Courtship pheromone production and body size as correlates of larval diet in males of the arctiid moth,Utetheisa ornatrix

@article{Conner1990CourtshipPP,
  title={Courtship pheromone production and body size as correlates of larval diet in males of the arctiid moth,Utetheisa ornatrix},
  author={William E. Conner and Braden Roach and Egg Benedict and Jerrold Meinwald and Thomas Eisner},
  journal={Journal of Chemical Ecology},
  year={1990},
  volume={16},
  pages={543-552}
}
Hydroxydanaidal, the corematal courtship pheromone of maleUtetheisa ornatrix, shows pronounced quantitative variation in natural populations of the moth. Males that, as larvae, fed on seed-bearing rather than immature food plants (Crotalaria spectabilis orC. mucronata) produce higher levels of hydroxydanaidal. Such males also have higher systemic loads of pyrrolizidine alkaloid, the known metabolic precursor of hydroxydanaidal, whichUtetheisa sequester from their larval diet and which is… 
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65 Citations

Male courtship pheromones as indicators of genetic quality in an arctiid moth (Utetheisa ornatrix)

Using chemical analyses, it is determined that the HD signal does not change based on mating history, thereby supporting the importance of HD in advertising a male’s genetic quality.

Parental Body Mass as a Determinant of Egg Size and Egg Output in an Arctiid Moth (Utetheisa ornatrix)

It is demonstrated that mating with larger males results in accelerated oviposition by the female on the day after mating and that females are intrinsically prone to lay larger eggs in the first days after mating.

Larval Rearing Temperature Influences Amount and Composition of the Marking Pheromone of the Male Beewolf, Philanthus triangulum

The results show that the temperature during larval development significantly affected the amount and composition of the content of the male pheromone glands, probably due to physiological constraints and competing processes for limited energetic resources.

Chemical basis of pupal cannibalism in a caterpillar (Utetheisa ornatrix)

Evidence is presented indicating that cannibalism in larvae is elicited not by hunger, but possibly by PA deficiency itself, and that in making cannibalistic choices larvae prefer PA-containing over PA-free pupae.

Courtship and mating behaviour in the parasitoid wasp Cotesia urabae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae): mate location and the influence of competition and body size on male mating success

Cotesia urabae males exhibited a high attraction to virgin females but not mated females, whereas females showed no attraction to either virgin or mated males, which can be utilized to improve mass rearing methods of C. Urabae for the future.

Experience counts: females favor multiply mated males over chemically endowed virgins in a moth (Utetheisa ornatrix)

  • V. Iyengar
  • Biology
    Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
  • 2009
It is demonstrated that males with mating experience can secure copulations despite deficiencies in the pheromone, and possible mechanisms are provided and discussed to discuss their implications regarding sexual selection.

Condition-Dependent Mating Success in Male Fruit Flies: Ingestion of a Pheromone Precursor Compensates for a Low-Quality Diet

Results show that mating success in this species is condition-dependent, with both nutritional state and ME consumption influencing male mating success.

How parasitoid females produce sexy sons: a causal link between oviposition preference, dietary lipids and mate choice in Nasonia

It is demonstrated that females of the parasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis prefer those hosts for oviposition that have been experimentally enriched in linoleic acid (LA), and it is shown by 13C-labelling that LA from the host diet is a precursor of the male sex pheromone.

Why do larvae of Utetheisa ornatrix penetrate and feed in pods of Crotalaria species? Larval performance vs. chemical and physical constraints

This work investigated the selective pressures that could explain why U. ornatrix larvae feed primarily on unripe pods with seeds and not on leaves, and showed that larval survivorship in the laboratory was unaffected by feeding on leaves or unRIpe seeds, and that pupal development up to the pupal stage was better in larvae that fed onUnripe seeds.

Chemical basis of egg cannibalism in a caterpillar (Utetheisa ornatrix)

It is argued that such feeding may occur only opportunistically in the wild, rather than as a matter of course, because presence of PA in the egg, while providing the egg with defense against predation, can increase its vulnerability to cannibalism.
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References

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Pheromone-mediated sexual selection in the mothUtetheisa ornatrix: Olfactory receptor neurons responsive to a male-produced pheromone

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