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Tracing sources of carbon and hydrogen to stored lipids in the migratory moth, Mythimna unipuncta using stable isotopes ( δ 2 H , δ 13 C )
Author(s) -
Anparasan Libesha,
McNeil Jeremy N.,
Hobson Keith A.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
physiological entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1365-3032
pISSN - 0307-6962
DOI - 10.1111/phen.12343
Subject(s) - biology , lepidoptera genitalia , isotope , nectar , mythimna separata , botany , larva , stable isotope ratio , insect , zoology , physics , pollen , quantum mechanics
Stable isotope measurements of insect tissues can be used to determine origin and migratory patterns. The isotopic links between diet and stored lipids in laboratory reared true armyworm moths (Mythimna unipuncta , Haw.) were investigated using δ 13 C and δ 2 H measurements. Newly emerged moths were fed synthetic nectars, consisting of different carbohydrate and water sources that were isotopically distinct from those in the larval diet. After 4 days of feeding, insects were sacrificed, and fat‐body lipids were extracted for isotopic analysis. When held on a constant nectar source, adult diet contributed ∼87% of the C and 44% H of lipids. For H, 27% and ∼ 17% of lipid was derived from carbohydrates and water, respectively, with the remainder presumably from the larval stage. When the isotopic composition of the nectar source was switched there was rapid and exponential temporal change in lipid isotopic profiles. The relevance of our findings to tracing origins of stored lipids in migrant Lepidoptera is discussed.