Affiliation:
1. Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
2. School of Biological Science, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol UBS8 1TQ, UK
Abstract
Major evolutionary transitions can be triggered by behavioural novelty, and are often associated with ‘adaptive suites’, which involve shifts in multiple co-adapted traits subject to complex interactions.
Heliconius
butterflies represent one such example, actively feeding on pollen, a behaviour unique among butterflies. Pollen feeding permits a prolonged reproductive lifespan, and co-occurs with a constellation of behavioural, neuroanatomical, life history, morphological and physiological traits that are absent in closely related, non-pollen-feeding genera. As a highly tractable system, supported by considerable ecological and genomic data,
Heliconius
are an excellent model for investigating how behavioural innovation can trigger a cascade of adaptive shifts in multiple diverse, but interrelated, traits. Here, we synthesize current knowledge of pollen feeding in
Heliconius
, and explore potential interactions between associated, putatively adaptive, traits. Currently, no physiological, morphological or molecular innovation has been explicitly linked to the origin of pollen feeding, and several hypothesized links between different aspects of
Heliconius
biology remain poorly tested. However, resolving these uncertainties will contribute to our understanding of how behavioural innovations evolve and subsequently alter the evolutionary trajectories of diverse traits impacting resource acquisition, life history, senescence and cognition.
Funder
European Research Council
Natural Environment Research Council
Subject
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Environmental Science,General Immunology and Microbiology,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology,General Medicine
Cited by
27 articles.
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