Survival and Development of Zebra Longwing, Heliconius charithonia, on Native and Non-Native Passion Vines, Passiflora sp., in South Florida
Abstract
Zebra longwing butterflies (Heliconius charithonia) are distributed throughout the southernmost regions of the United States to South America and are abundant across Florida. These heliconian butterflies not only consume nectar, but are also known to feed on pollen, resulting in a longer lifespan than most butterflies. In their larval stage, H. charithonia feed exclusively on Passiflora sp., however larval performance and survival across the diversity of Passion vine species is not well documented. We examined these criteria of zebra longwings from egg to adulthood on two passion vines native to Florida, corky stem (Passiflora suberosa) and maypop (Passiflora incarnata), as well as one non-native species, bluecrown (Passiflora caerulea). Zebra longwing females were caught in the wild and kept in enclosures to lay their eggs. The eggs from one female were distributed evenly into enclosures, each containing one Passiflora sp. Percent survival from egg to larvae, larvae to chrysalis, chrysalis to adult, and egg to adult was determined, as well as forewing length of adults for each Passiflora sp. Preliminary results indicated a potential incompatibility between H. charithonia larvae and Passiflora caerulea, while the greatest survival occurred with larvae reared on Passiflora suberosa.
Faculty Sponsors
Dr. Paul Arena
Project Type
Event
Location
Alvin Sherman Library
Start Date
4-6-2021 12:00 PM
End Date
4-9-2021 12:00 PM
Survival and Development of Zebra Longwing, Heliconius charithonia, on Native and Non-Native Passion Vines, Passiflora sp., in South Florida
Alvin Sherman Library
Zebra longwing butterflies (Heliconius charithonia) are distributed throughout the southernmost regions of the United States to South America and are abundant across Florida. These heliconian butterflies not only consume nectar, but are also known to feed on pollen, resulting in a longer lifespan than most butterflies. In their larval stage, H. charithonia feed exclusively on Passiflora sp., however larval performance and survival across the diversity of Passion vine species is not well documented. We examined these criteria of zebra longwings from egg to adulthood on two passion vines native to Florida, corky stem (Passiflora suberosa) and maypop (Passiflora incarnata), as well as one non-native species, bluecrown (Passiflora caerulea). Zebra longwing females were caught in the wild and kept in enclosures to lay their eggs. The eggs from one female were distributed evenly into enclosures, each containing one Passiflora sp. Percent survival from egg to larvae, larvae to chrysalis, chrysalis to adult, and egg to adult was determined, as well as forewing length of adults for each Passiflora sp. Preliminary results indicated a potential incompatibility between H. charithonia larvae and Passiflora caerulea, while the greatest survival occurred with larvae reared on Passiflora suberosa.
