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PubMed2001

Examining monophyly in a large radiation of Madagascan butterflies (Lepidoptera: Satyrinae: Mycalesina) based on mitochondrial DNA data.

The satyrine butterfly subtribe Mycalesina has undergone one of the more spectacular evolutionary radiations of butterflies in the Old World tropics. Perhaps the most phenotypically pronounced diversification of the group has occurred in the Malagasy region, where 68 currently recognized species are divided among five genera. Here, we report the results of phylogenetic analyses of sequence data from the cytochrome c oxidase II and cytochrome b mitochondrial genes, for a total of 54 mycalesine taxa, mostly from Madagascar. These molecular data complement an existing data set based on male morphological characters. The molecular results support the suggestion from morphology that three of the five Malagasy genera are paraphyletic and support the monophyly of at least three major morphological clades. Novel hypotheses of terminal taxon pairs are generated by the molecular data. Dense taxon sampling appears to be crucial for elucidating phylogenetic relationships within this large radiation. A potentially complex scenario for the origin of Malagasy mycalesines is proposed.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Flavonoid wing pigments increase attractiveness of female common blue (Polyommatus icarus) butterflies to mate-searching males.

Common blue butterflies (Polyommatus icarus) sequester flavonoids from their larval host plants and allocate these UV-absorbing pigments to the wings. In field experiments using dummies constructed from female butterflies, mate-searching males inspected flavonoid-rich dummies more intensively than those with little or no flavonoids. Flavonoid content as signalled by UV-wing pattern may indicate ontogenetically determined female quality or enhance detectability to males.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Retinal regionalization and heterogeneity of butterfly eyes.

The regional characteristics of the eyes of butterflies from different families have been surveyed using epi-illumination microscopy, utilizing the eyeshine visible due to the tapetum situated proximally to the rhabdom. All butterflies studied have a high spatial acuity in the frontal region. The facet diameter varies slightly across the eye, and the interommatidial angle and the eye parameter p are especially large dorsally. Whereas the ommatidial lattice is generally highly regular, the eyeshine colours distinctly depend on the species. Sometimes the eyeshine is locally uniform, but often it is heterogeneous. It is hypothesized that the regional characteristics as well as the local heterogeneity are adaptations that optimize spectral discrimination.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Spectral organization of the eye of a butterfly, Papilio.

This review outlines our recent studies on the spectral organization of butterfly compound eyes, with emphasis on the Japanese yellow swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus, which is the most extensively studied species. Papilio has color vision when searching for nectar among flowers, and their compound eyes are furnished with six distinct classes of spectral receptors (UV, violet, blue, green, red, broadband). The compound eyes consist of many ommatidia, each containing nine photoreceptor cells. How are the six classes of spectral receptors arranged in the ommatidia? By studying their electrophysiology, histology, and molecular biology, it was found that the Papilio ommatidia can be divided into three types according to the combination of spectral receptors they contain. Different types of ommatidia are distributed randomly over the retina. Histologically, the heterogeneity appeared to be related to red or yellow pigmentation around the rhabdom. A subset of red-pigmented ommatidia contains 3-hydroxyretinol in the distal portion, fluorescing under UV epi-illumination. The red, yellow and fluorescing pigments all play crucial roles in determining the spectral sensitivities of receptors. Spectral heterogeneity and random array of ommatidia have also been found in other lepidopteran species. Similarities and differences between species are also discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Localization of ecdysone receptor protein during colour pattern formation in wings of the butterfly Precis coenia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) and co-expression with Distal-less protein.

Butterfly wing colour patterns are determined during late larval and early pupal development, a part of metamorphosis controlled by ecdysteroid hormones via their nuclear hormone receptors. We have sequenced a fragment of the common regions of the ecdysone receptor (EcR) from the butterflies Precis coenia and Bicyclus anynanaand found high identities (83.5% to 100%) to EcR from a moth, Manduca sexta. In P. coenia, we sequenced a putative EcR-B1 isoform with 80.4% identity with the A/B-region of the M. sexta-EcR-B1. Consequently, we used antibodies generated against MsEcR-B1 to localise EcR protein during wing development of P. coenia. Nuclear staining of EcR was observed in different cell types during the course of colour pattern formation. Major observations are as follows: EcR is expressed in cell nuclei corresponding to wing lacunae and prospective veins. EcR is expressed early in pupal wing development in "focal" cells which are thought to release determining signals in a process leading to eyespot formation. Scale forming cells differentiate first and show EcR signal in the eyespot foci and most of the wing sheet, but not in areas corresponding to prospective eyespots. In the eyespots, 20-24 h after pupation, EcR expression seems to play a role in formation of scale rows preceding a later expression (28 h) in scale-forming cells. The results demonstrate that EcR is locally expressed in correlation to all major events of wing development and colour pattern formation. In particular, EcR expression patterns in prospective eyespots show that these are special pattern elements which are specified in concert with other factors of colour pattern formation such as the transcription factor Distal-less. In eyespot foci, Distal-less is expressed simultaneously with EcR, but clearly precedes EcR expression in eyespot scale-forming cells. This indicates a potential interaction between "short-range" signalling systems and "long-range" hormonal systems.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2004

Wing venation and Distal-less expression in Heliconius butterfly wing pattern development.

Here we show that major color pattern elements of Heliconius butterfly wings develop independently of wing venation. We recovered a hybrid Heliconius displaying a mutant phenotype with a severe vein deficiency. Although this butterfly lacked most of its wing veins, the large, melanic banding patterns typical of the genus were conserved across the entire wing. The only obvious correlation between vein reduction and pigment patterns was a loss of vein-associated melanin stripes near the distal margin of the wings. We examined the expression of the eyespot-associated transcription factor Distal-less in a banded and a spotted species of Heliconius and found no obvious relationship between protein expression and the band or spot patterns typical of the genus. Together, our results suggest that the melanic bands and spots in Heliconius are unlikely to be derived from an eyespot determination system. We propose that major elements of Heliconius wing pattern formation are based primarily on a complex, whole-wing proximodistal axis system.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Melanin-synthesis enzymes coregulate stage-specific larval cuticular markings in the swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus.

Like the adult wing, butterfly larvae are unique in their coloring. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the formation of insect larval color patterns are largely unknown. The larva of the swallowtail butterfly Papilio xuthus changes its color pattern markedly during the 4th ecdysis. We investigated its cuticular color pattern, which is thought to be composed of melanin and related pigments derived from tyrosine. We cloned three enzymes involved in the melanin-synthesis pathway in P. xuthus: tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), dopa decarboxylase (DDC), and ebony. Whole-mount in situ hybridization showed that the expression of both TH and DDC is strongly correlated with the black markings. ebony is strongly expressed only in the reddish-brown area. The expression pattern of each enzyme coincides with the cuticular color pattern of the subsequent instar. We also investigated the uptake of melanin precursors into cultured integument. Inhibition of either TH or DDC activity prevents in vitro pigmentation completely. Addition of dopamine to integuments in the presence of TH inhibitor causes overall darkening without specific markings. From these results, specific larval cuticular color patterns are regulated by stage-specific colocalization of enzymes in epidermal cells rather than by the differential uptake of melanin precursors into individual epidermal cells. Epidermal cells expressing TH and DDC, but not ebony, produce the black cuticle, and epidermal cells expressing TH, DDC, and ebony produce the reddish-brown cuticle.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Temporal variability of local abundance, sex ratio and activity in the Sardinian chalk hill blue butterfly.

When capturing and marking of individuals is possible, the application of newly developed capture-recapture models can remove several sources of bias in the estimation of population parameters such as local abundance and sex ratio. For example, observation of distorted sex ratios in counts or captures can reflect either different abundances of the sexes or different sex-specific capture probabilities, and capture-recapture models can help distinguish between these two possibilities. Robust design models and a model selection procedure based on information-theoretic methods were applied to study the local population structure of the endemic Sardinian chalk hill blue butterfly, Polyommatus coridon gennargenti. Seasonal variations of abundance, plus daily and weather-related variations of active populations of males and females were investigated. Evidence was found of protandry and male pioneering of the breeding space. Temporary emigration probability, which describes the proportion of the population not exposed to capture (e.g., absent from the study area) during the sampling process, was estimated, differed between sexes, and was related to temperature, a factor known to influence animal activity. The correlation between temporary emigration and average daily temperature suggested interpreting temporary emigration as inactivity of animals. Robust design models were used successfully to provide a detailed description of the population structure and activity in this butterfly and are recommended for studies of local abundance and animal activity in the field.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Metapopulation genetic structure of two coexisting parasitoids of the Glanville fritillary butterfly.

We investigated the metapopulation genetic structure of two specialist parasitoids, Cotesia melitaearum and Hyposoter horticola, attacking the Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia) in the Aland Islands south-western Finland. The host butterfly persists as a classic metapopulation in a network of 4,000 small habitat patches within an area of 50 by 70 km . The two parasitoids are known to differ greatly in their population dynamics and spatial pattern of occupancy in local host populations. Analysis of genetic population structure using F(ST) and clustering of multilocus genotypes revealed a distinct large-scale spatial structure in C. melitaearum but a very weak pattern in H. horticola. This result is consistent with the known difference in the dispersal range (much longer in H. horticola) and population size (much greater in H. horticola) of the two parasitoids.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Polymorphic growth in larvae of Maculinea butterflies, as an example of biennialism in myrmecophilous insects.

The presence of annual and biennial individuals within the same population has been recently demonstrated in the myrmecophilous butterflies Maculinea rebeli and Maculinea alcon, which present a cuckoo strategy inside Myrmica nests, and Maculinea arion which is a predatory species. Here, we present field and laboratory data on polymorphic larval growth in two other predatory species of Maculinea: M. teleius and M. nausithous. Body mass distributions of pre-pupation larvae were bimodal in both species. These results point to the existence of larvae that develop in 1 or 2 years. We also showed that the probability of pupation depended on larval body mass. In the case of M. teleius, the critical body mass at which larvae have a 50% probability of pupation is about 80 mg. We suggest that polymorphism in Maculinea may have evolved as an adaptation to life in ant nests, a habitat which protects them from predators and provides food. However, the quality of this resource is highly variable and unpredictable. According to the bet-hedging hypothesis, if the habitat is unpredictable, females should have an advantage by producing more variable offspring. In the case of Maculinea butterflies, this may involve maintaining larvae that develop in 1 or 2 years.

Animals↗
PubMed2007

Molecular phylogeography of two sibling species of Eurema butterflies.

The common yellow butterfly Eurema hecabe is widely distributed in East Asia, and is one of the most burdensome species for taxonomists due to the numerous geographic and seasonal wing colour patterns. Moreover, within this species, individuals with a yellow wing fringe that occur in temperate regions of Japan (Y type) proved to be biologically different from others that occur widely in subtropical regions of Japan and all over East Asia (B type). To unveil the genetic variation within and between the two types, a total of 50 butterflies collected at 18 geographic localities in East Asia were examined for nucleotide sequence variation of three mitochondrial regions: cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), cytochrome c oxidase subunit III (COIII) and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 (ND5). In addition, they were also examined for infection status with the endosymbiotic bacteria Wolbachia. The three mitochondrial sequences consistently showed that (i) Y type and B type were highly divergent, (ii) nucleotide variation within B type was very small although sampled from a geographically wide range, and (iii) a weak association existed between mitochondrial DNA haplotypes and Wolbachia infection status.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Models on butterfly protandry: virgin females are at risk to die.

Current models on protandry in butterflies assume that females are mated instantaneously upon eclosion. However, for most butterfly species this assumption is not realistic. In this paper a model is formulated in which the mating rate depends on both male and female density. Given the female presence curve, protandry is an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS) for males. The evolutionarily stable amount of protandry decreases with increasing death rate and decreasing encounter rate. Given the male presence curve, protandry also is an ESS for females. However, male and female ESS are not identical; moreover, in the present model a simultaneous ESS does not exist. Protandry critically depends on the assumption that females mate only once, whereas males are capable of multiple mating. If females too are capable of multiple mating, absence of protandry is the ESS for males as well as females. The model predicts that protandry depends on population density: protandry should be more pronounced in populations with high density than in populations with low density. Protandry also depends on sex ratio. It becomes more pronounced when the proportion of males among emerging adults increases.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Allergy to insects in Japan. III. High frequency of IgE antibody responses to insects (moth, butterfly, caddis fly, and chironomid) in patients with bronchial asthma and immunochemical quantitation of the insect-related airborne particles smaller than 10 microns in diameter.

After recognizing that moth, butterfly, caddis fly, and chironomid were the insects predominantly found in our environment, reaginic sensitivities to these insects in patients with asthma were investigated with extracts of silkworm wing for the detection of moth and/or butterfly allergy, caddis fly wing for caddis fly allergy, and chironomid whole body for chironomid allergy. At least 50% of 56 randomly selected patients with asthma had positive intracutaneous reactions to these insect extracts, and at least 80% of the skin reaction positive patients had specific IgE antibodies. An immunochemical assay of these insect-related aeroallergens in the dust collected 18.6 m above ground revealed the presence in the air of insect-related particles less than 10 microns in diameter with two peaks a year, one in the spring (silkworm wing, 3.18 ng protein equivalent to that of the crude extract per cubic meter of air; caddis fly wing, 3.08 ng/m3; and chironomid whole body, 5.21 ng/m3) and one in the autumn (silkworm wing, 8.24 ng/m3; caddis fly wing, 4.74 ng/m3; and chironomid whole body, 18.19 ng/m3). Although we have no idea whether or not such peak values are enough to cause asthmatic symptoms, seasonal fluctuations of specific IgE antibodies to these insects appeared to be similar to those of atmospheric insect allergens measured by this method. These findings suggest that insects are widespread and common inhalant allergens.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Phylogenetic studies of ribosomal RNA variation in higher moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera: Ditrysia).

The selection of exemplars has been shown both theoretically and empirically to affect tree topology, but the importance of the number and nature of taxa used to represent higher taxonomic lineages in molecular studies is rarely stressed. In our rRNA study of higher moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera: Ditrysia), the selection of different exemplars and outgroups caused major tree rearrangements. We also examined the effectiveness with which conserved rRNA regions track the diversification of Lepidoptera. Homoplasy is as prevalent at the few variable sites of conserved regions (18E, 18J, 28F) as at the many variable sites of a more rapidly evolving region (28B). Finally, 28B sequence variation differs qualitatively among lepidopteran superfamilies of presumed comparable age, the Papilionoidea (true butterflies) and Noctuoidea (cutworm moths and relatives).

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Mono(ADP-ribosyl)ation of the N2 amino groups of guanine residues in DNA by pierisin-2, from the cabbage butterfly, Pieris brassicae.

Pierisin-2 is a cytotoxic and apoptosis-inducing protein present in Pieris brassicae with a 91% homology in the deduced amino acid sequences to pierisin-1 from Pieris rapae. We earlier showed pierisin-1 to catalyze mono(ADP-ribosyl)ation of 2'-deoxyguanosine (dG) in DNA to form N2-(ADP-ribos-1-yl)-2'-deoxyguanosine, this DNA modification appearing linked to its cytotoxicity and ability to induce apoptosis in mammalian cell lines. In this paper, we documented evidence that pierisin-2 also catalyzed ADP-ribosylation of dG in DNA to give the same reaction product as demonstrated for pierisin-1, with similar efficiency. With oligonucleotides as substrates, ADP-ribosylation by pierisin-2 was suggested to occur by one-side attack of the carbon atom at 1 position of the ribose moiety in NAD toward N2 of dG. The presence of a unique ADP-ribosylation toxin targeting dG in DNA in two distinct species in a Pieris genus could be a quite important finding to better understand biological functions of pierisin-1 and -2 in Pieris butterflies and the generic evolution of these cabbage butterflies.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗
PubMed2003

Pigmentation pattern formation in butterflies: experiments and models.

Butterfly pigmentation patterns are one of the most spectacular and vivid examples of pattern formation in biology. They have attracted much attention from experimentalists and theoreticians, who have tried to understand the underlying genetic, chemical and physical processes that lead to patterning. In this paper, we present a brief review of this field by first considering the generation of the localised, eyespot, patterns and then the formation of more globally controlled patterns. We present some new results applied to pattern formation on the wing of the mimetic butterfly Papilio dardanus.

Animals↗
PubMed2026

Beauty bias in butterfly research and conservation.

Conservation biases have been documented since the first emergence of the concept of biodiversity in the 1980s,1,2,3 showing a systematic disproportion in the allocation of research and conservation efforts among taxa.4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11 One factor underlying this disproportion, gaining prominence in recent literature, is species' perceived beauty, shaped by human visual preferences.12,13,14,15,16,17 Here, we integrate a large-scale survey of the perceived beauty of European butterflies yielding >21,000 survey completions from >100 countries into a time-explicit network linking species' beauty, public attention, research and conservation efforts, and the EU regulatory framework. We found that species beauty is consistently associated with public attention, research, and conservation efforts in a temporally structured pattern compatible with a cumulative beauty bias. Research effort and public attention concentrate on widespread and visually attractive species, whereas species included in the legal conservation framework, particularly the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (hereafter, Bern Convention, BC, 1979)18 and the EU Habitats Directive (hereafter, HD, 1992)19 are disproportionately represented by visually appealing and historically protected taxa. Because these frameworks guide funding and management actions, early associations between species beauty and BC/HD inclusion have contributed to long-lasting institutional patterns in butterfly research and conservation. By contrast, European IUCN Red Lists20,21 do not overrepresent beautiful species and identify more inconspicuous taxa as threatened. This mismatch reveals a tension between scientific assessments of extinction risk and historically embedded conservation priorities. Our findings suggest that recognizing beauty bias is vital for aligning conservation with actual ecological urgency. VIDEO ABSTRACT.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Identification of amine receptors from a swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus L.: cloning and mRNA localization in foreleg chemosensory organ for recognition of host plants.

The swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus L., feeds exclusively on members of the plant family, Rutaceae. Female butterflies lay eggs in response to specific chemicals contained in their host plants. They perceive a variety of polar compounds as oviposition stimulants through the tarsal chemosensilla of the foreleg by drumming upon the leaf surface. Some biogenic amine analogs have been characterized as oviposition stimulants. We have cloned three amine receptors, serotonin, tyramine, and dopamine, from cDNA derived from foreleg tarsus of P. xuthus, and determined structures of both cDNA and genomic genes. The phenylethylamine (tyramine and dopamine) receptors were expressed preferentially in brain and chemosensory organs. Moreover, we observed the localized expression of dopamine receptors at the base of tarsal chemosensilla by in situ hybridization. These results suggest that amine receptors in tarsal chemosensilla have a functional role in chemoreception for host plant recognition.

Amino Acid Sequence↗