Microclimate buffering and thermal tolerance across elevations in a tropical butterfly

Montejo‐Kovacevich, Gabriela; Martin, Simon H.; Meier, Joana I.; Bacquet, Caroline; Monllor, Monica; Jiggins, Chris D.; Nadeau, Nicola J.

doi:10.1242/jeb.220426

Cited by 52 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 88 publications

(137 reference statements)

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“…However, variation in thermal limits can also be a consequence of developmental effects, ontogenetic changes, and phenotypic plasticity ( Bowler and Terblanche, 2008 ; Kellermann and Sgrò, 2018 ). As an example, and in contrast with our own findings, Montejo-Kovacevich et al (2020) found little difference in thermal tolerance (knockdown time) for a tropical butterfly species across elevation following rearing in a common garden environment, despite finding significant differences in wild-caught individuals from high versus low elevation populations.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…However, ectotherms do have the ability to behaviorally avoid extreme temperatures through thermoregulatory activities and experiencing diverse microclimates at multiple spatial scales ( Sunday et al, 2014 ; Bonebrake et al, 2014 ; Pincebourde and Woods, 2020 ). Furthermore, thermal tolerance differences in populations across habitats can sometimes be diminished by developmental conditions; Montejo-Kovacevich et al (2020) , for example, found that for tropical Heliconius erato butterflies, differences in heat tolerance across elevation were nearly erased after rearing in a common garden.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats

et al. 2021

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Thermal adaptation to habitat variability can determine species vulnerability to environmental change. For example, physiological tolerance to naturally low thermal variation in tropical forests species may alter their vulnerability to climate change impacts, compared with open habitat species. However, the extent to which habitat-specific differences in tolerance derive from within-generation versus across-generation ecological or evolutionary processes are not well characterized. Here we studied thermal tolerance limits of a Central African butterfly (Bicyclus dorothea) across two habitats in Cameroon: a thermally stable tropical forest and the more variable ecotone between rainforest and savanna. Second generation individuals originating from the ecotone, reared under conditions common to both populations, exhibited higher upper thermal limits (CTmax) than individuals originating from forest (∼3°C greater). Lower thermal limits (CTmin) were also slightly lower for the ecotone populations (∼1°C). Our results are suggestive of local adaptation driving habitat-specific differences in thermal tolerance (especially CTmax) that hold across generations. Such habitat-specific thermal limits may be widespread for tropical ectotherms and could affect species vulnerability to environmental change. However, microclimate and within-generation developmental processes (e.g. plasticity) will mediate these differences, and determining the fitness consequences of thermal variation for ecotone and rainforest species will require continued study of both within-generation and across-generation eco-evolutionary processes.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats

et al. 2021

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“…Ecuador. Compared to their Panamanian conspecifics sampled along the gradient of rainfall at sea level, the Ecuadorian populations inhabit a very different and geographically distant biotope along the eastern slope of the Andes (Montejo-Kovacevich et al, 2020). These environments differ in larval host plant and nectar/pollen availability, the community of predators and of co-mimics, which are far more diverse in Ecuador.…”

Section: Evolutionary Processes Shaping Chemical Defense Variation: Tmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary and ecological processes influencing chemical defense variation in an aposematic and mimeticHeliconiusbutterfly

Mattila

Jiggins

Opedal

et al. 2020

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2.ABSTRACTChemical defences against predators underlie the evolution of aposematic coloration and mimicry, which represent classic examples of adaptive evolution. Yet, unlike color patterns, little is known about the evolutionary potential of chemical defences. Neotropical Heliconius butterflies exhibit incredibly diverse warning color patterns and widespread mimicry. Their larvae feed exclusively on cyanogenic Passiflora vines, can metabolize and sequester host plant toxins, as well as biosynthesize defensive cyanogenic toxins themselves. Here, we investigate variation in biosynthesized toxicity both in wild populations along environmental gradients and in common-garden broods and feeding treatments in Heliconius erato, together demonstrating considerable intraspecific variation and evolutionary potential in this important chemical defense trait. Toxicity varied markedly among wild populations from Central and South America. Within wild populations, the distribution of toxicity was consistently skewed, indicative of automimic “cheaters” that may exploit, and consequently deplete, the protection of the warning coloration. In a common-garden rearing design comprising more than 300 butterflies across 20 broods, variation in host-plant nutritional quality or cyanogen levels did not translate into differences in toxicity of butterflies feeding on these plants. Instead, toxicity had a significant heritable genetic component, in part explained by maternal inheritance. The evolvability of toxicity was high (eµ=1.55%), suggesting that toxicity can evolve rapidly. Through its link with the evolution of warning color pattern mimicry, the high evolutionary potential of cyanogenic toxicity may have facilitated diversification and ecological speciation in Heliconius, highlighting the importance of understanding the evolution of chemical defense in aposematic and mimetic species.

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“…In addition to changes in vegetation structure, this large‐scale forest‐to‐grassland transition was also associated with dramatic changes in habitat seasonality (Osborne 2008). Closed‐canopy forests can buffer extreme seasonal differences (for example in temperature or humidity; Montejo‐Kovacevich et al 2020) but savannah biomes typically demonstrate strong temporal fluctuations in climatic conditions. Therefore, vital resources for growth and reproduction, such as grasses for the larvae of phytophagous insects, can be sustained in shaded forests throughout the year (Moore 1986; Braby 1995; Halali et al 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal environments drive convergent evolution of a faster pace‐of‐life in tropical butterflies

et al. 2020

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New ecological niches that may arise due to climate change can trigger diversification, but their colonisation often requires adaptations in a suite of life-history traits. We test this hypothesis in species-rich Mycalesina butterflies that have undergone parallel radiations in Africa, Asia, and Madagascar. First, our ancestral state reconstruction of habitat preference, using c. 85% of extant species, revealed that early forest-linked lineages began to invade seasonal savannahs during the late Miocene-Pliocene. Second, rearing replicate pairs of forest and savannah species from the African and Malagasy radiation in a common garden experiment, and utilising published data from the Asian radiation, demonstrated that savannah species consistently develop faster, have smaller bodies, higher fecundity with an earlier investment in reproduction, and reduced longevity, compared to forest species across all three radiations. We argue that time-constraints for reproduction favoured the evolution of a faster pace-of-life in savannah species that facilitated their persistence in seasonal habitats.

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Microclimate buffering and thermal tolerance across elevations in a tropical butterfly

Abstract: Tropical forests along the Andes were found to greatly buffer climate. The butterflies inhabiting high elevations were less thermally tolerant but common-garden experiments suggest this is largely due to phenotypic plasticity.

Cited by 52 publications

References 88 publications

Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats

Local adaptation in thermal tolerance for a tropical butterfly across ecotone and rainforest habitats

Evolutionary and ecological processes influencing chemical defense variation in an aposematic and mimeticHeliconiusbutterfly

Seasonal environments drive convergent evolution of a faster pace‐of‐life in tropical butterflies

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