TY - JOUR
T1 - Linkages between nectaring and oviposition preferences of Manduca sexta on two co-blooming Datura species in the Sonoran Desert
AU - Smith, Gordon P.
AU - Johnson, Christopher A.
AU - Davidowitz, Goggy
AU - Bronstein, Judith L.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Olivia Brinkerhoff, Keane Sullivan, and Nico Lorenzen for their help in rearing larvae and growing plants, as well as Autumn Moore and Heather Costa for colony maintenance and support throughout this project. We also thank two anonymous reviewers for their extremely helpful comments. This work was supported by the Keep Engaging Youth in Science (KEYS) program of the University of Arizona BIO5 Institute [itself supported by the National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences (NIEHS) grant ES006694]. This work was also supported by Science Foundation Arizona grant BSP 0528-13 to CAJ, and by the National Science Foundation (NSF) grant IOS-1053318 to GD. We report no conflicts of interest.
Funding Information:
We thank Olivia Brinkerhoff, Keane Sullivan, and Nico Loren-zen for their help in rearing larvae and growing plants, as well as Autumn Moore and Heather Costa for colony maintenance and support throughout this project. We also thank two anonymous reviewers for their extremely helpful comments. This work was supported by the Keep Engaging Youth in Science (KEYS) program of the University of Arizona BIO5 Institute [itself supported by the National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences (NIEHS) grant ES006694]. This work was also supported by Science Foundation Arizona grant BSP 0528-13 to CAJ, and by the National Science Foundation (NSF) grant IOS-1053318 to GD. We report no conflicts of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 The Royal Entomological Society
PY - 2018/2/1
Y1 - 2018/2/1
N2 - 1. The oviposition choices of phytophagous insects determine the environment that their offspring will experience, affecting both larval performance and host plant fitness. These choices, however, may be influenced by other activities, such as nectar foraging. 2. In the Sonoran Desert, Manduca sexta (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) oviposits primarily on the perennial herb Datura wrightii. It has been reported to oviposit on the smaller-flowered, co-blooming, sympatric annual Datura discolor as well. Datura is also M. sexta's most important source of nectar in this region. Nectaring and oviposition decisions thus determine M. sexta's reproductive success, as well as the relative benefits (pollination) and costs (herbivory) that each Datura species derives from this interaction. 3. The nectaring and oviposition choices of adult M. sexta on these congeners were studied to investigate how nectar foraging influences oviposition. Larval performance on the two hosts was then assessed. 4. Nectaring and oviposition were behaviourally linked, with M. sexta preferring the perennial D. wrightii as both a nectar source and larval host when given a choice between the two species. This preference disappeared, however, when only D. discolor bore flowers. 5. In the laboratory, larvae developed at equal rates when fed D. wrightii or D. discolor leaves, but survival was higher on D. wrightii when larvae fed on intact plants. 6. These findings suggest that while female preferences match larval performance in most cases, the link between nectaring and oviposition may at times bias moths to lay eggs on inferior larval hosts.
AB - 1. The oviposition choices of phytophagous insects determine the environment that their offspring will experience, affecting both larval performance and host plant fitness. These choices, however, may be influenced by other activities, such as nectar foraging. 2. In the Sonoran Desert, Manduca sexta (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) oviposits primarily on the perennial herb Datura wrightii. It has been reported to oviposit on the smaller-flowered, co-blooming, sympatric annual Datura discolor as well. Datura is also M. sexta's most important source of nectar in this region. Nectaring and oviposition decisions thus determine M. sexta's reproductive success, as well as the relative benefits (pollination) and costs (herbivory) that each Datura species derives from this interaction. 3. The nectaring and oviposition choices of adult M. sexta on these congeners were studied to investigate how nectar foraging influences oviposition. Larval performance on the two hosts was then assessed. 4. Nectaring and oviposition were behaviourally linked, with M. sexta preferring the perennial D. wrightii as both a nectar source and larval host when given a choice between the two species. This preference disappeared, however, when only D. discolor bore flowers. 5. In the laboratory, larvae developed at equal rates when fed D. wrightii or D. discolor leaves, but survival was higher on D. wrightii when larvae fed on intact plants. 6. These findings suggest that while female preferences match larval performance in most cases, the link between nectaring and oviposition may at times bias moths to lay eggs on inferior larval hosts.
KW - Herbivory
KW - Manduca sexta
KW - oviposition decisions
KW - pollination
KW - preference–performance hypothesis
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85030655807&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85030655807&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/een.12475
DO - 10.1111/een.12475
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85030655807
SN - 0307-6946
VL - 43
SP - 85
EP - 92
JO - Ecological Entomology
JF - Ecological Entomology
IS - 1
ER -