Premium
Effects of elevated CO 2 on development and larval food‐plant preference in the butterfly Coenonympha pamphilus (Lepidoptera, Satyridae)
Author(s) -
Goverde Marcel,
Erhardt Andreas
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
global change biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.146
H-Index - 255
eISSN - 1365-2486
pISSN - 1354-1013
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2486.2003.00520.x
Subject(s) - festuca rubra , biology , lepidoptera genitalia , poa pratensis , botany , larva , agrostis stolonifera , pupa , horticulture , agronomy , poaceae
The objective of this study was to determine how increasing atmospheric CO 2 change plant tissue quality in four native grassland grass species ( Agrostis stolonifera, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Festuca rubra, Poa pratensis ) which are all larval food‐plants of Coenonympha pamphilus (Lepidoptera, Satyridae). We assessed the effect of these changes on the performance and larval food‐plant preference of C. pamphilus in a greenhouse experiment. Furthermore, we tested the interactive effects of elevated CO 2 and soil nutritional availability in F. rubra and its effect an larval development of C. pamphilus . In general, elevated CO 2 decreased leaf water concentration, nitrogen concentration and specific leaf area (SLA), while leaf starch concentration was increased in all grass species. A species‐specific reaction to elevated CO 2 was only found for foliar starch concentration. P. pratensis did not increase its starch concentration under elevated CO 2 conditions, whereas the other three species did. Fertilisation, investigated only for F. rubra , increased leaf nitrogen concentration and amplified the CO 2 ‐induced decrease in leaf nitrogen. Development time of C. pamphilus was on the average prolonged by two days under elevated CO 2 and the prolongation differed from 0.7 to 5.3 days among food‐plant species. Pupal fresh weight differed marginally between CO 2 treatments. Fertilisation of the larval food‐plant F. rubra shortened development time by one day and significantly increased pupal and adult fresh weights. C. pamphilus larvae showed a clear food‐plant preference among grass species at the age of 36 h or older. Additionally, a change of food‐plant preference under elevated CO 2 was found. Larvae at ambient CO 2 preferred Agrostis stolonifera and F. rubra, while under elevated CO 2 Anthoxanthum odoratum and P. pratensis were preferred. The present study demonstrates that larval development of C. pamphilus is affected by food‐plant species and CO 2 induced changes in foliar chemistry. Although we found some species‐specific reactions to elevated CO 2 for foliar chemistry, no such CO 2 by species interaction was found for insect development. The change in food‐plant preference of larvae under elevated CO 2 implies potential changes in selection pressure for grass species and might therefore affect evolutionary processes.