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Stavenga DG, Leertouwer HL, Arikawa K. Butterfly Wing Translucence Enables Enhanced Visual Signaling. INSECTS 2023; 14:234. [PMID: 36975919 PMCID: PMC10057065 DOI: 10.3390/insects14030234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The light reflected by the dorsal side of butterfly wings often functions as a signal for, e.g., mate choice, thermoregulation, and/or predator deterrence, while the ventral wing reflections are generally used for crypsis and camouflage. Here, we propose that transmitted light can also have an important role in visual signaling because, in many butterfly species, the dorsal and ventral wing sides are similarly patterned and locally more or less translucent. Extreme examples are the Japanese yellow swallowtail (Papilio xuthus Linnaeus, 1758) and the Yellow glassy tiger (Parantica aspasia Fabricius, 1787). Their wings exhibit a similar color pattern in reflected and transmitted light, which allows enhanced visual signaling, especially in flight. Contrasting cases in which the coloration and patterning of dorsal and ventral wings strongly differ are the papilionid Papilio nireus Linnaeus, 1758, and the pierid Delias nigrina Fabricius, 1775. The wings observed in reflected or transmitted light then show very different color patterns. Wing translucence thus will strongly affect a butterfly's visual signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doekele G. Stavenga
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Science, University of Groningen, NL9747AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Heinrich L. Leertouwer
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Science, University of Groningen, NL9747AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Kentaro Arikawa
- Research Center for Integrative Evolutionary Science, Sokendai-Hayama, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Hayama 240-0193, Japan
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Nogueira CS, Pantaleão JAF, Costa RC. Weapon shape variation of male morphotypes in two freshwater prawn species genus Macrobrachium (Decapoda: Palaemonidae). ANIM BIOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Many animal groups can develop weapons that originate from specialized modifications in different body regions. Decapods are a classic example of organisms that develop these weapons. In this group, we can find specific appendages modified to claws that are used during agonistic conflicts, as is the case between dominant and submissive male morphotypes in freshwater prawns. Our study aimed to analyze the shape, size, and morphological integration of claw components (propodus and dactyl) in male morphotypes of two freshwater prawn congeners (Macrobrachium amazonicum and M. brasiliense). Claws of the prawns were photographed and marked with landmarks and semilandmarks for the acquisition of shape variables. The shape of the propodus and dactyl was statistically different between almost all morphotypes of the two species. The size of structures differed statistically between all morphotypes. The claws of almost all morphotypes showed a high degree of morphological integration; however, statistical differences were observed only between the morphotypes of M. brasiliense. The variation in the shape and degree of morphological integration of the claws between the morphotypes of M. amazonicum was less evident when compared to the morphotypes of M. brasiliense, which may be related to distinct patterns in the development of chelipeds of each species, that is, homochely and heterochely, respectively. Thus, the exaggerated development of a cheliped (heterochely) can cause greater variation in the shape of this structure, also influencing the degree of morphological integration between its components, as evidenced in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caio Santos Nogueira
- Laboratory of Biology of Marine and Freshwater Shrimps (LABCAM), Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Av. Engenheiro Luiz Edmundo Carrijo Coube 14-01, 17033-360, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - João Alberto Farinelli Pantaleão
- Laboratory of Bioecology and Crustacean Systematics (LBSC), Department of Biology, Faculty of Philosophy, Science and Letters at Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP), University of São Paulo (USP), Av. Bandeirantes 3900, 14040-901, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Rogerio Caetano Costa
- Laboratory of Biology of Marine and Freshwater Shrimps (LABCAM), Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Av. Engenheiro Luiz Edmundo Carrijo Coube 14-01, 17033-360, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
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Abstract
AbstractSpecies of scorpionfly (Mecoptera) in the family Panorpidae perform wing-waving behaviors, whereby they rotate their front and rear wings at the same time. Previous studies have suggested that a male, which carries food for use as nuptial gifts for females, performs the wing-waving behavior when the male gives the gift to a female or competes with other males. However, when and how the wing-waving behavior occurs during a series of nuptial giftings and male–male competitions have not been investigated. Therefore, we here observed the role of wing-waving behavior during the processes of giving nuptial gifts and male–male competition in the Japanese scorpionfly Panorpa japonica in the laboratory and field. Unlike previous studies, only males performed wing-waving behavior toward females, while females did not exhibit the behavior in the wild. Also, males always performed wing-waving behavior before male–male competition. After a male–male competition, winner males continued wing-waving behavior, but loser males never performed the behavior against the winner male. A comparison of wing-waving behaviors before competitions between winner and loser males showed that the frequencies of wing-waving behaviors were higher in winner than in loser males. The present results suggest that the wing-waving behavior functions in the inter-sexual and intra-sexual selection in P. japonica. Digital video images related to the article are available at http://www.momo-p.com/showdetail-e.php?movieid=momo210513pj01a and http://www.momo-p.com/showdetail-e.php?movieid=momo210513pj02a and http://www.momo-p.com/showdetail-e.php?movieid=momo210513pj03a.
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Handicap theory is applied to females but not males in relation to mate choice in the stalk-eyed fly Sphyracephala detrahens. Sci Rep 2020; 10:19684. [PMID: 33184354 PMCID: PMC7661502 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-76649-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Handicap theory explains that exaggeratedly developed sexual traits become handicaps but serve as honest signals of quality. Because very weak signals are less likely to provide benefits than to simply incur costs, it is interesting to elucidate how sexual traits are generated and developed during evolution. Many stalk-eyed fly species belonging to tribe Diopsini exhibit marked sexual dimorphism in their eye spans, and males with larger eye spans have larger bodies and reproductive capacities, which are more advantageous in terms of contests between males and acceptance for mating by females. In this study, we investigated the role of eye span in a more primitive species, Sphyracephala detrahens, in tribe Sphyracephalini with less pronounced sexual dimorphism. Male-male, female-female, and male-female pairs showed similar contests influenced by eye span, which was correlated with nutrition and reproductive ability in both sexes. During mating, males did not distinguish between sexes and chose individuals with larger eye spans, whereas females did not choose males. However, males with larger eye spans copulated repeatedly. These results indicate that, in this species, eye span with a small sexual difference does not function in sex recognition but affects contest and reproductive outcomes, suggesting the primitive state of sexual dimorphism.
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Takeuchi T, Yabuta S, Takasaki H. Uncertainty about flying conspecifics causes territorial contests of the Old World swallowtail, Papilio machaon. Front Zool 2019; 16:22. [PMID: 31285749 PMCID: PMC6591982 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-019-0324-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Male-male aerial contests of territorial butterflies are difficult to explain by major contest models based on game theory because of butterflies' apparent inability to inflict substantial costs on their opponent. As an alternative, the "erroneous courtship hypothesis" was presented. This hypothesis is based on the assumption that territorial butterflies cannot discriminate the sex of flying conspecifics. The hypothesis regards the aerial contest of male butterflies as an inevitable same-sex entanglement in the butterflies' behavioral sequence. To test the robustness of the hypothesis, we investigated the sex recognition abilities of the Old World swallowtail, Papilio machaon. Results We presented four types of flapping butterfly specimens (fresh male and female, chemicals-removed male and female) to territorial males. The males touched fresh female specimens and showed typical courtship flight. For the other types of specimens, they rarely showed courtship flight although they approached or touched them. In addition, territorial males reacted longer to fresh males than to fresh females. Conclusions The results indicated that although territorial males recognize flying females as sexual partners by sensing their semiochemicals, they cannot identify flying conspecific males, and continue to gather information on them. P. machaon is one of the species whose behavior is most incompatible with the erroneous courtship hypothesis, as its males perform a typical courtship flight to flying females, suggesting the ability of sexing flying conspecifics. Nevertheless, the erroneous courtship hypothesis was not disproved by our results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsuyoshi Takeuchi
- 1Entomological Laboratory, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuencho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka, 5998531 Japan
| | - Shinji Yabuta
- 2Department of Animal Sciences, Teikyo University of Science & Technology, 2525 Yatsusawa, Uenohara, Yamanashi, 4090193 Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Takasaki
- 3Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Okayama University of Science, Ridai-cho, Okayama, Okayama 7000005 Japan
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What do we need to know to recognize a contest? Naturwissenschaften 2019; 106:32. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-019-1632-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2018] [Revised: 05/27/2019] [Accepted: 06/01/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Kaiser A, Merckx T, Van Dyck H. Personality traits influence contest outcome, and vice versa, in a territorial butterfly. Sci Rep 2019; 9:2778. [PMID: 30808995 PMCID: PMC6391398 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-39155-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 01/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Holding a territory is often crucial in order to acquire key resources, including mating partners. However, few studies have investigated the role of animal personality in the context of territorial conflicts and how the contest outcome itself may influence personality traits. We studied personality in male Speckled wood butterflies, Pararge aegeria, before and after territorial contests for sunspot territories. Before interactions, boldness decreased with age, while activity and exploration were only influenced by ambient conditions. Neither age nor morphology did influence the probability to win contests, but winners were more active and more explorative than losers and, moreover, males that received a red wing mark were more likely to be winners. Butterflies that lost a contest showed pronounced behavioural changes. Mean boldness increased and its repeatability was disrupted, while no such change was detected in winners. The observed boldness increase in losers may be explained by a ‘desperado effect’, though its implication for successive contests remains unknown. Given that territoriality is expected to have important consequences for reproductive success, our results suggest that personality traits may indirectly contribute to individual fitness by influencing the ability to gain access to mate-location patches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélien Kaiser
- Behavioural Ecology and Conservation Group, Biodiversity Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
| | - Thomas Merckx
- Behavioural Ecology and Conservation Group, Biodiversity Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Hans Van Dyck
- Behavioural Ecology and Conservation Group, Biodiversity Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
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Le Roy C, Debat V, Llaurens V. Adaptive evolution of butterfly wing shape: from morphology to behaviour. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:1261-1281. [PMID: 30793489 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2018] [Revised: 01/21/2019] [Accepted: 01/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Butterflies display extreme variation in wing shape associated with tremendous ecological diversity. Disentangling the role of neutral versus adaptive processes in wing shape diversification remains a challenge for evolutionary biologists. Ascertaining how natural selection influences wing shape evolution requires both functional studies linking morphology to flight performance, and ecological investigations linking performance in the wild with fitness. However, direct links between morphological variation and fitness have rarely been established. The functional morphology of butterfly flight has been investigated but selective forces acting on flight behaviour and associated wing shape have received less attention. Here, we attempt to estimate the ecological relevance of morpho-functional links established through biomechanical studies in order to understand the evolution of butterfly wing morphology. We survey the evidence for natural and sexual selection driving wing shape evolution in butterflies, and discuss how our functional knowledge may allow identification of the selective forces involved, at both the macro- and micro-evolutionary scales. Our review shows that although correlations between wing shape variation and ecological factors have been established at the macro-evolutionary level, the underlying selective pressures often remain unclear. We identify the need to investigate flight behaviour in relevant ecological contexts to detect variation in fitness-related traits. Identifying the selective regime then should guide experimental studies towards the relevant estimates of flight performance. Habitat, predators and sex-specific behaviours are likely to be major selective forces acting on wing shape evolution in butterflies. Some striking cases of morphological divergence driven by contrasting ecology involve both wing and body morphology, indicating that their interactions should be included in future studies investigating co-evolution between morphology and flight behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille Le Roy
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, 57 rue Cuvier CP50, 75005, Paris, France.,Université Paris Descartes, Sorbonne Paris Cité, 12 rue de l'École de Médecine, 75006, Paris, France
| | - Vincent Debat
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, 57 rue Cuvier CP50, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Violaine Llaurens
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, 57 rue Cuvier CP50, 75005, Paris, France
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Rico-Guevara A, Hurme KJ. Intrasexually selected weapons. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:60-101. [PMID: 29924496 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2017] [Revised: 05/14/2018] [Accepted: 05/18/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
We propose a practical concept that distinguishes the particular kind of weaponry that has evolved to be used in combat between individuals of the same species and sex, which we term intrasexually selected weapons (ISWs). We present a treatise of ISWs in nature, aiming to understand their distinction and evolution from other secondary sex traits, including from 'sexually selected weapons', and from sexually dimorphic and monomorphic weaponry. We focus on the subset of secondary sex traits that are the result of same-sex combat, defined here as ISWs, provide not previously reported evolutionary patterns, and offer hypotheses to answer questions such as: why have only some species evolved weapons to fight for the opposite sex or breeding resources? We examined traits that seem to have evolved as ISWs in the entire animal phylogeny, restricting the classification of ISW to traits that are only present or enlarged in adults of one of the sexes, and are used as weapons during intrasexual fights. Because of the absence of behavioural data and, in many cases, lack of sexually discriminated series from juveniles to adults, we exclude the fossil record from this review. We merge morphological, ontogenetic, and behavioural information, and for the first time thoroughly review the tree of life to identify separate evolution of ISWs. We found that ISWs are only found in bilateral animals, appearing independently in nematodes, various groups of arthropods, and vertebrates. Our review sets a reference point to explore other taxa that we identify with potential ISWs for which behavioural or morphological studies are warranted. We establish that most ISWs come in pairs, are located in or near the head, are endo- or exoskeletal modifications, are overdeveloped structures compared with those found in females, are modified feeding structures and/or locomotor appendages, are most common in terrestrial taxa, are frequently used to guard females, territories, or both, and are also used in signalling displays to deter rivals and/or attract females. We also found that most taxa lack ISWs, that females of only a few species possess better-developed weapons than males, that the cases of independent evolution of ISWs are not evenly distributed across the phylogeny, and that animals possessing the most developed ISWs have non-hunting habits (e.g. herbivores) or are faunivores that prey on very small prey relative to their body size (e.g. insectivores). Bringing together perspectives from studies on a variety of taxa, we conceptualize that there are five ways in which a sexually dimorphic trait, apart from the primary sex traits, can be fixed: sexual selection, fecundity selection, parental role division, differential niche occupation between the sexes, and interference competition. We discuss these trends and the factors involved in the evolution of intrasexually selected weaponry in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Rico-Guevara
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, 3040 Valley Life Sciences Building, Berkeley, CA, 94720, U.S.A.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 N. Eagleville Rd, Unit 3043, Storrs, CT, 06269, U.S.A.,Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Código Postal 11001, Bogotá DC, Colombia
| | - Kristiina J Hurme
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, 3040 Valley Life Sciences Building, Berkeley, CA, 94720, U.S.A.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 N. Eagleville Rd, Unit 3043, Storrs, CT, 06269, U.S.A
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What does a butterfly hear? Physiological characterization of auditory afferents in Morpho peleides (Nymphalidae). J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2018; 204:791-799. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-018-1280-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2018] [Revised: 08/10/2018] [Accepted: 08/12/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Nieberding CM, Holveck MJ. Commentary on Kehl et al. "Young male mating success is associated with sperm number but not with male sex pheromone titres": Unnatural experimental conditions inflate the importance of male courtship activity on mating success in a butterfly. Front Zool 2018; 15:18. [PMID: 29719561 PMCID: PMC5921982 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-018-0256-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 02/26/2018] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Over the last years, several studies suggested that male courtship activity is more important than female preference for male secondary sexual traits in determining male mating success in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana. We use Kehl et al. (Front Zool 12, 2015)'s study and related publications, to highlight three methodological and conceptual aspects of laboratory experiments that distort the social environment compared to natural conditions. We argue that such experimental biases prevent the expression of female mate choice and artificially inflate the role of male activity in determining mating success. We really want to stress that any work performed in laboratory conditions using extreme cage densities or sizes impedes female mate choice and promotes male-male competition when sexual conflict occurs about mating decisions. Hence, such studies, and the derived conclusions, are only applicable to ecologically-irrelevant conditions and cannot be extrapolated to more natural laboratory or field conditions. Our concerns may be relevant to many behavioural studies quantifying sexual selection across taxa. This commentary adds to the increasing scientific awareness that: i) mating outcome is, across taxa, the result of a sexual conflict whose outcome is under female, and not male, control; ii) the social environment used to quantify mating success is of utmost importance to produce reliable estimates of the strength and the direction of sexual selection on sexually-selected traits, as they evolve in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Marie Nieberding
- 1Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics Group, BDIV Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL), 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Marie-Jeanne Holveck
- 1Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics Group, BDIV Research Centre, Earth and Life Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL), 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.,2Pressent Address: Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive CEFE (CNRS-UMR 5175), 34000 Montpellier, France
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