Self-repair of the Lepidopteran Proboscis

Abstract

Abstract Self-repair in the animal world typically involves regeneration of body parts. We present an example featuring the proboscis of butterflies and moths, which after separation of the galeae, undergoes nonregenerative repair. We demonstrated the ability of representative species to completely reunite (repair) the proboscis after total separation of the two galeae, and we showed that the repaired proboscis can take up fluid. Movements of the proboscis during repair were similar to the initial proboscis assembly after emergence from the pupa. We tested the influence of labial palps, wing movements, coiling, and fluid immersion on self-repair. These factors showed no statistically significant influence on the ability to repair the proboscis, with the exception of wing movements in one species. We suggest that the major selection forces driving assembly and repair have been the need to insert the proboscis into restricted openings of floral tubes to obtain nectar and the need for a united, compactly coiled proboscis to reduce air resistance during flight.