Exposure to Non-Native Tropical Milkweed Promotes Reproductive Development in Migratory Monarch Butterflies.

ABSTRACT:

Background

North American monarchs (Danaus plexippus) are well-known for their long-distance migrations; however, some monarchs within the migratory range have adopted a resident lifestyle and breed year-round at sites where tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) is planted in the southern coastal United States. An important question is whether exposure to exotic milkweed alters monarch migratory physiology, particularly the ability to enter and remain in the hormonally-induced state of reproductive diapause, whereby adults delay reproductive maturity. Cued by cooler temperatures and shorter photoperiods, diapause is a component of the monarch's migratory syndrome that includes directional flight behavior, lipid accumulation, and the exceptional longevity of the mi

SUBMITTER: Majewska AA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6724006 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature