Abstract
Mobility, activity patterns, habitat use, and some morphological traits of two often cooccurring satyrine butterflies of grasslands—the meadow brown (Maniola jurtina) and the hedge brown (Pyronia tithonus)—were studied by a mark-release-recapture method at two sites. Additionally, someflight-related morphological traits of a series of collected females of P. tithonus were compared between recently colonized and permanent populations. The more active, but less mobile P. tithonus got faster wing damage than did M. jurtina and had more, and more symmetrically spread eyespots onthe wings. For both species, the microdistribution was affected by shelter, long vegetation, and nectar, but this was more pronounced in P. tithonus. It is hypothesized that P. tithonus may traverse the same landscape at a slower rate than M. jurtina.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Baguette, M., Petit, S., and Queva, F. (2000). Population spatial structure and migration of three butterfly species within the same habitat network: Consequences for conservation. J. Appl. Ecol. 37: 100–108.
Bink, F. A. (1992). Ecologische atlas van de dagvlinders van Noordwest-Europa, Schuyt & Co Uitgevers en Importeurs bv, Haarlem.
Blest, A. D. (1957). The function of eyespot patterns in the Lepidoptera. Behavior 11: 209–255.
Brakefield, P. M. (1979). Spot-number in Maniola jurtina—variation between generations and selection in marginal populations. Heredity 42: 259–266.
Brakefield, P. M. (1982). Ecological studies on the butterfly Maniola jurtina in Britain. I. adult behavior, microdistribution and dispersal. J. Anim. Ecol. 51: 713–726.
Brakefield, P. M. (1984). The ecological genetics of quantitative characters of Maniola jurtina and other butterflies. In Vane-Wright, R. I., and Ackery, P. R. (eds.), The Biology of Butterflies, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, pp. 167–190. 560 Merckx and Van Dyck
Brakefield, P. M. (1987). Geographical variability in, and temperature effects on, the phenology of Maniola jurtina and Pyronia tithonus (Lepidoptera: Satyrinae) in England and Wales. Ecol. Entomol. 12: 139–148.
Brakefield, P. M., Shreeve, T.G., and Thomas, J.A. (1992).Avoidance, concealment and defence. In Dennis, R. L. H. (ed.), The Ecology of Butterflies in Britain, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 93–119.
Brooke, M., De Lees, D. R., and Lawman, J. M. (1985). Spot distribution in the meadow brown butterfly, Maniola jurtina L. (Lepidoptera: Satyridae): South Welsh populations. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 24: 337–348.
Conradt, L., Bodsworth, E. J., Roper, T. J., and Thomas, C. D. (2000). Non-random dispersal in the butterfly Maniola jurtina: Implications for metapopulation models. Proc. R. Soc. London (Biol.) 267: 1505–1510.
Dover, J.W. (1989).Amethod for recording and transcribing observations of butterfly behavior. Entomol. Gaz. 40: 95–100.
Dover, J. W. (1996). Factors affecting the distribution of satyridae in arable farmland. J. Appl. Ecol. 33: 723–734.
Dover, J. W. (1997). Conservation headlands: Effects on butterfly distribution and behavior. Agricult Ecosys Environ 63: 31–49.
Dover, J. W., Clarke, S. A., and Rew, L. (1992). Habitats and movement patterns of satyrid butterflies (Lepidoptera: Satyridae) on arable farmland. Entomol. Gaz. 43: 29–44.
Dover, J. W., Sparks, T. H., and Greatorex-Davies, J. N. (1997). The importance of shelter for butterflies in open landscapes. J. Insect Conserv. 1: 89–97.
Hill, J. K., Thomas, C.D., and Blakeley, D. S. (1999). Evolution of flight morphology in a butter-fly that has recently expanded its geographic range. Oecologia 121: 165–170.
Maes, D., and Van Dyck, H. (1999).Butterflies in Flanders (N-Belgium): Ecology, Distribution and Conservation, Stichting Leefmilieu vzw/KBC, Instituut voor Natuurbehoud & Vlaamse Vlinderwerkgroep vzw, Antwerp/Brussels (in Dutch).
Maes, D., and Van Dyck, H. (2001). Butterfly diversity loss in Flanders (N-Belgium): Europe's worst case scenario? Biol. Conserv. 99: 263–276.
McWhirter, K. G., and Creed, E. R. (1971). An analysis of spot placing in the meadow brown butterfly Maniola jurtina. In Creed, E. R. (ed.), Ecological Genetics and Evolution: Essays in Honour of E. B. Ford, Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, pp. 275–289.
Owen, D. F., and Smith, D. A. S. (1990). Interpopulation variation and selective predation in the meadow brown butterfly, Maniola jurtina (L.) (Lepidoptera: Satyridae) in the Canary Islands. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 39: 251–267.
Owen, D. F., and Smith, D. A. S. (1993). Spot variation in Maniola jurtina (L.) (Lepidoptera: Satyridae) in southern Portugal and a comparison with the Canary Islands. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 49: 355–365.
Pollard, E. (1981). Aspects of the ecology of the meadow brown butterfly Maniola jurtina (L.). Entomol. Gaz. 32: 67–74.
Pollard, E., and Yates, T. J. (1993). Monitoring Butterflies for Ecology and Conservation, Chapman & Hall, London.
Porter, K., Steel, C. A., and Thomas, J. A. (1992). Butterflies and communities. In Dennis, R. L. H. (ed.), The Ecology of Butterflies in Britain, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 139–177.
SAS (1996). Version 6.11. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, North Carolina.
Shreeve, T. G. (1990). The movements of butterflies. In Kudrna, O. (ed.), Butterflies of Europe, Introduction to Lepidopterology, Volume 2, Aula-Verlag, Wiesbaden, pp. 512–532.
Shreeve, T. G. (1992). Adult Behavior. In Dennis, R. L. H. (ed.), The Ecology of Butterflies in Britain, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 22–45.
Shreeve, T. G., Dennis, R. L. H., and Williams, W. R. (1996). Uniformity of wing spotting of Maniola jurtina (L.) in relation to environmental heterogeneity (Lepidoptera: Satyrinae). Nota lepid. 18: 77–92.
Thomas, C. D., Thomas, J. A., and Warren, M. S. (1992). Distributions of occupied and vacant butterfly habitats in fragmented landscapes. Oecologia 92: 563–567. Mobility and Habitat Use in Cooccurring Satyrines 561
Verbeke, G., and Molenberghs, G. (1997). Linear Mixed Models in Practice: A SAS-Oriented Approach, Springer-Verlag, New York.
Warren, M. S. (1992). Butterfly populations. In Dennis, R. L.H. (ed.), The Ecology of Butterflies in Britain, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 73–92.
Wynhoff, I. (1992). Micro-distribution and flower preference of the Meadow brown (Maniola jurtina) and the Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus). In Pavlicek-van Beek, T., Ovaa, A. H., and Van der Made, J. G. (eds.), Future of Butterflies in Europe: Strategies for Survival, Agricultural University Wageningen, Wageningen, pp. 177–185.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Merckx, T., Van Dyck, H. Interrelations Among Habitat Use, Behavior, and Flight-Related Morphology in Two Cooccurring Satyrine Butterflies, Maniola jurtina and Pyronia tithonus . Journal of Insect Behavior 15, 541–561 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1016385301634
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1016385301634