The effect of wing wear on the flight metabolic rate of the mormon fritillary butterfly (<i>Speyeria mormonia</i>)

Abstract

Nearly every aspect of a butterfly’s life is dependent on flight. Flight metabolic rate (FMR), which is the amount of CO2 produced during flight, serves as an indicator of flight capacity and performance. High flight metabolic rate has been found to be correlated with greater dispersal distance, and longer lifespan. Additionally, FMR has been found to decrease with age in the Mormon Fritillary butterfly (Speyeria mormonia) as well as in Colias eurytheme (Niitepõld et al. in review). Wing damage was experimentally facilitated by removing a small portion of the distal edge of butterflies’ wings in order to elucidate the effect of wing damage on the flight metabolic rate of butterflies. The FMR of the control group was not significantly different than the FMR of the experimental treatment group. Thus, the decrease in FMR with age in S. mormonia is likely not due to a mechanical defect of the wing (i.e. wing damage) but more likely due to an innate physiological process involving senescence at some level.

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