Behavioral and physiological differences between two parapatric Heliconius species

The behavior and physiology of two parapatric sibling species, Heliconius erato cyrbia Godt. and H. himera Hew., were investigated to assess if environmental adaptation enabled stable morphological, genetic, and ecological differences to exist in the face of hybridization. Morning and evening activi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Biotropica Vol. 31; no. 4; pp. 661 - 668
Main Authors:	Davison, A, McMillan, W.O, Griffin, A.S, Jiggins, C.D, Mallett, J.L.B
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-12-1999 Association for Tropical Biology
Subjects:	animal ecology behavior Butterflies competitive exclusion Ecological genetics Ecological zones Eggs Female animals Heliconius heliconius erato heliconius himera hybrid zone Hybridity hybridization Lepidoptera Male animals Mallets Nymphalidae parapatry sibling species Speciation Species Ecuador
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Summary:	The behavior and physiology of two parapatric sibling species, Heliconius erato cyrbia Godt. and H. himera Hew., were investigated to assess if environmental adaptation enabled stable morphological, genetic, and ecological differences to exist in the face of hybridization. Morning and evening activity, egg production, and larval development time of H. himera and H. erato in insectaries were recorded; individuals were collected in allopatry and in sympatry from a hybrid zone in which the species overlapped. Studies were performed at ambient conditions within the natural range of H. himera. H. himera was considerably more active than H. erato, flying earlier in the morning and later in the evening, even when both species were collected in sympatry. Similarly, H. himera laid more eggs, and the hatched larvae developed more rapidly. The results suggest that physiological constraints are an important selective force that may have been important in speciation and counteracts hybridization in the maintenance of the H. himera/H. erato contact zone. Ecological selection, arising from adaptation to low temperatures, may help explain the competitive exclusion of H. erato by H. himera in the drier, cooler montane habitat favored by the latter species.
Bibliography:	Received 18 November 1997; revison accepted 12 June 1998. ArticleID:BTP661 istex:2AF7B7156EF11C88B7136EAEA8EF57E7A73F347F ark:/67375/WNG-QH4FX9LD-J ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23
ISSN:	0006-3606 1744-7429
DOI:	10.1111/j.1744-7429.1999.tb00415.x