Digest: Habitat seasonality drives evolutionary change in plasticity in <i>Bicyclus</i> butterflies

Bergen, Erik van; Oostra, Vicencio

doi:10.1093/evolut/qpad106

Cited by 1 publication

(2 citation statements)

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“…M. leda larvae are more likely to develop into wet-season-form adults when reared at higher temperatures, and on host-plant species on which they grow faster. That higher temperatures induced wet-season phenotypes similar to distantly related satyrines (van Bergen et al 2017) may be explained by the increases in temperature as the wet season is approaching and decreases in temperature at the end of the wet season (Halali et al 2021; van Bergen & Oostra 2023). Temperature during larval development is thus likely to be predictive of the season the adult will experience.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A prominent example of adaptive phenotypic plasticity in seasonal environments is seasonal polyphenism exhibited by many tropical satyrine (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) butterflies (Brakefield & Larsen 1984; van Bergen & Oostra 2023). These butterflies express a wet- season form with large ventral eyespots along the wing margins, and a dry-season form with reduced eyespots and overall a cryptic wing pattern (Brakefield & Larsen 1984; Brakefield & Reitsma 1991).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Larval growth rate affects wing shape more than eyespot size in the seasonally polyphenic butterflyMelanitis leda

Molleman,

Moore,

Halali

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Butterflies often show adaptive phenotypic plasticity where environmental cues during early stages are used to produce a phenotype that maximizes fitness in the environment experienced by adults. Many tropical satyrine butterflies (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) are seasonally polyphenic and produce distinct wet- and dry-season form adults providing tight environment-phenotype matching in seasonal environments. Dry-season forms, which are expressed in the dry season, can be induced in the laboratory by growing larvae at low temperatures or on poor food quality. Since both these factors also tend to reduce larval growth rate, larval growth rate may be an internal cue that translates the environmental cues into the expression of phenotypes. If this is the case, we predict that slower-growing larvae would be more likely to develop a dry-season phenotype. To test this hypothesis, we measured both larval growth rate and adult phenotype (eyespot size and wing shape) of individuals of the common evening brown butterfly (Melanitis leda), reared at various temperatures and on various host-plant species. We found that among treatments, larvae with lower growth rates (low temperature, particular host plants) were more likely to develop dry-season phenotypes (small eyespots, falcate wing tips), but within treatments, larval growth rate was mainly linked to wing shape, not eyespot size. These relationships tended to be stronger for males than females as males showed a wider range of eyespot sizes and wing shapes. Overall, only plasticity in wing shape appears to be (partly) mediated by larval growth, and in a sex-specific manner.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%