Colour change of twig-mimicking peppered moth larvae is a continuous reaction norm that increases camouflage against avian predators.

ABSTRACT: Camouflage, and in particular background-matching, is one of the most common anti-predator strategies observed in nature. Animals can improve their match to the colour/pattern of their surroundings through background selection, and/or by plastic colour change. Colour change can occur rapidly (a few seconds), or it may be slow, taking hours to days. Many studies have explored the cues and mechanisms behind rapid colour change, but there is a considerable lack of information about slow colour change in the context of predation: the cues that initiate it, and the range of phenotypes that are produced. Here we show that peppered moth (Biston betularia) larvae respond to colour and luminance of the twigs they rest on, and exhibit a continuous reaction norm of phenotypes. When presented w

SUBMITTER: Eacock A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5691783 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature