Sex-biased predation on moths by insectivorous bats

Acharya, Lalita

doi:10.1016/0003-3472(95)90067-5

Cited by 67 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Females often do not fly until mated and spend most of their short adult lifespan (average 4-8 d) disseminating pheromone from protected sites, dispersing short distances to oviposit (11). Male moths are the primary sex searching for mates and are under greater threat of bat predation (19). Saturniid moths are not known to use visual cues during mating, and the majority of species, including those with tails, are monoandrous, with females tending to mate with the first available male (20).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moth tails divert bat attack: Evolution of acoustic deflection

Barber

Leavell

Keener

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Adaptations to divert the attacks of visually guided predators have evolved repeatedly in animals. Using high-speed infrared videography, we show that luna moths (Actias luna) generate an acoustic diversion with spinning hindwing tails to deflect echolocating bat attacks away from their body and toward these nonessential appendages. We pit luna moths against big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) and demonstrate a survival advantage of ∼47% for moths with tails versus those that had their tails removed. The benefit of hindwing tails is equivalent to the advantage conferred to moths by bat-detecting ears. Moth tails lured bat attacks to these wing regions during 55% of interactions between bats and intact luna moths. We analyzed flight kinematics of moths with and without hindwing tails and suggest that tails have a minimal role in flight performance. Using a robust phylogeny, we find that long spatulate tails have independently evolved four times in saturniid moths, further supporting the selective advantage of this anti-bat strategy. Diversionary tactics are perhaps more common than appreciated in predator-prey interactions. Our finding suggests that focusing on the sensory ecologies of key predators will reveal such countermeasures in prey.antipredator defense | bat-moth interactions | Lepidoptera | Saturniidae P redators are under pressure to perform incapacitating initial strikes to thwart prey escape. It is thought that prey, in turn, have evolved conspicuous colors or markings to deflect predator attack to less vulnerable body regions (1, 2). Eyespots are a wellknown class of proposed deflection marks (3), which are found in a variety of taxa, including Lepidoptera (3) and fishes (4), but only recently have experiments convincingly demonstrated that these color patterns redirect predatory assault. Eyespots on artificial butterfly (5) and fish (4) prey draw strikes of avian and fish predators. Eyespots on the wing margins of woodland brown butterflies (Lopinga achine) lure the attacks of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) (6). Brightly colored lizard tails also divert avian predator attacks to this expendable body region (7).Deflection coloration is unlikely to be an effective strategy against echolocating bats, as these predators have scotopic vision and poor visual acuity unsuited for prey localization and discrimination (8). Most bats rely on echoes from their sonar cries to image prey and other objects in their environment-they live in an auditory world (9). Thus, we would expect a deflection strategy, effective against bats, to present diversionary acoustic signatures to these hearing specialists. Weeks (10) proposed that saturniid hindwing tails might serve to divert bat attacks from essential body parts. We hypothesized that saturniid tails, spinning behind a flying moth (Movie S1) and reflecting sonar calls, serve as either a highly contrasting component of the primary echoic target or as an alternative target. We predicted that bats would aim their attacks at moth tails, instead of the wings or body, durin...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moth tails divert bat attack: Evolution of acoustic deflection

Barber

Leavell

Keener

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…At a finergrained level, for moth species in which both sexes fly, males might still be at greater risk of bat predation if they fly more at night in search of perched pheromone-releasing females. Although malebiased moth predation by bats has been observed around streetlights (Acharya, 1995), a male-biased flight-to-light response also exists in some moths (Altermatt et al, 2009). In general, for moth species in which both males and females fly, there is no evidence for differences in sensitivity between male and female moths (Surlykke and Gogala, 1986;Surlykke and Treat, 1995;Surlykke, 1999, 2000;Fullard, 2006).…”

Section: Nocturnal Activity Levelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary escalation: the bat–moth arms race

Hofstede

Ratcliffe

2016

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Echolocation in bats and high-frequency hearing in their insect prey make bats and insects an ideal system for studying the sensory ecology and neuroethology of predator-prey interactions. Here, we review the evolutionary history of bats and eared insects, focusing on the insect order Lepidoptera, and consider the evidence for antipredator adaptations and predator counter-adaptations. Ears evolved in a remarkable number of body locations across insects, with the original selection pressure for ears differing between groups. Although cause and effect are difficult to determine, correlations between hearing and life history strategies in moths provide evidence for how these two variables influence each other. We consider life history variables such as size, sex, circadian and seasonal activity patterns, geographic range and the composition of sympatric bat communities. We also review hypotheses on the neural basis for antipredator behaviours (such as evasive flight and sound production) in moths. It is assumed that these prey adaptations would select for counter-adaptations in predatory bats. We suggest two levels of support for classifying bat traits as counter-adaptations: traits that allow bats to eat more eared prey than expected based on their availability in the environment provide a low level of support for counter-adaptations, whereas traits that have no other plausible explanation for their origination and maintenance than capturing defended prey constitute a high level of support. Specific predator counter-adaptations include calling at frequencies outside the sensitivity range of most eared prey, changing the pattern and frequency of echolocation calls during prey pursuit, and quiet, or 'stealth', echolocation.

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“…De acordo com esta literatura, maiores níveis de predação em machos ocorrem com freqüência em vertebrados e alguns insetos predados por aves de rapina e por algumas espécies de morcego (Stamps et al, 1983;Acharya, 1995;Costantini et al, 2007). Esse padrão é comumente explicado por diferenças sexuais na coloração das presas (Götmark, 1993;Forsman & Appelqvist, 1998;Huhta et al, 2003;Møller & Nielsen, 2006) Já em paisagens altamente fragmentadas, como em Capão Bonito, estima-se que as taxas de dispersão sejam baixas, pois os fragmentos tendem a ser pequenos e o isolamento entre eles tende a ser elevado (média de DVP ± desvio padrão = 241 ± 183 m), suportando populações com poucos indivíduos potenciais dispersores (Schtickzelle et al, 2006;.…”

Section: Efeitos Da Distância E Do Sexo No Sucesso Da Movimentação DIunclassified

Padrões de movimentação de uma espécie de ave em paisagens fragmentadas e seus efeitos para a conectividade funcional: uma abordagem hierárquica

Awade¹,

Metzger²

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Sex-biased predation on moths by insectivorous bats

Cited by 67 publications

References 30 publications

Moth tails divert bat attack: Evolution of acoustic deflection

Moth tails divert bat attack: Evolution of acoustic deflection

Evolutionary escalation: the bat–moth arms race

Padrões de movimentação de uma espécie de ave em paisagens fragmentadas e seus efeitos para a conectividade funcional: uma abordagem hierárquica

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