Starvation During the Larval Stage Driving Population Decline in the Butterfly Specialist <i>Luehdorfia chinensis</i> Leech, 1893 (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae).

ABSTRACT: Host plant limitation poses a major threat to the endangered specialist butterfly Luehdorfia chinensis Leech, 1893, whose larvae are oligophagous at the species level on Asarum spp., while local populations often appear monophagous, depending on the host plants (A. sieboldii Miq. or A. forbesii Maxim.) available in their habitat. To simulate natural starvation caused by host plant scarcity, third- to fifth-instar larvae were subjected to a three-day deprivation treatment, and the effects on individual fitness traits-including larval development, pupal duration, and adult fecundity-were assessed, along with population dynamics. Starvation significantly prolonged larval development, shortened the pupal stage, reduced female fecundity, and markedly decreased key po

SUBMITTER: Yang W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12564415 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature