Global phylogeography and geographical variation in warning coloration of the wood tiger moth (<i>Parasemia plantaginis</i>)

Hegna, Robert H.; Galarza, Juan A.; Mappes, Johanna

doi:10.1111/jbi.12513

Cited by 65 publications

(82 citation statements)

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“…Adult wood tiger moths have a conspicuous black‐and‐white pattern on the forewings and red, orange, yellow, white or black hindwings. In some populations, males are monomorphic, but in large parts of Europe, two male colour morphs with either white or yellow hindwings co‐occur (Hegna, Galarza, & Mappes, ). In Finnish populations, frequencies of yellow and white morphs vary from 60:40 to 25:75 (Nokelainen, ).…”

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confidence: 99%

An aposematic colour‐polymorphic moth seen through the eyes of conspecifics and predators – Sensitivity and colour discrimination in a tiger moth

et al. 2018

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Although predation is commonly thought to exert the strongest selective pressure on coloration in aposematic species, sexual selection may also influence coloration. Specifically, polymorphism in aposematic species cannot be explained by natural selection alone. Males of the aposematic wood tiger moth (Arctia plantaginis) are polymorphic for hindwing coloration throughout most of their range. In Scandinavia, they display either white or yellow hindwings. Female hindwing coloration varies continuously from bright orange to red. Redder females and yellow males suffer least from bird predation. White males often have higher mating success than yellow males. Therefore, we ask whether females can discriminate the two male morphs by colour. Males approach females by following pheromone plumes from a distance, but search visually at short range. This raises the questions whether males discriminate female coloration and, in turn, whether female coloration is also sexually selected. Using electroretinograms, we found significantly larger retinal responses in male than female A. plantaginis, but similar spectral sensitivities in both sexes, with peaks in the UV (349 nm), blue (457 nm) and green (521 nm) wavelength range. According to colour vision models, conspecifics can discriminate white and yellow males as separate morphs, but not orange and red females. For moths and birds (Cyanistes caeruleus), white males are more conspicuous against green and brown backgrounds, mostly due to UV reflectivity, and red females are slightly more conspicuous than orange females. The costly red coloration among females is likely selected by predator pressure, not by conspecifics, whereas male colour polymorphism is probably maintained, at least partly, by the opposing forces of predation pressure favouring yellow males, and female preference for white males. Whether or not the preference for white males is based on visual cues requires further testing. The evolution of polymorphic aposematic animals can be better understood when the visual system of the species and their predators is taken into consideration. A http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2435.13100/suppinfo is available for this article.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An aposematic colour‐polymorphic moth seen through the eyes of conspecifics and predators – Sensitivity and colour discrimination in a tiger moth

et al. 2018

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“…Our study species is the aposematic wood tiger moth ( Parasemia plantaginis ). Males of this species exhibit discrete wing coloration on both local and on a broad geographical scale (Hegna, Galarza & Mappes ). European populations feature two distinct genetic male morphs, yellow and white (Galarza et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colour polymorphism torn apart by opposing positive frequency‐dependent selection, yet maintained in space

Gordon

Kokko

Rojas

et al. 2015

Journal of Animal Ecology

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Polymorphic warning signals in aposematic species are enigmatic because predator learning and discrimination should select for the most common coloration, resulting in positive frequency-dependent survival selection. Here, we investigated whether differential mating success could create sufficiently strong negative frequency-dependent selection for rare morphs to explain polymorphic (white and yellow) warning coloration in male wood tiger moths (Parasemia plantaginis). We conducted an experiment in semi-natural conditions where we estimated mating success for both white and yellow male moths under three different morph frequencies. Contrary to expectations, mating success was positively frequency-dependent: white morph males had high relative fitness when common, likewise yellow morph males had high relative fitness when instead they were common. We hence built a model parameterized with our data to examine whether polymorphism can be maintained despite two sources of positive frequency dependence. The model includes known spatial variation in the survival advantage enjoyed by the yellow morph and assumes that relative mating success follows our experimentally derived values. It predicts that polymorphism is possible under migration for up to approximately 20% exchange of individuals between subpopulations in each generation. Our results suggest that differential mating success combined with spatial variation in predator communities may operate as a selection mosaic that prevents complete fixation of either morph.

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“…The aposematic wood tiger moth (Arctia plantaginis, formerly Parasemia plantaginis Rönkä et al 2016) is a model system to study various aspects of warning coloration (e.g., Lindstedt et al 2009;Nokelainen et al 2012;Hegna et al 2013;Nokelainen et al 2014;Galarza et al 2015). Both larvae and adults of this species display locally and geographically diverse warning signals.…”

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Evolutionary constraints of warning signals: A genetic trade-off between the efficacy of larval and adult warning coloration can maintain variation in signal expression

et al. 2016

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Evolutionary constraints of warning signals : a genetic trade-off between the efficacy of larval and adult warning coloration can maintain variation in signal expression. Evolution, 70 (11), 2562Evolution, 70 (11), -2572Evolution, 70 (11), . doi:10.1111 Final DraftThis article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1111/evo.13066. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

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Global phylogeography and geographical variation in warning coloration of the wood tiger moth (Parasemia plantaginis)

Cited by 65 publications

References 59 publications

An aposematic colour‐polymorphic moth seen through the eyes of conspecifics and predators – Sensitivity and colour discrimination in a tiger moth

An aposematic colour‐polymorphic moth seen through the eyes of conspecifics and predators – Sensitivity and colour discrimination in a tiger moth

Colour polymorphism torn apart by opposing positive frequency‐dependent selection, yet maintained in space

Evolutionary constraints of warning signals: A genetic trade-off between the efficacy of larval and adult warning coloration can maintain variation in signal expression

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