Ecology · 2003 · 215 citations · 64 references
Life SciencesBiologyZoologyEvolutionary EcologyInsect Developmental BiologyPhysiological EcologyBehavioral PlasticityDevelopmental PlasticityDevelopmental Temperature EffectsOviposition BehaviorParental InvestmentThermal PhysiologyBody Size AdaptationEgg Size RegulationEgg Size VariationEnvironmental Temperature Effects On DevelopmentHatchingReproductive Adaptations To Low TemperatureTemperature Effects On EggsTemperature Effects On Oviposition
Dividing sister pairs of the butterfly Bicyclus anynana (reared in a common environment) between high and low temperature shows that oviposition temperature induces a plastic response in egg size. Females at a lower temperature laid significantly larger (but fewer) eggs than their sisters kept at a higher temperature, whereas total reproductive investment increased with temperature. Cross-transfer experiments demonstrated that this plastic response in egg size is reversible. Interestingly, this pattern parallels an almost universal temperature-induced developmental response in ectotherm body size. In both cases, however, we do not yet understand the underlying mechanisms or the potential adaptive significance. By cross-transferring the experimentally manipulated eggs between temperatures, we showed that the larger eggs produced at a lower temperature had a higher hatching success, and yielded larger hatchlings with a slightly higher probability of reaching maturity and shorter larval development time (at ...
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