odors, or aversive tastes. Using multiple lines of defense can help prey avoid predators by stimulating multiple senses and/or by acting at different stages of predation. We tested the efficacy of three lines of defense (color, smell, taste) during the predation sequence of aposematic wood tiger moths (Arctia plantaginis) using blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) predators. Moths with two hindwing phenotypes (genotypes: WW/Wy = white, yy = yellow) were manipulated to have defense fluid with aversive smell (methoxypyrazines), body tissues with aversive taste (pyrrolizidine alkaloids) or both. In early predation stages, moth color and smell had additive effects on bird approach latency and dropping the prey, with the strongest effect for moths of the white morph with defense fluids. Pyrrolizidine alkaloid sequestration was detrimental in early attack stages, suggesting a trade-off between pyrrolizidine alkaloid sequestration and investment in other defenses. In addition, pyrrolizidine alkaloid taste alone did not deter bird predators. Birds could only effectively discriminate toxic moths from non-toxic moths when neck fluids containing methoxypyrazines were present, at which point they abandoned attack at the consumption stage. As a result, moths of the white morph with an aversive methoxypyrazine smell and moths in the treatment with both chemical defenses had the greatest chance of survival. We suggest that methoxypyrazines act as context setting signals for warning colors and as attention alerting or “go-slow” signals for distasteful toxins, thereby mediating the relationship between warning signal and toxicity. Furthermore, we found that moths that were heterozygous for hindwing coloration had more effective defense fluids compared to other genotypes in terms of delaying approach and reducing the latency to drop the moth, suggesting a genetic link between coloration and defense that could help to explain the color polymorphism. Conclusively, these results indicate that color, smell, and taste constitute a multimodal warning signal that impedes predator attack and improves prey survival. This work highlights the importance of understanding the separate roles of color, smell and taste through the predation sequence and also within-species variation in chemical defenses.
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13
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Potts AS, Hunter MD. Unraveling the roles of genotype and environment in the expression of plant defense phenotypes. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:8542-8561. [PMID: 34257915 PMCID: PMC8258211 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic variability results from interactions between genotype and environment and is a major driver of ecological and evolutionary interactions. Measuring the relative contributions of genetic variation, the environment, and their interaction to phenotypic variation remains a fundamental goal of evolutionary ecology.In this study, we assess the question: How do genetic variation and local environmental conditions interact to influence phenotype within a single population? We explored this question using seed from a single population of common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, in northern Michigan. We first measured resistance and resistance traits of 14 maternal lines in two common garden experiments (field and greenhouse) to detect genetic variation within the population. We carried out a reciprocal transplant experiment with three of these maternal lines to assess effects of local environment on phenotype. Finally, we compared the phenotypic traits measured in our experiments with the phenotypic traits of the naturally growing maternal genets to be able to compare relative effect of genetic and environmental variation on naturally occurring phenotypic variation. We measured defoliation levels, arthropod abundances, foliar cardenolide concentrations, foliar latex exudation, foliar carbon and nitrogen concentrations, and plant growth.We found a striking lack of correlation in trait expression of the maternal lines between the common gardens, or between the common gardens and the naturally growing maternal genets, suggesting that environment plays a larger role in phenotypic trait variation of this population. We found evidence of significant genotype-by-environment interactions for all traits except foliar concentrations of nitrogen and cardenolide. Milkweed resistance to chewing herbivores was associated more strongly with the growing environment. We observed no variation in foliar cardenolide concentrations among maternal lines but did observe variation among maternal lines in foliar latex exudation.Overall, our data reveal powerful genotype-by-environment interactions on the expression of most resistance traits in milkweed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abigail S. Potts
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMIUSA
| | - Mark D. Hunter
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMIUSA
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14
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Páez E, Valkonen JK, Willmott KR, Matos-Maraví P, Elias M, Mappes J. Hard to catch: experimental evidence supports evasive mimicry. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20203052. [PMID: 33715434 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.3052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Most research on aposematism has focused on chemically defended prey, but the signalling difficulty of capture remains poorly explored. Similar to classical Batesian and Müllerian mimicry related to distastefulness, such 'evasive aposematism' may also lead to convergence in warning colours, known as evasive mimicry. A prime candidate group for evasive mimicry are Adelpha butterflies, which are agile insects and show remarkable colour pattern convergence. We tested the ability of naive blue tits to learn to avoid and generalize Adelpha wing patterns associated with the difficulty of capture and compared their response to that of birds that learned to associate the same wing patterns with distastefulness. Birds learned to avoid all wing patterns tested and generalized their aversion to other prey to some extent, but learning was faster with evasive prey compared to distasteful prey. Our results on generalization agree with longstanding observations of striking convergence in wing colour patterns among Adelpha species, since, in our experiments, perfect mimics of evasive and distasteful models were always protected during generalization and suffered the lowest attack rate. Moreover, generalization on evasive prey was broader compared to that on distasteful prey. Our results suggest that being hard to catch may deter predators at least as effectively as distastefulness. This study provides empirical evidence for evasive mimicry, a potentially widespread but poorly understood form of morphological convergence driven by predator selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erika Páez
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité, Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, SU, EPHE, UA, Paris, France
| | - Janne K Valkonen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Keith R Willmott
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Pável Matos-Maraví
- Biology Centre CAS, Institute of Entomology, Branišovská 31, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Marianne Elias
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité, Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, SU, EPHE, UA, Paris, France
| | - Johanna Mappes
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.,Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Program Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Finland
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15
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Pokharel P, Sippel M, Vilcinskas A, Petschenka G. Defense of Milkweed Bugs (Heteroptera: Lygaeinae) against Predatory Lacewing Larvae Depends on Structural Differences of Sequestered Cardenolides. INSECTS 2020; 11:E485. [PMID: 32752003 PMCID: PMC7469174 DOI: 10.3390/insects11080485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 07/22/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Predators and parasitoids regulate insect populations and select defense mechanisms such as the sequestration of plant toxins. Sequestration is common among herbivorous insects, yet how the structural variation of plant toxins affects defenses against predators remains largely unknown. The palearctic milkweed bug Lygaeus equestris (Heteroptera: Lygaeinae) was recently shown to sequester cardenolides from Adonis vernalis (Ranunculaceae), while its relative Horvathiolus superbus also obtains cardenolides but from Digitalis purpurea (Plantaginaceae). Remarkably, toxin sequestration protects both species against insectivorous birds, but only H. superbus gains protection against predatory lacewing larvae. Here, we used a full factorial design to test whether this difference was mediated by the differences in plant chemistry or by the insect species. We raised both species of milkweed bugs on seeds from both species of host plants and carried out predation assays using the larvae of the lacewing Chrysoperla carnea. In addition, we analyzed the toxins sequestered by the bugs via liquid chromatography (HPLC). We found that both insect species gained protection by sequestering cardenolides from D. purpurea but not from A. vernalis. Since the total amount of toxins stored was not different between the plant species in H. superbus and even lower in L. equestris from D. purpurea compared to A. vernalis, the effect is most likely mediated by structural differences of the sequestered toxins. Our findings indicate that predator-prey interactions are highly context-specific and that the host plant choice can affect the levels of protection to various predator types based on structural differences within the same class of chemical compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prayan Pokharel
- Institute of Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany;
| | - Marlon Sippel
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35392 Giessen, Germany; (M.S.); (A.V.)
| | - Andreas Vilcinskas
- Institute for Insect Biotechnology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35392 Giessen, Germany; (M.S.); (A.V.)
| | - Georg Petschenka
- Institute of Phytomedicine, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany;
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16
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Villalona E, Ezray BD, Laveaga E, Agrawal AA, Ali JG, Hines HM. The role of toxic nectar secondary compounds in driving differential bumble bee preferences for milkweed flowers. Oecologia 2020; 193:619-630. [PMID: 32671460 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04701-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Accepted: 06/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
While morphological differences such as tongue length are often featured as drivers of pollinator floral preferences, differences in chemical detection and tolerance to secondary compounds may also play a role. We sought to better understand the role of secondary compounds in floral preference by examining visitation of milkweed flowers, which can contain toxic cardenolides in their nectar, by bumble bees (Bombus spp.), some of their most abundant and important pollinators. We examine bumble bee species visitation of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) compared to other flowers in the field and test whether observed preferences may be influenced by avoidance and tolerance of cardenolides, as measured by the cardenolide ouabain, in the lab. We reveal that common milkweed is visited predominantly by one bumble bee species, Bombus griseocollis, in a ratio much higher than the abundance of this species in the community. We confirmed the presence and toxicity of cardenolides in A. syriaca nectar. Lab experiments revealed that B. griseocollis, compared to the common bumble bees B. impatiens and B. bimaculatus, exhibit greater avoidance of cardenolides, but only at levels that start to induce illness, whereas the other species exhibit either no or reduced avoidance of cardenolides, resulting in illness and mortality in these bees. Toxicity experiments reveal that B. griseocollis also has a substantially higher tolerance for cardenolides than B. impatiens. Together, these results support a potential evolutionary association between B. griseocollis and milkweed that may involve increased ability to both detect and tolerate milkweed cardenolides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eris Villalona
- Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Briana D Ezray
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Research Informatics and Publishing, The Pennsylvania State University Libraries, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Erica Laveaga
- Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Anurag A Agrawal
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Jared G Ali
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Heather M Hines
- Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
- Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
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17
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Dowdy NJ, Conner WE. Nonchalant Flight in Tiger Moths (Erebidae: Arctiinae) Is Correlated With Unpalatability. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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18
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Abstract
Every fall, millions of North American monarch butterflies undergo a stunning long-distance migration to reach their overwintering grounds in Mexico. Migration allows the butterflies to escape freezing temperatures and dying host plants, and reduces infections with a virulent parasite. We discuss the multigenerational migration journey and its evolutionary history, and highlight the navigational mechanisms of migratory monarchs. Monarchs use a bidirectional time-compensated sun compass for orientation, which is based on a time-compensating circadian clock that resides in the antennae, and which has a distinctive molecular mechanism. Migrants can also use a light-dependent inclination magnetic compass for orientation under overcast conditions. Additional environmental features, e.g., atmospheric conditions, geologic barriers, and social interactions, likely augment navigation. The publication of the monarch genome and the development of gene-editing strategies have enabled the dissection of the genetic and neurobiological basis of the migration. The monarch butterfly has emerged as an excellent system to study the ecological, neural, and genetic basis of long-distance animal migration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven M Reppert
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA.
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19
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Karageorgi M, Groen SC, Sumbul F, Pelaez JN, Verster KI, Aguilar JM, Hastings AP, Bernstein SL, Matsunaga T, Astourian M, Guerra G, Rico F, Dobler S, Agrawal AA, Whiteman NK. Genome editing retraces the evolution of toxin resistance in the monarch butterfly. Nature 2019; 574:409-412. [PMID: 31578524 PMCID: PMC7039281 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1610-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2018] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Identifying the genetic mechanisms of adaptation requires the elucidation of links between the evolution of DNA sequence, phenotype, and fitness1. Convergent evolution can be used as a guide to identify candidate mutations that underlie adaptive traits2-4, and new genome editing technology is facilitating functional validation of these mutations in whole organisms1,5. We combined these approaches to study a classic case of convergence in insects from six orders, including the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), that have independently evolved to colonize plants that produce cardiac glycoside toxins6-11. Many of these insects evolved parallel amino acid substitutions in the α-subunit (ATPα) of the sodium pump (Na+/K+-ATPase)7-11, the physiological target of cardiac glycosides12. Here we describe mutational paths involving three repeatedly changing amino acid sites (111, 119 and 122) in ATPα that are associated with cardiac glycoside specialization13,14. We then performed CRISPR-Cas9 base editing on the native Atpα gene in Drosophila melanogaster flies and retraced the mutational path taken across the monarch lineage11,15. We show in vivo, in vitro and in silico that the path conferred resistance and target-site insensitivity to cardiac glycosides16, culminating in triple mutant 'monarch flies' that were as insensitive to cardiac glycosides as monarch butterflies. 'Monarch flies' retained small amounts of cardiac glycosides through metamorphosis, a trait that has been optimized in monarch butterflies to deter predators17-19. The order in which the substitutions evolved was explained by amelioration of antagonistic pleiotropy through epistasis13,14,20-22. Our study illuminates how the monarch butterfly evolved resistance to a class of plant toxins, eventually becoming unpalatable, and changing the nature of species interactions within ecological communities2,6-11,15,17-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marianthi Karageorgi
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,These authors contributed equally: Marianthi Karageorgi, Simon C. Groen
| | - Simon C. Groen
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Department of Biology, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.,These authors contributed equally: Marianthi Karageorgi, Simon C. Groen
| | - Fidan Sumbul
- LAI, U1067 Aix-Marseille Université, Inserm, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Julianne N. Pelaez
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Kirsten I. Verster
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jessica M. Aguilar
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Amy P. Hastings
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Susan L. Bernstein
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Teruyuki Matsunaga
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Michael Astourian
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Geno Guerra
- Department of Statistics, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Felix Rico
- LAI, U1067 Aix-Marseille Université, Inserm, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Susanne Dobler
- Molecular Evolutionary Biology, Zoological Institute, Biocenter Grindel, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Anurag A. Agrawal
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.,Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Noah K. Whiteman
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to N.K.W.
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20
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Tan W, Acevedo T, Harris EV, Alcaide TY, Walters JR, Hunter MD, Gerardo NM, Roode JC. Transcriptomics of monarch butterflies (
Danaus plexippus
) reveals that toxic host plants alter expression of detoxification genes and down‐regulate a small number of immune genes. Mol Ecol 2019; 28:4845-4863. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.15219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2019] [Revised: 07/24/2019] [Accepted: 07/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wen‐Hao Tan
- Department of Biology Emory University Atlanta GA USA
| | - Tarik Acevedo
- Department of Biology Emory University Atlanta GA USA
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management Pennsylvania State University State College PA USA
| | | | - Tiffanie Y. Alcaide
- Department of Biology Emory University Atlanta GA USA
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management Pennsylvania State University State College PA USA
| | - James R. Walters
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Kansas Lawrence KS USA
| | - Mark D. Hunter
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology University of Michigan Ann Arbor MI USA
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21
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Carper AL, Enger M, Bowers MD. Host Plant Effects on Immune Response Across Development of a Specialist Caterpillar. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
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22
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Oberhauser KS, Alonso A, Malcolm SB, Williams EH, Zalucki MP. Lincoln Brower, Champion for Monarchs. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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23
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Briolat ES, Burdfield‐Steel ER, Paul SC, Rönkä KH, Seymoure BM, Stankowich T, Stuckert AMM. Diversity in warning coloration: selective paradox or the norm? Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:388-414. [PMID: 30152037 PMCID: PMC6446817 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2017] [Revised: 07/25/2018] [Accepted: 07/27/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Aposematic theory has historically predicted that predators should select for warning signals to converge on a single form, as a result of frequency-dependent learning. However, widespread variation in warning signals is observed across closely related species, populations and, most problematically for evolutionary biologists, among individuals in the same population. Recent research has yielded an increased awareness of this diversity, challenging the paradigm of signal monomorphy in aposematic animals. Here we provide a comprehensive synthesis of these disparate lines of investigation, identifying within them three broad classes of explanation for variation in aposematic warning signals: genetic mechanisms, differences among predators and predator behaviour, and alternative selection pressures upon the signal. The mechanisms producing warning coloration are also important. Detailed studies of the genetic basis of warning signals in some species, most notably Heliconius butterflies, are beginning to shed light on the genetic architecture facilitating or limiting key processes such as the evolution and maintenance of polymorphisms, hybridisation, and speciation. Work on predator behaviour is changing our perception of the predator community as a single homogenous selective agent, emphasising the dynamic nature of predator-prey interactions. Predator variability in a range of factors (e.g. perceptual abilities, tolerance to chemical defences, and individual motivation), suggests that the role of predators is more complicated than previously appreciated. With complex selection regimes at work, polytypisms and polymorphisms may even occur in Müllerian mimicry systems. Meanwhile, phenotypes are often multifunctional, and thus subject to additional biotic and abiotic selection pressures. Some of these selective pressures, primarily sexual selection and thermoregulation, have received considerable attention, while others, such as disease risk and parental effects, offer promising avenues to explore. As well as reviewing the existing evidence from both empirical studies and theoretical modelling, we highlight hypotheses that could benefit from further investigation in aposematic species. Finally by collating known instances of variation in warning signals, we provide a valuable resource for understanding the taxonomic spread of diversity in aposematic signalling and with which to direct future research. A greater appreciation of the extent of variation in aposematic species, and of the selective pressures and constraints which contribute to this once-paradoxical phenomenon, yields a new perspective for the field of aposematic signalling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuelle S. Briolat
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental SciencesUniversity of ExeterPenryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FEU.K.
| | - Emily R. Burdfield‐Steel
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental ScienceUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskylä, 40014Finland
| | - Sarah C. Paul
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental SciencesUniversity of ExeterPenryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FEU.K.
- Department of Chemical EcologyBielefeld UniversityUniversitätsstraße 25, 33615, BielefeldGermany
| | - Katja H. Rönkä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental ScienceUniversity of JyväskyläJyväskylä, 40014Finland
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinki, 00014Finland
| | - Brett M. Seymoure
- Department of BiologyColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCO 80525U.S.A.
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation BiologyColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCO 80525U.S.A.
| | - Theodore Stankowich
- Department of Biological SciencesCalifornia State UniversityLong BeachCA 90840U.S.A.
| | - Adam M. M. Stuckert
- Department of BiologyEast Carolina University1000 E Fifth St, GreenvilleNC 27858U.S.A.
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24
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Prudic KL, Timmermann BN, Papaj DR, Ritland DB, Oliver JC. Mimicry in viceroy butterflies is dependent on abundance of the model queen butterfly. Commun Biol 2019; 2:68. [PMID: 30793046 PMCID: PMC6379391 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-019-0303-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2018] [Accepted: 12/03/2018] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Mimics should not exist without their models, yet often they do. In the system involving queen and viceroy butterflies, the viceroy is both mimic and co-model depending on the local abundance of the model, the queen. Here, we integrate population surveys, chemical analyses, and predator behavior assays to demonstrate how mimics may persist in locations with low-model abundance. As the queen becomes less locally abundant, the viceroy becomes more chemically defended and unpalatable to predators. However, the observed changes in viceroy chemical defense and palatability are not attributable to differing host plant chemical defense profiles. Our results suggest that mimetic viceroy populations are maintained at localities of low-model abundance through an increase in their toxicity. Sharing the burden of predator education in some places but not others may also lower the fitness cost of warning signals thereby supporting the origin and maintenance of aposematism. Kathleen Prudic et al. examine the persistence of mimicry in viceroy butterflies in locations with low model abundance. They show that when queen butterflies are less abundant, viceroy butterflies become more abundant, but also increase their chemical defenses to gain protection from predation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen L Prudic
- School of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA. .,Department of Entomology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA.
| | - Barbara N Timmermann
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA
| | - Daniel R Papaj
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
| | - David B Ritland
- Department of Biology, Erskine College, Due West, SC, 29639, USA
| | - Jeffrey C Oliver
- Office of Digital Innovation & Stewardship, University Libraries, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
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25
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Briolat ES, Zagrobelny M, Olsen CE, Blount JD, Stevens M. No evidence of quantitative signal honesty across species of aposematic burnet moths (Lepidoptera: Zygaenidae). J Evol Biol 2018; 32:31-48. [PMID: 30317689 PMCID: PMC6378400 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2018] [Revised: 10/03/2018] [Accepted: 10/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Many defended species use conspicuous visual warning signals to deter potential predators from attacking. Traditional theory holds that these signals should converge on similar forms, yet variation in visual traits and the levels of defensive chemicals is common, both within and between species. It is currently unclear how the strength of signals and potency of defences might be related: conflicting theories suggest that aposematic signals should be quantitatively honest, or, in contrast, that investment in one component should be prioritized over the other, while empirical tests have yielded contrasting results. Here, we advance this debate by examining the relationship between defensive chemicals and signal properties in a family of aposematic Lepidoptera, accounting for phylogenetic relationships and quantifying coloration from the perspective of relevant predators. We test for correlations between toxin levels and measures of wing colour across 14 species of day‐flying burnet and forester moths (Lepidoptera: Zygaenidae), protected by highly aversive cyanogenic glucosides, and find no clear evidence of quantitative signal honesty. Significant relationships between toxin levels and coloration vary between sexes and sampling years, and several trends run contrary to expectations for signal honesty. Although toxin concentration is positively correlated with increasing luminance contrast in forewing pattern in 1 year, higher toxin levels are also associated with paler and less chromatically salient markings, at least in females, in another year. Our study also serves to highlight important factors, including sex‐specific trends and seasonal variation, that should be accounted for in future work on signal honesty in aposematic species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuelle S Briolat
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Mika Zagrobelny
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory and Copenhagen Plant Science Centre, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Carl E Olsen
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory and Copenhagen Plant Science Centre, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jonathan D Blount
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Martin Stevens
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
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van Riper C, Puckett SL, Darrah AJ. Influences of the invasive tamarisk leaf beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) on avian diets along the Dolores River in Southwestern Colorado USA. Biol Invasions 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-018-1764-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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27
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Meier AR, Hunter MD. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi mediate herbivore-induction of plant defenses differently above and belowground. OIKOS 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.05402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Amanda R. Meier
- Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Michigan; Ann Arbor MI 48109-1048 USA
| | - Mark D. Hunter
- Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Michigan; Ann Arbor MI 48109-1048 USA
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28
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Rönkä K, Mappes J, Michalis C, Kiviö R, Salokannas J, Rojas B. Can multiple-model mimicry explain warning signal polymorphism in the wood tiger moth, Arctia plantaginis (Lepidoptera: Erebidae)? Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/bly042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- K Rönkä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, FI, Finland
| | - J Mappes
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, FI, Finland
| | - C Michalis
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - R Kiviö
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, FI, Finland
| | - J Salokannas
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, FI, Finland
| | - B Rojas
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, FI, Finland
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29
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Meier AR, Hunter MD. Mycorrhizae Alter Toxin Sequestration and Performance of Two Specialist Herbivores. Front Ecol Evol 2018. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2018.00033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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30
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Warashina T, Miyase T. New 8,12;8,20-diepoxy-8,14-secopregnane hexa- and hepta-glycosides from the roots of Asclepias tuberosa. J Nat Med 2017; 72:347-356. [PMID: 29177792 DOI: 10.1007/s11418-017-1155-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Previously, phytochemical investigation of the roots of Asclepias tuberosa (Asclepiadaceae) led to the isolation of some 8,12;8,20-diepoxy-8,14-secopregnane tri-, tetra-, and penta-glycosides. An additional eight new minor 8,12;8,20-diepoxy-8,14-secopregnane glycosides were afforded in the recent investigation of this plant. These glycosides consisted of six or seven 2,6-dideoxy-hexopyranoses together with the aglycone, tuberogenin. The structures of each of these compounds were established using NMR, mass spectroscopic analysis and chemical evidence. As 8,12;8,20-diepoxy-8,14-secopregnane-type glycosides were observed only in A. tuberosa, these compounds were considered to be characteristic phytochemicals of this plant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsutomu Warashina
- School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Shizuoka, 52-1 Yada, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8526, Japan.
| | - Toshio Miyase
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Shizuoka, 52-1 Yada, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8526, Japan
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31
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Rojas B, Burdfield-Steel E, Pakkanen H, Suisto K, Maczka M, Schulz S, Mappes J. How to fight multiple enemies: target-specific chemical defences in an aposematic moth. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 284:20171424. [PMID: 28954910 PMCID: PMC5627206 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2017] [Accepted: 08/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals have evolved different defensive strategies to survive predation, among which chemical defences are particularly widespread and diverse. Here we investigate the function of chemical defence diversity, hypothesizing that such diversity has evolved as a response to multiple enemies. The aposematic wood tiger moth (Arctia plantaginis) displays conspicuous hindwing coloration and secretes distinct defensive fluids from its thoracic glands and abdomen. We presented the two defensive fluids from laboratory-reared moths to two biologically relevant predators, birds and ants, and measured their reaction in controlled bioassays (no information on colour was provided). We found that defensive fluids are target-specific: thoracic fluids, and particularly 2-sec-butyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which they contain, deterred birds, but caused no aversive response in ants. By contrast, abdominal fluids were particularly deterrent to ants, while birds did not find them repellent. Our study, to our knowledge, is the first to show evidence of a single species producing separate chemical defences targeted to different predator types, highlighting the importance of taking into account complex predator communities in studies on the evolution of prey defence diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bibiana Rojas
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, Jyväskylä 40001, Finland
| | - Emily Burdfield-Steel
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, Jyväskylä 40001, Finland
| | - Hannu Pakkanen
- Department of Chemistry, University of Jyväskylä, Survontie 9, Jyväskylä 40500, Finland
| | - Kaisa Suisto
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, Jyväskylä 40001, Finland
| | - Michael Maczka
- Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institute of Organic Chemistry, Hagenring 30, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Stefan Schulz
- Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institute of Organic Chemistry, Hagenring 30, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Johanna Mappes
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, Jyväskylä 40001, Finland
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32
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Huheey JE. BATESIAN AND MÜLLERIAN MIMICRY: SEMANTIC AND SUBSTANTIVE DIFFERENCES OF OPINION. Evolution 2017; 34:1212-1215. [PMID: 28568472 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1980.tb04068.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/1979] [Revised: 04/16/1980] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James E Huheey
- Department of Chemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, 20742
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33
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Huheey JE. STUDIES IN WARNING COLORATION AND MIMICRY. VII. EVOLUTIONARY CONSEQUENCES OF A BATESIAN-MÜLLERIAN SPECTRUM: A MODEL FOR MÜLLERIAN MIMICRY. Evolution 2017; 30:86-93. [PMID: 28565050 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1976.tb00884.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/1975] [Revised: 07/18/1975] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James E Huheey
- Department of Zoology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, 62901
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34
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Ritland DB. REVISING A CLASSIC BUTTERFLY MIMICRY SCENARIO: DEMONSTRATION OF MÜLLERIAN MIMICRY BETWEEN FLORIDA VICEROYS (LIMENITIS ARCHIPPUS FLORIDENSIS) AND QUEENS (DANAUS GILIPPUS BERENICE). Evolution 2017; 45:918-934. [PMID: 28564042 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1991.tb04360.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/1989] [Accepted: 11/20/1990] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Batesian and Müllerian mimicry relationships differ greatly in terms of selective pressures affecting the participants; hence, accurately characterizing a mimetic interaction is a crucial prerequisite to understanding the selective milieux of model, mimic, and predator. Florida viceroy butterflies (Limenitis archippus floridensis) are conventionally characterized as palatable Batesian mimics of distasteful Florida queens (Danaus gilippus berenice). However, recent experiments indicate that both butterflies are moderately distasteful, suggesting they may be Müllerian comimics. To directly test whether the butterflies exemplify Müllerian mimicry, I performed two reciprocal experiments using red-winged blackbird predators. In Experiment 1, each of eight birds was exposed to a series of eight queens as "models," then offered four choice trials involving a viceroy (the putative "mimic") versus a novel alternative butterfly. If mimicry was effective, viceroys should be attacked less than alternatives. I also compared the birds' reactions to solo viceroy "mimics" offered before and after queen models, hypothesizing that attack rate on the viceroy would decrease after birds had been exposed to queen models. In Experiment 2, 12 birds were tested with viceroys as models and queens as putative mimics. The experiments revealed that (1) viceroys and queens offered as models were both moderately unpalatable (only 16% entirely eaten), (2) some birds apparently developed conditioned aversions to viceroy or queen models after only eight exposures, (3) in the subsequent choice trials, viceroy and queen "mimics" were attacked significantly less than alternatives, and (4) solo postmodel mimics were attacked significantly less than solo premodel mimics. Therefore, under these experimental conditions, sampled Florida viceroys and queens are comimics and exemplify Müllerian, not Batesian, mimicry. This compels a reassessment of selective forces affecting the butterflies and their predators, and sets the stage for a broader empirical investigation of the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of mimicry.
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Affiliation(s)
- David B Ritland
- Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, 32611, USA
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35
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Platt AP, Coppinger RP, Brower LP. DEMONSTRATION OF THE SELECTIVE ADVANTAGE OF MIMETIC
LIMENITIS
BUTTERFLIES PRESENTED TO CAGED AVIAN PREDATORS. Evolution 2017; 25:692-701. [PMID: 28564787 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1971.tb01927.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/1971] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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36
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Boyden TC. BUTTERFLY PALATABILITY AND MIMICRY: EXPERIMENTS WITH AMEIVA LIZARDS. Evolution 2017; 30:73-81. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1976.tb00882.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/1975] [Revised: 09/03/1975] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas C. Boyden
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Box 2072 Balboa Canal Zone
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37
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Wiklund C, Sillén-Tullberg B. WHY DISTASTEFUL BUTTERFLIES HAVE APOSEMATIC LARVAE AND ADULTS, BUT CRYPTIC PUPAE: EVIDENCE FROM PREDATION EXPERIMENTS ON THE MONARCH AND THE EUROPEAN SWALLOWTAIL. Evolution 2017; 39:1155-1158. [PMID: 28561515 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1985.tb00456.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/1984] [Accepted: 05/13/1985] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christer Wiklund
- Department of Zoology, University of Stockholm, S-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
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38
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Bowers MD. UNPALATABILITY AS A DEFENSE STRATEGY OF EUPHYDRYAS PHAETON (LEPIDOPTERA: NYMPHALIDAE). Evolution 2017; 34:586-600. [PMID: 28568686 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1980.tb04846.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/1979] [Revised: 08/29/1979] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M Deane Bowers
- Department of Zoology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, 01003
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39
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Bolton SK, Dickerson K, Saporito RA. Variable Alkaloid Defenses in the Dendrobatid Poison Frog Oophaga pumilio are Perceived as Differences in Palatability to Arthropods. J Chem Ecol 2017; 43:273-289. [PMID: 28289966 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-017-0827-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2016] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Conspicuously colored dendrobatid frogs sequester alkaloid defenses from dietary arthropods, resulting in considerable alkaloid variation among populations; however, little is known about how variation is perceived as a defense against predators. Previous studies have found variable alkaloids in the dendrobatid Oophaga pumilio to be associated with differences in toxicity to laboratory mice, suggesting variable defenses are important. Arthropods are natural predators that use chemoreception to detect prey, including frogs, and may therefore perceive variation in alkaloid profiles as differences in palatability. The goal of the present study is to determine how arthropods respond to variable alkaloid defenses in O. pumilio. Frog alkaloids were sampled from individual O. pumilio from ten geographic locations throughout the Bocas del Toro region of Panama and the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. Alkaloid extracts were used in feeding bioassays with the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster and the ant Ectatomma ruidum. Both species of arthropods fed significantly less on frog alkaloid extracts when compared to controls, and differences in alkaloid palatability were observed among frog populations, as well as between sexes and life stages within a population. Differences in alkaloid quantity, richness, and type were the main predictors of arthropod palatability. Our findings also represent the first direct evidence of a palatability spectrum in a vertebrate that sequesters chemical defenses from dietary sources. Further, the presence of a palatability spectrum suggests that variable alkaloid defenses in O. pumilio are ecologically relevant and play an important role in natural predator-prey interactions, particularly with respect to arthropod predators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah K Bolton
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, 1 John Carroll Boulevard, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA
| | - Kelsie Dickerson
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California at Berkeley, 130 Mulford Hall #3114, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Ralph A Saporito
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, 1 John Carroll Boulevard, University Heights, OH, 44118, USA.
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40
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White JA, McCord JS, Jackson KA, Dehnel AC, Lenhart PA. Differential aphid toxicity to ladybeetles is not a function of host plant or facultative bacterial symbionts. Funct Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A. White
- Department of Entomology University of Kentucky Lexington KY 40515 USA
| | - Joshua S. McCord
- Department of Entomology University of Kentucky Lexington KY 40515 USA
| | - Kelly A. Jackson
- Department of Entomology University of Kentucky Lexington KY 40515 USA
| | - Allison C. Dehnel
- Department of Entomology University of Kentucky Lexington KY 40515 USA
| | - Paul A. Lenhart
- Department of Entomology University of Kentucky Lexington KY 40515 USA
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41
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Jones PL, Agrawal AA. Consequences of toxic secondary compounds in nectar for mutualist bees and antagonist butterflies. Ecology 2016; 97:2570-2579. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.1483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2016] [Revised: 05/13/2016] [Accepted: 05/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Patricia L. Jones
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Corson Hall, 215 Tower Road Ithaca New York 14853 USA
| | - Anurag A. Agrawal
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Corson Hall, 215 Tower Road Ithaca New York 14853 USA
- Department of Entomology Cornell University Corson Hall, 215 Tower Road Ithaca New York 14853 USA
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42
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Petschenka G, Agrawal AA. Milkweed butterfly resistance to plant toxins is linked to sequestration, not coping with a toxic diet. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20151865. [PMID: 26538594 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Insect resistance to plant toxins is widely assumed to have evolved in response to using defended plants as a dietary resource. We tested this hypothesis in the milkweed butterflies (Danaini) which have progressively evolved higher levels of resistance to cardenolide toxins based on amino acid substitutions of their cellular sodium-potassium pump (Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase). Using chemical, physiological and caterpillar growth assays on diverse milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) and isolated cardenolides, we show that resistant Na(+)/K(+)-ATPases are not necessary to cope with dietary cardenolides. By contrast, sequestration of cardenolides in the body (as a defence against predators) is associated with the three levels of Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase resistance. To estimate the potential physiological burden of cardenolide sequestration without Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase adaptations, we applied haemolymph of sequestering species on isolated Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase of sequestering and non-sequestering species. Haemolymph cardenolides dramatically impair non-adapted Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase, but had systematically reduced effects on Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase of sequestering species. Our data indicate that major adaptations to plant toxins may be evolutionarily linked to sequestration, and may not necessarily be a means to eat toxic plants. Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase adaptations thus were a potential mechanism through which predators spurred the coevolutionary arms race between plants and insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georg Petschenka
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Anurag A Agrawal
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
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43
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Halpin CG, Rowe C. The effect of distastefulness and conspicuous coloration on the post-attack rejection behaviour of predators and survival of prey. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christina G. Halpin
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution; Newcastle University; Newcastle upon Tyne UK
| | - Candy Rowe
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution; Newcastle University; Newcastle upon Tyne UK
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44
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Warning signals are under positive frequency-dependent selection in nature. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:2164-9. [PMID: 26858416 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1519216113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Positive frequency-dependent selection (FDS) is a selection regime where the fitness of a phenotype increases with its frequency, and it is thought to underlie important adaptive strategies resting on signaling and communication. However, whether and how positive FDS truly operates in nature remains unknown, which hampers our understanding of signal diversity. Here, we test for positive FDS operating on the warning color patterns of chemically defended butterflies forming multiple coexisting mimicry assemblages in the Amazon. Using malleable prey models placed in localities showing differences in the relative frequencies of warningly colored prey, we demonstrate that the efficiency of a warning signal increases steadily with its local frequency in the natural community, up to a threshold where protection stabilizes. The shape of this relationship is consistent with the direct effect of the local abundance of each warning signal on the corresponding avoidance knowledge of the local predator community. This relationship, which differs from purifying selection acting on each mimetic pattern, indicates that predator knowledge, integrated over the entire community, is saturated only for the most common warning signals. In contrast, among the well-established warning signals present in local prey assemblages, most are incompletely known to local predators and enjoy incomplete protection. This incomplete predator knowledge should generate strong benefits to life history traits that enhance warning efficiency by increasing the effective frequency of prey visible to predators. Strategies such as gregariousness or niche convergence between comimics may therefore readily evolve through their effects on predator knowledge and warning efficiency.
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45
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46
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Murray EM, Bolton SK, Berg T, Saporito RA. Arthropod predation in a dendrobatid poison frog: does frog life stage matter? ZOOLOGY 2016; 119:169-174. [PMID: 26831358 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2016.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2015] [Revised: 12/02/2015] [Accepted: 01/09/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Frogs in the family Dendrobatidae are well known for their conspicuous colors and variable alkaloid-based chemical defenses. The aposematic coloration in dendrobatid frogs appears to deter predators with color vision, but relatively little is known about how these frogs are protected and their defenses are perceived by non-color vision dominated predators. The neotropical bullet ant Paraponera clavata and the red-legged banana spider Cupiennius coccineus are predators that avoid adults of the dendrobatid Oophaga pumilio, but readily consume non-toxic frogs. Juvenile O. pumilio possess the same warning coloration as adult O. pumilio, but may be more palatable given that they have lower quantities of defensive chemicals. This may provide juvenile O. pumilio protection from color-sighted predators, while leaving them susceptible to predators that use chemoreception. To test this hypothesis, we presented juveniles and adults of both O. pumilio and the non-chemically defended frog Craugastor bransfordii to bullet ants and banana spiders. Both bullet ants and banana spiders preyed upon C. bransfordii significantly more than on O. pumilio. Adult and juvenile C. bransfordii experienced similar predation rates by both predators. The life stage of O. pumilio significantly predicted predation by bullet ants, with juveniles being consumed significantly more often than adults. However, the life stage of O. pumilio did not predict predation by banana spiders, as no adults or juveniles were consumed. Our study provides evidence that bullet ants can detect differences in chemical defenses between juvenile and adult O. pumilio, resulting in differential predation on the more palatable juvenile frogs. The avoidance of both adults and juveniles by C. coccineus suggests the alkaloids in O. pumilio act as an effective chemical deterrent to banana spiders, regardless of quantity. Overall, our results suggest that differences in alkaloid defenses among life stages in O. pumilio correspond to differences in relative palatability to at least one arthropod predator.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin M Murray
- Department of Biology, Missouri State University, 901 South National Avenue, Springfield, MO 65897, USA
| | - Sarah K Bolton
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, 1 John Carroll Boulevard, University Heights, OH 44118, USA
| | - Torsten Berg
- Department of Biology, Kalamazoo College, 1200 Academy Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49006, USA
| | - Ralph A Saporito
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, 1 John Carroll Boulevard, University Heights, OH 44118, USA.
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47
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Feeding on Host Plants with Different Concentrations and Structures of Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids Impacts the Chemical-Defense Effectiveness of a Specialist Herbivore. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0141480. [PMID: 26517873 PMCID: PMC4627748 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0141480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2015] [Accepted: 10/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Sequestration of chemical defenses from host plants is a strategy widely used by herbivorous insects to avoid predation. Larvae of the arctiine moth Utetheisa ornatrix feeding on unripe seeds and leaves of many species of Crotalaria (Leguminosae) sequester N-oxides of pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) from these host plants, and transfer them to adults through the pupal stage. PAs confer protection against predation on all life stages of U. ornatrix. As U. ornatrix also uses other Crotalaria species as host plants, we evaluated whether the PA chemical defense against predation is independent of host plant use. We fed larvae from hatching to pupation with either leaves or seeds of one of eight Crotalaria species (C. incana, C. juncea, C. micans, C. ochroleuca, C. pallida, C. paulina, C. spectabilis, and C. vitellina), and tested if adults were preyed upon or released by the orb-weaving spider Nephila clavipes. We found that the protection against the spider was more effective in adults whose larvae fed on seeds, which had a higher PA concentration than leaves. The exceptions were adults from larvae fed on C. paulina, C. spectabilis and C. vitellina leaves, which showed high PA concentrations. With respect to the PA profile, we describe for the first time insect-PAs in U. ornatrix. These PAs, biosynthesized from the necine base retronecine of plant origin, or monocrotaline- and senecionine-type PAs sequestered from host plants, were equally active in moth chemical defense, in a dose-dependent manner. These results are also partially explained by host plant phylogeny, since PAs of the host plants do have a phylogenetic signal (clades with high and low PA concentrations in leaves) which is reflected in the adult defense.
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48
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de Oliveira MV, Trigo JR, Rodrigues D. Southern Monarchs do not Develop Learned Preferences for Flowers With Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids. J Chem Ecol 2015; 41:662-9. [DOI: 10.1007/s10886-015-0598-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2015] [Revised: 05/25/2015] [Accepted: 06/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Barnett CA, Bateson M, Rowe C. Better the devil you know: avian predators find variation in prey toxicity aversive. Biol Lett 2015; 10:20140533. [PMID: 25392317 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2014.0533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Toxic prey that signal their defences to predators using conspicuous warning signals are called 'aposematic'. Predators learn about the toxic content of aposematic prey and reduce their attacks on them. However, through regulating their toxin intake, predators will include aposematic prey in their diets when the benefits of gaining the nutrients they contain outweigh the costs of ingesting the prey's toxins. Predators face a problem when managing their toxin intake: prey sharing the same warning signal often vary in their toxicities. Given that predators should avoid uncertainty when managing their toxin intake, we tested whether European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) preferred to eat fixed-defence prey (where all prey contained a 2% quinine solution) to mixed-defence prey (where half the prey contained a 4% quinine solution and the other half contained only water). Our results support the idea that predators should be more 'risk-averse' when foraging on variably defended prey and suggest that variation in toxicity levels could be a form of defence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig A Barnett
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
| | - Melissa Bateson
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
| | - Candy Rowe
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
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