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Green Ii DA. Tracking technologies: advances driving new insights into monarch migration. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2023; 60:101111. [PMID: 37678709 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2023.101111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/02/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the rules of how monarch butterflies complete their annual North American migration will be clarified by studying them within a movement ecology framework. Insect movement ecology is growing at a rapid pace due to the development of novel monitoring systems that allow ever-smaller animals to be tracked at higher spatiotemporal resolution for longer periods of time. New innovations in tracking hardware and associated software, including miniaturization, energy autonomy, data management, and wireless communication, are reducing the size and increasing the capability of next-generation tracking technologies, bringing the goal of tracking monarchs over their entire migration closer within reach. These tools are beginning to be leveraged to provide insight into different aspects of monarch biology and ecology, and to contribute to a growing capacity to understand insect movement ecology more broadly and its impact on human life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Delbert A Green Ii
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, 1105 N University Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
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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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Daniels J, Kimmel C, McClung S, Epstein S, Bremer J, Rossetti K. Better Understanding the Potential Importance of Florida Roadside Breeding Habitat for the Monarch. INSECTS 2018; 9:E137. [PMID: 30314302 PMCID: PMC6315611 DOI: 10.3390/insects9040137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Revised: 09/28/2018] [Accepted: 10/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The North American monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) population has declined significantly over the past two decades. Among the many other factors, loss of breeding habitat has been implicated as a potential leading driver. In response, wildlife agencies and conservation practitioners have made a strong push to restore and conserve milkweeds on both wild and managed landscapes including agricultural lands as well as transportation and utility rights-of-way. Roadsides in particular have been emphasized as a targeted landscape for monarch habitat restoration. While much attention has been focused on habitat in California, along the I-35 corridor from Texas to Minnesota, and more broadly across the agricultural Midwest, research on the occurrence of roadside breeding habitat and the development of best vegetative management practices conducted in the Deep South has been limited. We sampled roadside verges in north-central Florida for the presence of two early season milkweed species, that are particularly important for early season monarch recolonization, Asclepias tuberosa and Asclepias humistrata. Our findings suggest that roadsides harbor extensive populations of the target milkweeds with the vast majority of plants occurring on the back slope of the verge. Alterations to current roadside mowing frequency and scope are needed to effectively conserve these populations and ensure that they are available for use by the monarch.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaret Daniels
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, 1881 Natural Area Drive, Steinmetz Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - Chase Kimmel
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, 1881 Natural Area Drive, Steinmetz Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - Simon McClung
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - Samm Epstein
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - Jonathan Bremer
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - Kristin Rossetti
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
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Brower LP, Williams EH, Dunford KS, Dunford JC, Knight AL, Daniels J, Cohen JA, Van Hook T, Saarinen E, Standridge MJ, Epstein SW, Zalucki MP, Malcolm SB. A long-term survey of spring monarch butterflies in north-central Florida. J NAT HIST 2018. [DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2018.1510057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - James C. Dunford
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Amy L. Knight
- Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA
| | - Jaret Daniels
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - James A. Cohen
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Tonya Van Hook
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Emily Saarinen
- Division of Natural Sciences, New College of Florida, Sarasota, FL, USA
| | - Matthew J. Standridge
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Samantha W. Epstein
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Myron P. Zalucki
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Stephen B. Malcolm
- Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA
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Martin RA, Lynch SP. Cardenolide content and thin-layer chromatography profiles of monarch butterflies,Danaus plexippus L., and their larval host-plant milkweed,Asclepias asperula subsp.Capricornu (woods.) woods., in north central Texas. J Chem Ecol 2013; 14:295-318. [PMID: 24277011 DOI: 10.1007/bf01022548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/1986] [Accepted: 02/02/1987] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This paper is the second in a series on cardenolide fingerprinting of monarch butterflies and their host-plant milkweeds in the eastern United States. Spectrophotometric determinations of the gross cardenolide content ofAsclepias asperula plants in north central Texas indicated wide variation ranging from 341 to 1616 μg/0.1 g dry weight. The mean plant cardenolide concentration (886 μg/0.1 g) is the highest for any milkweed species on which monarch cardenolide profiles have been produced. Forty-one butterflies reared individually on these plants contained a skewed distribution of cardenolide concentrations ranging from 231 to 515 μg/0. 1 g dry weight with a mean of 363μg/0.1 g. The uptake of cardenolide by the butterflies was independent of plant concentration, suggesting that saturation occurs in cardenolide sequestration by monarchs when feeding on cardenolide-rich host-plants. Female monarchs contained significantly greater mean cardenolide concentrations (339 μg/0.1 g) than did males (320 μg/0.1 g). The mean dry weight of the male butterflies (0.211 g) was significantly greater than the female mean (0.191) so that the mean total cardenolide contents of males (675 fig) and females (754 μg) were not significantly different. Butterfly size was not significantly correlated to butterfly cardenolide concentration when differences due to sex and individual host-plant concentration were removed. Thin-layer chrornatograms of 24 individual plant-butterfly pairs developed in two solvent systems resolved 22 individual spots in the plants and 15 in the butterflies.A. asperula plants appear to contain several relatively nonpolar cardenolides of the calotropagenin series which are metabolized to more polar derivatives in the butterflies. Quantitative evaluation of theR f values, spot intensities, and probabilities of occurrence in the chloroform-methanol-formamide TLC system produced a cardenolide fingerprint clearly distinct from those previously established for monarchs reared on otherAsclepias species. Our data support the use of fingerprints to make ecological predictions concerning larval host-plant utilization.A. asperula subsp.capricornu andA. viridis Walt, are the predominant early spring milkweeds throughout most of the south central United States. Cardenolide-rich monarchs reared on these two species may be instrumental in establishing and reinforcing visual avoidance of adults by naive predators throughout their spring and summer breeding cycle in eastern North America.
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Affiliation(s)
- R A Martin
- Department of Chemistry, Louisiana State University, 71115, Shreveport, Louisiana
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Holzinger F, Wink M. Mediation of cardiac glycoside insensitivity in the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus): Role of an amino acid substitution in the ouabain binding site of Na(+),K (+)-ATPase. J Chem Ecol 2013; 22:1921-37. [PMID: 24227116 DOI: 10.1007/bf02028512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/1996] [Accepted: 05/16/1996] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) sequesters cardiac glycosides (CG) for its chemical defense against predators. Larvae and adults of this butterfly are insensitive towards dietary cardiac glycosides, whereas other Lepidoptera are sensitive and intoxicated by ouabain. Ouabain inhibits Na(+),K(+)-ATPase by binding to its α-subunit. We have amplified and cloned the DNA-sequence encoding the respective ouabain binding site. Instead of the amino acid asparagine at position 122 in ouabain-sensitive insects, the Monarch has a histidine in the putative ouabain binding site, which consists of 12 amino acids. Starting with the CG-sensitive Na(+),K(+)-ATPase gene fromDrosophila, we converted pos. 122 to a histidine residue as inDanaus plexippus by site-directed mutagenesis. Human embryonic kidney cells (HEK) (which are sensitive to ouabain) were transfected with the mutated Na(+),K(+)-ATPase gene in a pSVDF-expression vector and showed a transient expression of the mutatedDrosophila Na(+),K(+)-ATPase. When treated with ouabain, the transfected cells tolerated ouabain at a concentration of 50 mM, whereas untransformed controls or controls transfected with the unmutatedDrosophila gene, showed a substantial mortality. This result implies that the asparagine to histidine exchange contributes to ouabain insensitivity in the Monarch. In two other CG-sequestering insects, e.g.,Danaus gilippus andSyntomeida epilais, the pattern of amino acid substitution differed, indicating that the Monarch has acquired this mutation independently during evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Holzinger
- Institut für Pharmazeutische Biologie, Universität Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, D-69120, Heidelberg, Germany
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Abstract
Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) depend on the presence of host plants (Asclepias spp.) within their breeding range for reproduction. In the southern Great Plains, Asclepias viridis is a perennial that flowers in May and June, and starts to senesce by August. It is locally abundant and readily used by monarchs as a host plant. We evaluated the effects of summer prescribed fire on A. viridis and the use of A. viridis by monarch butterflies. Summer prescribed fire generated a newly emergent population of A. viridis that was absent in other areas. Pre-migrant monarch butterflies laid eggs on A. viridis in summer burned plots in late August and September, allowing adequate time for a new generation of adult monarchs to emerge and migrate south to their overwintering grounds. Thus, summer prescribed fire may provide host plant patches and/or corridors for pre-migrant monarchs during a time when host plant availability may be limited in other areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen A Baum
- Department of Zoology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA.
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Abbott AJ, Holoubek CG, Martin RA. Inhibition of Na+,K+-ATPase by the cardenolide 6'-O-(E-4-hydroxycinnamoyl) desglucouzarin. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 1998; 251:256-9. [PMID: 9790942 DOI: 10.1006/bbrc.1998.9453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Among the major cardenolides from the milkweed Asclepias asperula, 6'-O-(E-4-hydroxycinnamoyl) desglucouzarin has not been characterized biochemically. In this study, its binding affinity for a physiological receptor, porcine kidney Na+,K+-ATPase, was found to be lower than the other cardenolides in this plant. The order of affinities from highest to lowest was: uzarigenin (Kd = 1.05 microM) = desglucouzarin (Kd = 0.98 microM) > uzarin (Kd = 4.0 microM) > 6'-O-(E-4-hydroxycinnamoyl) desglucouzarin (Kd = 16 microM). The chemical attachment of the 4-hydroxycinnamoyl group to the 6'-carbon of desglucouzarin significantly inhibits binding. This agrees with predictions that a 5'-methyl group on cardenolides fits the receptor site optimally for the porcine kidney enzyme. The 4-hydroxycinnamic ester was also found to be fluorescent.
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Affiliation(s)
- A J Abbott
- Department of Chemistry & Physics, Louisiana State University at Shreveport, Shreveport, Louisiana, 71115, USA
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Hunter MD, Malcolm SB, Hartley SE. Population-level variation in plant secondary chemistry, and the population biology of herbivores. CHEMOECOLOGY 1996. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01240637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Frick C, Wink M. Uptake and sequestration of ouabain and other cardiac glycosides inDanaus plexippus (Lepidoptera: Danaidae): Evidence for a carrier-mediated process. J Chem Ecol 1995; 21:557-75. [DOI: 10.1007/bf02033701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/1994] [Accepted: 01/26/1995] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Malcolm SB. Milkweeds, monarch butterflies and the ecological significance of cardenolides. CHEMOECOLOGY 1994. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01240595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Martin RA, Lynch SP, Brower LP, Malcolm SB, Van Hook T. Cardenolide content, emetic potency, and thin-layer chromatography profiles of monarch butterflies,Danaus plexippus, and their larval host-plant milkweed,Asclepias humistrata, in Florida. CHEMOECOLOGY 1992. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01261450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Groeneveld HW, Steijl H, Van Den Berg B, Elings JC. Rapid, quantitative HPLC analysis ofAsclepias fruticosa L. andDanaus plexippus L. cardenolides. J Chem Ecol 1990; 16:3373-82. [DOI: 10.1007/bf00982104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/1990] [Accepted: 06/28/1990] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Trigo JR, Brown KS. Variation of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in Ithomiinae: A comparative study between species feeding on Apocynaceae and Solanaceae. CHEMOECOLOGY 1990. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01240582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Cardenolide fingerprint of monarch butterflies reared on common milkweed,Asclepias syriaca L. J Chem Ecol 1989; 15:819-53. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01015180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/1987] [Accepted: 03/07/1988] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Malcolm SB, Brower LP. Evolutionary and ecological implications of cardenolide sequestration in the monarch butterfly. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1989. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01951814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 134] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Gardner DR, Stermitz FR. Host plant utilization and iridoid glycoside sequestration byEuphydryas anicia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). J Chem Ecol 1988; 14:2147-68. [DOI: 10.1007/bf01014022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/1987] [Accepted: 10/13/1987] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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