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Page E, Queste LM, Rosser N, Salazar PA, Nadeau NJ, Mallet J, Srygley RB, McMillan WO, Dasmahapatra KK. Pervasive mimicry in flight behavior among aposematic butterflies. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2300886121. [PMID: 38408213 PMCID: PMC10945825 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2300886121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Flight was a key innovation in the adaptive radiation of insects. However, it is a complex trait influenced by a large number of interacting biotic and abiotic factors, making it difficult to unravel the evolutionary drivers. We investigate flight patterns in neotropical heliconiine butterflies, well known for mimicry of their aposematic wing color patterns. We quantify the flight patterns (wing beat frequency and wing angles) of 351 individuals representing 29 heliconiine and 9 ithomiine species belonging to ten color pattern mimicry groupings. For wing beat frequency and up wing angles, we show that heliconiine species group by color pattern mimicry affiliation. Convergence of down wing angles to mimicry groupings is less pronounced, indicating that distinct components of flight are under different selection pressures and constraints. The flight characteristics of the Tiger mimicry group are particularly divergent due to convergence with distantly related ithomiine species. Predator-driven selection for mimicry also explained variation in flight among subspecies, indicating that this convergence can occur over relatively short evolutionary timescales. Our results suggest that the flight convergence is driven by aposematic signaling rather than shared habitat between comimics. We demonstrate that behavioral mimicry can occur between lineages that have separated over evolutionary timescales ranging from <0.5 to 70 My.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Page
- Department of Biology, University of York, HeslingtonYO10 5DD, United Kingdom
| | - Lucie M. Queste
- Department of Biology, University of York, HeslingtonYO10 5DD, United Kingdom
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Planegg-Martinsried82152, Germany
| | - Neil Rosser
- Department of Biology, University of York, HeslingtonYO10 5DD, United Kingdom
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA02138
| | - Patricio A. Salazar
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, SheffieldS10 2TN, United Kingdom
- Tree of Life Programme, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Hinxton, CambridgeCB10 1SA, United Kingdom
| | - Nicola J. Nadeau
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, SheffieldS10 2TN, United Kingdom
| | - James Mallet
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA02138
| | - Robert B. Srygley
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado, Panamá0843-03092, Republic of Panama
- Pest Management Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Sidney, MT59270
| | - W. Owen McMillan
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado, Panamá0843-03092, Republic of Panama
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G. Robalino J, A. Salazar P, E. Muñóz N, M. Tene D, B. Pedreáñez A. The gut microbiome and severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection: what is the link? Novel Research in Microbiology Journal 2022. [DOI: 10.21608/nrmj.2022.253262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/15/2022] Open
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Brien MN, Enciso-Romero J, Lloyd VJ, Curran EV, Parnell AJ, Morochz C, Salazar PA, Rastas P, Zinn T, Nadeau NJ. The genetic basis of structural colour variation in mimetic
Heliconius
butterflies. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200505. [PMID: 35634924 PMCID: PMC9149798 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Structural colours, produced by the reflection of light from ultrastructures, have evolved multiple times in butterflies. Unlike pigmentary colours and patterns, little is known about the genetic basis of these colours. Reflective structures on wing-scale ridges are responsible for iridescent structural colour in many butterflies, including the Müllerian mimics Heliconius erato and Heliconius melpomene. Here, we quantify aspects of scale ultrastructure variation and colour in crosses between iridescent and non-iridescent subspecies of both of these species and perform quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping. We show that iridescent structural colour has a complex genetic basis in both species, with offspring from crosses having a wide variation in blue colour (both hue and brightness) and scale structure measurements. We detect two different genomic regions in each species that explain modest amounts of this variation, with a sex-linked QTL in H. erato but not H. melpomene. We also find differences between species in the relationships between structure and colour, overall suggesting that these species have followed different evolutionary trajectories in their evolution of structural colour. We then identify genes within the QTL intervals that are differentially expressed between subspecies and/or wing regions, revealing likely candidates for genes controlling structural colour formation. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Genetic basis of adaptation and speciation: from loci to causative mutations’.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie N. Brien
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Juan Enciso-Romero
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
- Biology Program, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Victoria J. Lloyd
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Emma V. Curran
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Andrew J. Parnell
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Sheffield, Hicks Building, Hounsfield Road, Sheffield S3 7RH, UK
| | | | - Patricio A. Salazar
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Pasi Rastas
- Institute of Biotechnology, 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Thomas Zinn
- ESRF - The European Synchrotron, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | - Nicola J. Nadeau
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
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Montejo-Kovacevich G, Salazar PA, Smith SH, Gavilanes K, Bacquet CN, Chan YF, Jiggins CD, Meier JI, Nadeau NJ. Genomics of altitude-associated wing shape in two tropical butterflies. Mol Ecol 2021; 30:6387-6402. [PMID: 34233044 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 07/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Understanding how organisms adapt to their local environment is central to evolution. With new whole-genome sequencing technologies and the explosion of data, deciphering the genomic basis of complex traits that are ecologically relevant is becoming increasingly feasible. Here, we studied the genomic basis of wing shape in two Neotropical butterflies that inhabit large geographical ranges. Heliconius butterflies at high elevations have been shown to generally have rounder wings than those in the lowlands. We reared over 1,100 butterflies from 71 broods of H. erato and H. melpomene in common-garden conditions and showed that wing aspect ratio, that is, elongatedness, is highly heritable in both species and that elevation-associated wing aspect ratio differences are maintained. Genome-wide associations with a published data set of 666 whole genomes from across a hybrid zone, uncovered a highly polygenic basis to wing aspect ratio variation in the wild. We identified several genes that have roles in wing morphogenesis or wing aspect ratio variation in Drosophila flies, making them promising candidates for future studies. There was little evidence for molecular parallelism in the two species, with only one shared candidate gene, nor for a role of the four known colour pattern loci, except for optix in H. erato. Thus, we present the first insights into the heritability and genomic basis of within-species wing aspect ratio in two Heliconius species, adding to a growing body of evidence that polygenic adaptation may underlie many ecologically relevant traits.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sophie H Smith
- Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | | | | | | | - Chris D Jiggins
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Joana I Meier
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,St John's College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Nicola J Nadeau
- Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
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Bainbridge HE, Brien MN, Morochz C, Salazar PA, Rastas P, Nadeau NJ. Limited genetic parallels underlie convergent evolution of quantitative pattern variation in mimetic butterflies. J Evol Biol 2020; 33:1516-1529. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Hannah E. Bainbridge
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences The University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
| | - Melanie N. Brien
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences The University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
| | - Carlos Morochz
- Biology & Research Department Mashpi Lodge Mashpi Ecuador
| | - Patricio A. Salazar
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences The University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
| | - Pasi Rastas
- Institute of Biotechnology University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
| | - Nicola J. Nadeau
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences The University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
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Finkbeiner SD, Salazar PA, Nogales S, Rush CE, Briscoe AD, Hill RI, Kronforst MR, Willmott KR, Mullen SP. Frequency dependence shapes the adaptive landscape of imperfect Batesian mimicry. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:rspb.2017.2786. [PMID: 29618547 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2017] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite more than a century of biological research on the evolution and maintenance of mimetic signals, the relative frequencies of models and mimics necessary to establish and maintain Batesian mimicry in natural populations remain understudied. Here we investigate the frequency-dependent dynamics of imperfect Batesian mimicry, using predation experiments involving artificial butterfly models. We use two geographically distinct populations of Adelpha butterflies that vary in their relative frequencies of a putatively defended model (Adelpha iphiclus) and Batesian mimic (Adelpha serpa). We found that in Costa Rica, where both species share similar abundances, Batesian mimicry breaks down, and predators more readily attack artificial butterfly models of the presumed mimic, A. serpa By contrast, in Ecuador, where A. iphiclus (model) is significantly more abundant than A. serpa (mimic), both species are equally protected from predation. Our results provide compelling experimental evidence that imperfect Batesian mimicry is frequency-dependent on the relative abundance of models and mimics in natural populations, and contribute to the growing body of evidence that complex dynamics, such as seasonality or the availability of alternative prey, influence the evolution of mimetic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan D Finkbeiner
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA .,Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Patricio A Salazar
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Sofía Nogales
- Department of Biology, Pontifica Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Cassidi E Rush
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA 95211, USA
| | - Adriana D Briscoe
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Ryan I Hill
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA 95211, USA
| | - Marcus R Kronforst
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Keith R Willmott
- McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Sean P Mullen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
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Brien MN, Enciso-Romero J, Parnell AJ, Salazar PA, Morochz C, Chalá D, Bainbridge HE, Zinn T, Curran EV, Nadeau NJ. Phenotypic variation in Heliconius erato crosses shows that iridescent structural colour is sex-linked and controlled by multiple genes. Interface Focus 2018; 9:20180047. [PMID: 30603067 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2018.0047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Bright, highly reflective iridescent colours can be seen across nature and are produced by the scattering of light from nanostructures. Heliconius butterflies have been widely studied for their diversity and mimicry of wing colour patterns. Despite iridescence evolving multiple times in this genus, little is known about the genetic basis of the colour and the development of the structures which produce it. Heliconius erato can be found across Central and South America, but only races found in western Ecuador and Colombia have developed blue iridescent colour. Here, we use crosses between iridescent and non-iridescent races of H. erato to study phenotypic variation in the resulting F2 generation. Using measurements of blue colour from photographs, we find that iridescent structural colour is a quantitative trait controlled by multiple genes, with strong evidence for loci on the Z sex chromosome. Iridescence is not linked to the Mendelian colour pattern locus that also segregates in these crosses (controlled by the gene cortex). Small-angle X-ray scattering data show that spacing between longitudinal ridges on the scales, which affects the intensity of the blue reflectance, also varies quantitatively in F2 crosses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie N Brien
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Juan Enciso-Romero
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.,Biology Program, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Andrew J Parnell
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Hicks Building, Hounsfield Road, Sheffield S3 7RH, UK
| | - Patricio A Salazar
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.,Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Cambio Climático (BioCamb), Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica, Quito, Ecuador
| | | | | | - Hannah E Bainbridge
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Thomas Zinn
- ESRF - The European Synchrotron, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | - Emma V Curran
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Nicola J Nadeau
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
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Jones RT, Salazar PA, ffrench-Constant RH, Jiggins CD, Joron M. Evolution of a mimicry supergene from a multilocus architecture. Proc Biol Sci 2012; 279:316-25. [PMID: 21676976 PMCID: PMC3223682 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.0882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2011] [Accepted: 05/26/2011] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The origin and evolution of supergenes have long fascinated evolutionary biologists. In the polymorphic butterfly Heliconius numata, a supergene controls the switch between multiple different forms, and results in near-perfect mimicry of model species. Here, we use a morphometric analysis to quantify the variation in wing pattern observed in two broods of H. numata with different alleles at the supergene locus, 'P'. Further, we genotype the broods to associate the variation we capture with genetic differences. This allows us to begin mapping the quantitative trait loci that have minor effects on wing pattern. In addition to finding loci on novel chromosomes, our data, to our knowledge, suggest for the first time that ancestral colour-pattern loci, known to have major effects in closely related species, may contribute to the wing patterns displayed by H. numata, despite the large transfer of effects to the supergene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert T Jones
- School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK.
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Avilés L, Agnarsson I, Salazar PA, Purcell J, Iturralde G, Yip EC, Powers KS, Bukowski TC. Altitudinal patterns of spider sociality and the biology of a new midelevation social Anelosimus species in Ecuador. Am Nat 2007; 170:783-92. [PMID: 17926299 DOI: 10.1086/521965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2007] [Accepted: 07/02/2007] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
To the extent that geography correlates with particular environmental parameters, the geographical distribution of phylogenetically related social and nonsocial organisms should shed light on the conditions that lead to sociality versus nonsociality. Social spiders are notorious for being concentrated in tropical regions of the world, occupying a set of habitats more restricted than those available to the phylogenetic lineages in which they occur. Here we document a parallel pattern involving elevation in the spider genus Anelosimus in America and describe the biology of a newly discovered social species found at what appears to be the altitudinal edge of sociality in the genus. We show that this is a cooperative permanent-social species with highly female-biased sex ratios but colonies that are one to two orders of magnitude smaller than those of a low-elevation congener of similar body size. We suggest that the absence of subsocial Anelosimus species in the lowland rain forest may be due to an increased probability of maternal death in this habitat due to greater predation and/or precipitation, while absence of a sufficient supply of large insects at high elevations or latitudes may restrict social species to low- to midelevation tropical moist forests. We refer to these as the "maternal survival" and "prey size" hypotheses, respectively, and suggest that both in combination may explain the geographical distribution of sociality in the genus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leticia Avilés
- Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada.
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