Zerynthia polyxena Locally Monophagous on Aristolochia pallida in the Susa Valley. Issue 6 (20th August 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Piccini, Irene; Di Pietro, Viviana; Bonelli, Simona
• Editors: Ranger, Christopher
• Is Part Of: Environmental entomology. Volume 50:Issue 6(2021)
• Page Start: 1425
• Page End: 1431
• Publication Date: 2021-08-20
• Subjects: oviposition -- larval host plant -- larval growth -- butterfly -- laboratory rearing; Beneficial insects -- Periodicals; Beneficial insects -- United States -- Periodicals; Insect pests -- Control -- Periodicals; Entomology -- Periodicals; 632.7
• DOI: 10.1093/ee/nvab082
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0046-225X

Abstract

Abstract: In insect–plant biology, oviposition choices and larval development on different host plants are crucial factors to be investigated. To design conservation strategies for protected Lepidoptera, which are overall oligophagous but locally monophagous, it is important to understand which host plant species is locally preferred. We thus investigated oviposition choices and larval development of the protected butterfly Zerynthia polyxena in controlled laboratory conditions, using three possible host plant species which are present in the Piedmont region: Aristolochia pallida, A. clematitis, and A. rotunda . We found that laboratory conditions are not favorable for Z. polyxena oviposition, even if the fertility of the females was in normal range for Papilionidae. However, we were able to understand the local monophagy of the species on A. pallida in the Susa Valley through larval survival and development stages. Egg hatching was similar among the three host plant species; however, even if larvae eat and grow similarly on the different host plant species until the third larval stage, the only larvae that reached the pupal stage were those fed with A. pallida . In conclusion, whereas Z. polyxena is oligophagous in the rest of Europe for the genus Aristolochia, the species is locally monophagous on A. pallida in the Susa Valley.