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Conspecific mimics and low host plant availability reduce egg laying by Heliconius erato phyllis (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae)

Abstract

Oviposition response of Heliconius erato phyllis (Fabricius, 1775) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae) to variation in host plant availability, Passiflora suberosa Linnaeus (Passifloraceae), and to presence of conspecific eggs and larvae was determined through choice experiments performed under insectary conditions. Freeze dried, painted eggs and larvae were used as mimics for testing presence of conspecific effects. Females laid more eggs on intact P. suberosa shoots without conspecifics than on those with H. erato phyllis egg and first instar mimics in both simultaneous and sequential choice trials. Oviposition response to variation in host plant availability was determined through no-choice trials, under host plant densities varying from 0.3 to 8.3 plants per female. Number of eggs laid per plant decreased exponentially with an increase in plant availability. On the contrary, daily oviposition rates (eggs /female/day) increased with an increase in plant number, and levelled off when the number of plants available for oviposition was greater than potential fecundity of females. Thus, it is inferred from the results that females assess egg and larval load and prefer to lay eggs on shoots free from conspecifics. It is also inferred that they are able to recognize plant abundance and are unwilling to lay more than one egg per shoot even when host availability is scarce, as judged by reduction in daily oviposition rates under low host plant number. The consequences of laying isolated eggs on P. suberosa shoots are discussed from the viewpoint of intraspecific competition in the larval stage of H. erato phyllis.

Heliconius; Passiflora; oviposition behavior; egg-load assessment; plant density recognition


IPós-graduacão em Entomologia, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná. Caixa Postal 19020, 81531-990 Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil

IICorrespondence to: Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul Avenida Paulo Gama 40 90046-900 Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil E-mail: grpm@if.ufrgs.br

ABSTRACT

Oviposition response of Heliconius erato phyllis (Fabricius, 1775) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae) to variation in host plant availability, Passiflora suberosa Linnaeus (Passifloraceae), and to presence of conspecific eggs and larvae was determined through choice experiments performed under insectary conditions. Freeze dried, painted eggs and larvae were used as mimics for testing presence of conspecific effects. Females laid more eggs on intact P. suberosa shoots without conspecifics than on those with H. erato phyllis egg and first instar mimics in both simultaneous and sequential choice trials. Oviposition response to variation in host plant availability was determined through no-choice trials, under host plant densities varying from 0.3 to 8.3 plants per female. Number of eggs laid per plant decreased exponentially with an increase in plant availability. On the contrary, daily oviposition rates (eggs /female/day) increased with an increase in plant number, and levelled off when the number of plants available for oviposition was greater than potential fecundity of females. Thus, it is inferred from the results that females assess egg and larval load and prefer to lay eggs on shoots free from conspecifics. It is also inferred that they are able to recognize plant abundance and are unwilling to lay more than one egg per shoot even when host availability is scarce, as judged by reduction in daily oviposition rates under low host plant number. The consequences of laying isolated eggs on P. suberosa shoots are discussed from the viewpoint of intraspecific competition in the larval stage of H. erato phyllis.

Key words:Heliconius, Passiflora, oviposition behavior, egg-load assessment, plant density recognition

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. Aldo M. Araújo gave technical support and encouraged us to start with

Heliconius-Passiflora

studies. Simone Rossetto performed freeze drying of the specimens used as mimics. We are grateful to Catherine N. Duckett (University of Puerto Rico), Nicoleta T.N. Sabetzki (EPAGRI) and Aldo M. Araújo (UFRGS) for suggestions that improved earlier drafts of the manuscript. Financial support for this study came from a CNPq Scholarship (M.Sc. Thesis) granted to E. Mugrabi-Oliveira.

REFERENCES

Benson, W.W. 1978. Resource partitioning in passion vine butterflies. Evolution 32:493-518.

Benson, W.W.; K.S. Brown Jr. & L.E. Gilbert. 1976. Coevolution of plants and herbivores: passion flower butterflies. Evolution 29:659-680.

Bernays, E.A & R.F. Chapman. 1994. Host-plant selection by phytophagous insects. Chapman & Hall, 312p.

Cates, R.G. 1980. Feeding patterns of monophagous, oligophagous, and polyphagous insect herbivores; the effect of resource abundance and plant chemistry. Oecologia 46:22-31.

Charnov, E.L. 1982. The theory of sex allocation. Princeton, Princeton University Press, 355p.

Courtney, S.P. & J. Forsberg. 1988. Host use by two pierid butterflies varies with host density. Func. Ecol. 2:67-75.

Crane, J. 1955. Imaginai behavior of a Trinidad butterfly, Heliconius erato hydara Hewitson, with special reference to the social use of color. Zoológica 40:167-195.

Dunlap-Pianka, H.; C.L. Boggs & L.E. Gilbert. 1977. Ovarian dynamics in Heliconiine butterflies: programmed senescence versus eternal youth. Science 197:487-490.

Engelmann, F. 1970. The physiology of insect reproduction. Pergamon Press, 307p.

Gilbert, L.E. 1991. Biodiversity of a Central American Heliconius community: pattern, process, and problems, p. 403-427. In: P.W. Price; T.L. Lewinsohn; G.W. Fernandes & W.W. Benson (Eds). Plant-animal interactions: evolutionary ecology in tropical and temperate regions. John Wiley & Sons.

Jones, R.E. 1991. Host location and oviposition on plants, p. 139-171. In: W.J. Bailey & J. Ridsdill-Smith (Eds). Reproductive behavior of insects: individuals and populations. Chapman & Hall.

Lopes, F.S. 1991. Padrões sazonais e evolução do uso de plantas hospedeiras de larvas por Heliconius erato phyllis (L.) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae) na Serra do Japi, São Paulo. Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, 119p.

Mugrabi-Oliveira, E. & G.R.P. Moreira. 1996. Size of and damage on shoots of Passiflora suberosa (Passifloraceae) influence oviposition site selection of Heliconius erato phyllis (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae). Revta bras. Zool.

Rausher, M.D. 1979. Egg recognition: its advantage to a butterfly. Anim. Behav. 27:1034-1040.

Rothschild, M. & L.M. Schoonhoven. 1977. Assessment of egg load by Pieris brassicae (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Nature 266:352-355.

Schoonhoven, L.M.; E A.M. Beerling; J.W. Klijnstra & Y. van Vuggt. 1990. Two related butterfly species avoid oviposition near each other's eggs. Experimentia 46:526-528.

Shapiro, A.M. 1981. Egg-mimics of Streptanthus (Cruciferae) deter oviposition by Pieris sisymbrii (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Oecologia 48:142-143.

Singer, M.C. 1986. The definition and measurement of oviposition preference in plant-feeding insects, p. 65-94. In: J. Miller & T. Miller (Eds). Insect-plant interactions. Spring-Verlag.

Solomon, B.P. 1981. Response of a host-specific herbivore to resource density, relative abundance, and phenology. Ecology 62:1205-1214.

Swihart, C.A. 1971. Colour discrimination by the butterfly Heliconius charitonius Linn. Anim. Behav. 19:156-164.

Thiéry, D. & J.L.L. LeQuére. 1991. Identification of an oviposition-deterring pheromone in the eggs of the European corn borer. Naturwissenschaften 78:132-133.

Thiéry, D.; B. Gagel; P. Farkas & V. Pronier. 1992. Identification of an oviposition-regulating pheromone in the European grapevine moth, Lobesia botrana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Experientia 48:697-699.

Thomas, CD. 1987. Behavioural determination of diet breadth in insect herbivores: the effect of leaf age on choice of host species by beetles feeding on Passiflora vines. Oikos 48:211-216.

Vasconcellos-Neto, J. & R.F. Monteiro. 1993. Inspection and evaluation of host plant by the butterfly Mechanitis lysimnia (Nymph., Ithomiinae) before laying eggs: a mechanism to reduce intraspecific competition. Oecologia 95:431-438.

Vinson, S.B. 1981. Habitat location, p. 51-77. In: N.A. Nordlund; R.L. Jones & W.J. Lewis (Eds) Semiochemicals: their role in pest control. John Wiley & Sons.

Wellings, P.W. 1991. Host location and oviposition on animals, p. 75-107. In: W.J. Bailey & J. Ridsdill-Smith (Eds). Reproductive behavior of insects: individuals and populations. Chapman & Hall.

Wiklund, C. 1975. The evolutionary relationship between adult oviposition preferences and larval host plant range in Papilio machaon L. Oecologia 18:185-197.

Wiklund, C. & C. Ahrberg. 1978. Host plants, nectar source plants, and habitat selection of males and females of Anthocharis cardamines (Lepidoptera). Oikos 31:169-183.

Williams, K.S. & L.E. Gilbert. 1981. Insects as selective agents on plant vegetative morphology: egg mimicry reduces egg laying by butterflies. Science 212:467-469.

Recebido em 17.VI.1996; aceito em 28.XII.1996.

  • Benson, W.W. 1978. Resource partitioning in passion vine butterflies. Evolution 32:493-518.
  • Benson, W.W.; K.S. Brown Jr. & L.E. Gilbert. 1976. Coevolution of plants and herbivores: passion flower butterflies. Evolution 29:659-680.
  • Bernays, E.A & R.F. Chapman. 1994. Host-plant selection by phytophagous insects. Chapman & Hall, 312p.
  • Cates, R.G. 1980. Feeding patterns of monophagous, oligophagous, and polyphagous insect herbivores; the effect of resource abundance and plant chemistry. Oecologia 46:22-31.
  • Charnov, E.L. 1982. The theory of sex allocation. Princeton, Princeton University Press, 355p.
  • Courtney, S.P. & J. Forsberg. 1988. Host use by two pierid butterflies varies with host density. Func. Ecol. 2:67-75.
  • Crane, J. 1955. Imaginai behavior of a Trinidad butterfly, Heliconius erato hydara Hewitson, with special reference to the social use of color. Zoológica 40:167-195.
  • Dunlap-Pianka, H.; C.L. Boggs & L.E. Gilbert. 1977. Ovarian dynamics in Heliconiine butterflies: programmed senescence versus eternal youth. Science 197:487-490.
  • Engelmann, F. 1970. The physiology of insect reproduction. Pergamon Press, 307p.
  • Gilbert, L.E. 1991. Biodiversity of a Central American Heliconius community: pattern, process, and problems, p. 403-427. In: P.W. Price; T.L. Lewinsohn; G.W. Fernandes & W.W. Benson (Eds). Plant-animal interactions: evolutionary ecology in tropical and temperate regions. John Wiley & Sons.
  • Jones, R.E. 1991. Host location and oviposition on plants, p. 139-171. In: W.J. Bailey & J. Ridsdill-Smith (Eds). Reproductive behavior of insects: individuals and populations. Chapman & Hall.
  • Lopes, F.S. 1991. Padrões sazonais e evolução do uso de plantas hospedeiras de larvas por Heliconius erato phyllis (L.) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae) na Serra do Japi, São Paulo. Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, 119p.
  • Mugrabi-Oliveira, E. & G.R.P. Moreira. 1996. Size of and damage on shoots of Passiflora suberosa (Passifloraceae) influence oviposition site selection of Heliconius erato phyllis (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae). Revta bras. Zool.
  • Rausher, M.D. 1979. Egg recognition: its advantage to a butterfly. Anim. Behav. 27:1034-1040.
  • Rothschild, M. & L.M. Schoonhoven. 1977. Assessment of egg load by Pieris brassicae (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Nature 266:352-355.
  • Schoonhoven, L.M.; E A.M. Beerling; J.W. Klijnstra & Y. van Vuggt. 1990. Two related butterfly species avoid oviposition near each other's eggs. Experimentia 46:526-528.
  • Shapiro, A.M. 1981. Egg-mimics of Streptanthus (Cruciferae) deter oviposition by Pieris sisymbrii (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Oecologia 48:142-143.
  • Singer, M.C. 1986. The definition and measurement of oviposition preference in plant-feeding insects, p. 65-94. In: J. Miller & T. Miller (Eds). Insect-plant interactions. Spring-Verlag.
  • Solomon, B.P. 1981. Response of a host-specific herbivore to resource density, relative abundance, and phenology. Ecology 62:1205-1214.
  • Swihart, C.A. 1971. Colour discrimination by the butterfly Heliconius charitonius Linn. Anim. Behav. 19:156-164.
  • Thiéry, D. & J.L.L. LeQuére. 1991. Identification of an oviposition-deterring pheromone in the eggs of the European corn borer. Naturwissenschaften 78:132-133.
  • Thiéry, D.; B. Gagel; P. Farkas & V. Pronier. 1992. Identification of an oviposition-regulating pheromone in the European grapevine moth, Lobesia botrana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Experientia 48:697-699.
  • Thomas, CD. 1987. Behavioural determination of diet breadth in insect herbivores: the effect of leaf age on choice of host species by beetles feeding on Passiflora vines. Oikos 48:211-216.
  • Vasconcellos-Neto, J. & R.F. Monteiro. 1993. Inspection and evaluation of host plant by the butterfly Mechanitis lysimnia (Nymph., Ithomiinae) before laying eggs: a mechanism to reduce intraspecific competition. Oecologia 95:431-438.
  • Vinson, S.B. 1981. Habitat location, p. 51-77. In: N.A. Nordlund; R.L. Jones & W.J. Lewis (Eds) Semiochemicals: their role in pest control. John Wiley & Sons.
  • Wellings, P.W. 1991. Host location and oviposition on animals, p. 75-107. In: W.J. Bailey & J. Ridsdill-Smith (Eds). Reproductive behavior of insects: individuals and populations. Chapman & Hall.
  • Wiklund, C. 1975. The evolutionary relationship between adult oviposition preferences and larval host plant range in Papilio machaon L. Oecologia 18:185-197.
  • Wiklund, C. & C. Ahrberg. 1978. Host plants, nectar source plants, and habitat selection of males and females of Anthocharis cardamines (Lepidoptera). Oikos 31:169-183.
  • Williams, K.S. & L.E. Gilbert. 1981. Insects as selective agents on plant vegetative morphology: egg mimicry reduces egg laying by butterflies. Science 212:467-469.
  • Conspecific mimics and low host plant availability reduce egg laying by Heliconius erato phyllis (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae)

    Elna Mugrabi-OliveiraI; Gilson R.P. MoreiraII
  • Publication Dates

    • Publication in this collection
      13 July 2009
    • Date of issue
      1996

    History

    • Accepted
      28 Dec 1996
    • Received
      17 June 1996
    Sociedade Brasileira de Zoologia Caixa Postal 19020, 81531-980 Curitiba PR Brasil, Tel./Fax: +55 41 3266-6823, - Curitiba - PR - Brazil
    E-mail: sbz@bio.ufpr.br