Feeding responses by female Pieris brassicae butterflies to carbohydrates and amino acids

TY - JOUR

T1 - Feeding responses by female Pieris brassicae butterflies to carbohydrates and amino acids

AU - Romeis, J.

AU - Wäckers, F.L.

N1 - Reporting year: 2000 Metis note: 2735; CTE; MTI; file:///L:/Endnotedatabases/NIOOPUB/pdfs/Pdfs2000/Romeis_ea_2735.pdf

PY - 2000

Y1 - 2000

N2 - Most Lepidoptera feed during the adult stage on carbohydrate- rich food sources, primarily floral nectar. However, little is known about the factors leading to the acceptance of a possible food source. It is reported that butterflies select for nectar rich in sucrose and amino acids. This suggests that the insects have developed a sensitivity to these nectar compounds. We tested females of the large cabbage white, Pieris brassicae L. (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) for their responses to 10 different nectar- or honeydew-sugars after either tarsal or proboscis stimulation. In no-choice experiments, food-deprived P. brassicae showed the strongest response to sucrose, followed by fructose. Other sugars, including galactose, glucose, maltose, mannose, melezitose, melibiose, raffinose and trehalose, did not elicit a feeding response. Mixtures of essential or common non-essential amino acids did not stimulate feeding. In a choice situation, P. brassicae preferred sucrose over fructose, whereas they accepted a sucrose and amino acid solution equally to a plain sucrose solution. The results indicate that for P. brassicae, feeding is mainly elicited by sucrose and fructose. [KEYWORDS: amino acids; cabbage white; nectar; Pieris brassicae; sugars Heliothis-virescens; honey-bees; adult diet; nectar; lepidoptera; noctuidae; sugars; preferences; papilionidae; biology]

AB - Most Lepidoptera feed during the adult stage on carbohydrate- rich food sources, primarily floral nectar. However, little is known about the factors leading to the acceptance of a possible food source. It is reported that butterflies select for nectar rich in sucrose and amino acids. This suggests that the insects have developed a sensitivity to these nectar compounds. We tested females of the large cabbage white, Pieris brassicae L. (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) for their responses to 10 different nectar- or honeydew-sugars after either tarsal or proboscis stimulation. In no-choice experiments, food-deprived P. brassicae showed the strongest response to sucrose, followed by fructose. Other sugars, including galactose, glucose, maltose, mannose, melezitose, melibiose, raffinose and trehalose, did not elicit a feeding response. Mixtures of essential or common non-essential amino acids did not stimulate feeding. In a choice situation, P. brassicae preferred sucrose over fructose, whereas they accepted a sucrose and amino acid solution equally to a plain sucrose solution. The results indicate that for P. brassicae, feeding is mainly elicited by sucrose and fructose. [KEYWORDS: amino acids; cabbage white; nectar; Pieris brassicae; sugars Heliothis-virescens; honey-bees; adult diet; nectar; lepidoptera; noctuidae; sugars; preferences; papilionidae; biology]

U2 - 10.1046/j.1365-3032.2000.00188.x

DO - 10.1046/j.1365-3032.2000.00188.x

M3 - Article

SN - 0307-6962

VL - 25

SP - 247

EP - 253

JO - Physiological Entomology

JF - Physiological Entomology

IS - 3

ER -