10.5061/DRYAD.PK0P2NGKX
Morimoto, Juliano
0000-0003-3561-1920
University of Aberdeen
Pietras, Zuzanna
Linköping University
Strong foraging preferences for Ribes alpinum (Saxifragales:
Grossulariaceae) in the polyphagous caterpillars of Buff tip moth Phalera
bucephala (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae)
Dryad
dataset
2020
FOS: Biological sciences
Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science
https://ror.org/03ge1nb22
SwedNess
2021-10-14T00:00:00Z
2021-10-14T00:00:00Z
en
7168 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Herbivorous insects such as butterflies and moths are essential to natural
and agricultural systems due to pollination and pest outbreaks. However,
our knowledge of butterflies’ and moths’ nutrition is fragmented and
limited to few common, charismatic, or problematic species. This gap
precludes our complete understanding of herbivorous insects’ natural
history, physiological and behavioural adaptations that drive how species
interact with their environment, the consequences of habitat destruction
and climate change to invertebrate biodiversity, and pest outbreak
dynamics. Here, we first report a population of the Buff tip moth Phalera
bucephala (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) feeding on a previously unknown
family of hostplants, the mountain currant Ribes alpinum (Saxifragales:
Grossulariaceae). This is the first report of a Notodontid moth feeding on
Grossulariaceae hosts. Using no-choice and choice assays, we showed that
P. bucephala has strong foraging preferences for a previously unknown
hosts, the R. alpinum but also, although to a smaller extent, R.
uva-crispa compared with a previously known host (the maple Acer sp.).
These findings demonstrate that P. bucephala feed on – and show strong
preference for Grossulariaceae hostplants, indicating flexible
physiological mechanisms to accommodate hosts plants from various
families. This makes this species a potential model organism to study the
behavioural and physiological mechanisms underpinning insect-plant
interactions and diet breadth evolution. We discuss the broad ecological
implications of this observations to the biology of the species, the
potential negative effects of interspecific competition with endemic
specialist moths, and highlight questions for future research.
Detailed methods provided in the publication.
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