Intersexual Differences in Behaviour and Resource Use of Specialist Phengaris teleius Butterflies.

ABSTRACT: Although the behaviour of the Large Blue butterflies of the genus Phengaris (= Maculinea) is relatively well studied, most empirical data come from investigations of their dispersal and oviposition. Here, we assessed overall intersexual differences in resource use by tracking Phengaris teleius (Bergsträsser, 1779) individuals and recording the duration of their behaviours. Females were characterised by frequent, short flights, and devoted more time to resting and oviposition. Males engaged in numerous, but usually short interactions, and spent most of the time in flight exploring their surroundings for receptive females. Their average flight time was significantly longer compared to females. Average feeding time did not differ between the sexes but was shorter when butterflies were feeding

SUBMITTER: Popovic M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8951063 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature