Innate colour preferences of a hawkmoth depend on visual context

Kuenzinger, William L.; Kelber, Almut; Weesner, Jordan; Travis, Jonathan J.; Raguso, Robert A.; Goyret, Joaquín

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2018.0886

Cited by 23 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Vision is also a relevant ecological and short-distance behavioral stimulus for M. sexta (109). Hawkmoths are able to employ color reception in directing their behaviors (110–112) and recent studies have observed how ambient light affects M. sexta color discrimination and host localization (113, 114). However, it is not clear if M. sexta can use any of these visual sensory stimuli in the detection of color or contrast image of a nonflowering plant.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutagenesis of odorant coreceptor Orco fully disrupts foraging but not oviposition behaviors in the hawkmoth Manduca sexta

Fandino

Haverkamp

Bisch-Knaden

et al. 2019

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The hawkmoth Manduca sexta and one of its preferred hosts in the North American Southwest, Datura wrightii, share a model insect–plant relationship based on mutualistic and antagonistic life-history traits. D. wrightii is the innately preferred nectar source and oviposition host for M. sexta. Hence, the hawkmoth is an important pollinator while the M. sexta larvae are specialized herbivores of the plant. Olfactory detection of plant volatiles plays a crucial role in the behavior of the hawkmoth. In vivo, the odorant receptor coreceptor (Orco) is an obligatory component for the function of odorant receptors (ORs), a major receptor family involved in insect olfaction. We used CRISPR-Cas9 targeted mutagenesis to knock out (KO) the MsexOrco gene to test the consequences of a loss of OR-mediated olfaction in an insect–plant relationship. Neurophysiological characterization revealed severely reduced antennal and antennal lobe responses to representative odorants emitted by D. wrightii. In a wind-tunnel setting with a flowering plant, Orco KO hawkmoths showed disrupted flight orientation and an ablated proboscis extension response to the natural stimulus. The Orco KO gravid female displayed reduced attraction toward a nonflowering plant. However, more than half of hawkmoths were able to use characteristic odor-directed flight orientation and oviposit on the host plant. Overall, OR-mediated olfaction is essential for foraging and pollination behaviors, but plant-seeking and oviposition behaviors are sustained through additional OR-independent sensory cues.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutagenesis of odorant coreceptor Orco fully disrupts foraging but not oviposition behaviors in the hawkmoth Manduca sexta

Fandino

Haverkamp

Bisch-Knaden

et al. 2019

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Under crepuscular illumination conditions, even M. sexta —known to visit white nocturnal flowers in its natural habitat—shows an innate preference for blue, compared to other colours (Cutler et al 1995 ) and also to white (Goyret et al 2008b ). Again, this preference depends on both illumination and background (Kuenzinger et al 2019 ).…”

Section: Finding Flowersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fuelling on the wing: sensory ecology of hawkmoth foraging

Stöckl

Kelber

2019

J Comp Physiol A

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Hawkmoths (Lepidoptera, Sphingidae) comprise around 1500 species, most of which forage on nectar from flowers in their adult stage, usually while hovering in front of the flower. The majority of species have a nocturnal lifestyle and are important nocturnal pollinators, but some species have turned to a diurnal lifestyle. Hawkmoths use visual and olfactory cues including CO 2 and humidity to detect and recognise rewarding flowers; they find the nectary in the flowers by means of mechanoreceptors on the proboscis and vision, evaluate it with gustatory receptors on the proboscis, and control their hovering flight position using antennal mechanoreception and vision. Here, we review what is presently known about the sensory organs and sensory-guided behaviour that control feeding behaviour of this fascinating pollinator taxon. We also suggest that more experiments on hawkmoth behaviour in natural settings are needed to fully appreciate their sensory capabilities.

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“…Changes in flower signaling should bear on visual conspicuousness in terms of chromatic and achromatic contrast vis-à-vis the perceptual capabilities of the geographically and historically changing pollinators. Consequently, we first expect color conspicuousness to be greater in plant species with nocturnal flowers than in those with diurnal ones (see Kuenzinger et al, 2019 ). Second, we expect the timing of the shifts to be consistent with the geological events that created new pollination climates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flower Diversification Across “Pollinator Climates”: Sensory Aspects of Corolla Color Evolution in the Florally Diverse South American Genus Jaborosa (Solanaceae)

et al. 2020

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Flower phenotype may diverge within plant lineages when moving across “pollinator climates” (geographic differences in pollinator abundance or preference). Here we explored the potential importance of pollinators as drivers of floral color diversification in the nightshade genus Jaborosa, taking into account color perception capabilities of the actual pollinators (nocturnal hawkmoths vs. saprophilous flies) under a geographic perspective. We analyzed the association between transitions across environments and perceptual color axes using comparative methods. Our results revealed two major evolutionary themes in Jaborosa: (1) a “warm subtropical sphingophilous clade” composed of three hawkmoth-pollinated species found in humid lowland habitats, with large white flowers that clustered together in the visual space of a model hawkmoth (Manduca sexta) and a “cool-temperate brood-deceptive clade” composed of largely fly-pollinated species with small dark flowers found at high altitudes (Andes) or latitudes (Patagonian Steppe), that clustered together in the visual space of a model blowfly (Lucilia sp.) and a syrphid fly (Eristalis tenax). Our findings suggest that the ability of plants to colonize newly formed environments during Andean orogeny and the ecological changes that followed were concomitant with transitions in flower color as perceived by different pollinator functional groups. Our findings suggest that habitat and pollination mode are inextricably linked in the history of this South American plant lineage.

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Innate colour preferences of a hawkmoth depend on visual context

Cited by 23 publications

References 22 publications

Mutagenesis of odorant coreceptor Orco fully disrupts foraging but not oviposition behaviors in the hawkmoth Manduca sexta

Mutagenesis of odorant coreceptor Orco fully disrupts foraging but not oviposition behaviors in the hawkmoth Manduca sexta

Fuelling on the wing: sensory ecology of hawkmoth foraging

Flower Diversification Across “Pollinator Climates”: Sensory Aspects of Corolla Color Evolution in the Florally Diverse South American Genus Jaborosa (Solanaceae)

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