Out in the open: behavior's effect on predation risk and thermoregulation by aposematic caterpillars.

ABSTRACT: Warning coloration should be under strong stabilizing selection but often displays considerable intraspecific variation. Opposing selection on color by predators and temperature is one potential explanation for this seeming paradox. Despite the importance of behavior for both predator avoidance and thermoregulation, its role in mediating selection by predators and temperature on warning coloration has received little attention. Wood tiger moth caterpillars, Arctia plantaginis, have aposematic coloration, an orange patch on the black body. The size of the orange patch varies considerably: individuals with larger patches are safer from predators, but having a small patch is beneficial in cool environments. We investigated microhabitat preference by these caterpillars and how it intera

SUBMITTER: Nielsen ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7390994 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul-Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature