Pollen processing behavior of Heliconius butterflies: A derived grooming behavior
University of Vienna, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Althanstrasse 14, A-1090, Vienna, Austria
Abstract
Pollen feeding behaviors of Heliconius and Laparus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) represent a key innovation that has shaped other life history traits of these neotropical butterflies. Although all flower visiting Lepidoptera regularly come in contact with pollen, only Heliconius and Laparus butterflies actively collect pollen with the proboscis and subsequently take up nutrients from the pollen grains. This study focused on the behavior of pollen processing and compared the movement patterns with proboscis grooming behavior in various nymphalid butterflies using video analysis. The proboscis movements of pollen processing behavior consisted of a lengthy series of repeated coiling and uncoiling movements in a loosely coiled proboscis position combined with up and down movements and the release of saliva. The proboscis-grooming behavior was triggered by contamination of the proboscis in both pollen feeding and non-pollen feeding nymphalid butterflies. Proboscis grooming movements included interrupted series of coiling and uncoiling movements, characteristic sideways movements, proboscis lifting, and occasionally full extension of the proboscis. Discharge of saliva was more pronounced in pollen feeding species than in non–pollen feeding butterfly species. We conclude that the pollen processing behavior of Heliconius and Laparus is a modified proboscis grooming behavior that originally served to clean the proboscis after contamination with particles.
Keywords: evolution, feeding mechanism, Lepidoptera, proboscis movements, video analysis
Abbreviations: NPF, non-pollen feeders; PF, pollen feeders
Correspondence:
a* antschal@gmail.com,
b harald.krenn@univie.ac.at, *Corresponding author
Editor: Todd Shelly was Editor of this paper.
Received: 22 August 2010 | Accepted: 21 January 2011 | Published: 9 August 2011
Copyright: This is an open access paper. We use the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license that permits unrestricted use, provided that the paper is properly attributed.
ISSN: 1536-2442 | Volume 11, Number 99
Hikl A-L, Krenn HW. 2011. Pollen processing behavior of Heliconius butterflies: A derived grooming behavior. Journal of Insect Science 11:99 available online: insectscience.org/11.99
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