To lay or not to lay: oviposition of Maculinea arion in relation to Myrmica ant presence and host plant phenology

摘要: The choices made by ovipositing female butterflies play a key role in the survival of their offspring and consequently persistence butterfly populations. These are even more crucial case obligate myrmecophilous organisms such as Maculinea with larvae that, after phytophagous period, need to be adopted Myrmica ants complete life cycle. Because worker ants’ foraging range is limited, selecting an ’ideal’ oviposition site requires that both phenological stage larval food plant (short-term fitness) presence suitable host (long-term taken into account. Whether female’s selection valuable influenced closeness nest unclear. We studied behaviour arion population exploiting Origanum vulgare plant. By following females, we collected data on visited plants were either ’chosen’ for or ’avoided’ (flowers evaluated, but received no eggs), assessed vicinity each Results suggest selected M. arion females basis bud phenology not other environmental features. thus hypothesize evolution adaptive mechanism affords this strictly ability ensure long-term brood growing near nest.