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Do Butterfly Activity Data from Mark-Recapture Surveys Reflect Temporal Patterns?

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Abstract

Temporal patterns in butterfly behavior should reflect diurnal, seasonal and population-level changes in mate availability. Investment into mating should peak at times when potential mates are at a maximum; at other times, individuals should save energy and focus on maintenance activities. To explore these assumptions, we re-analyzed mark-recapture data containing records of behavior for each handled individual: 15 species, 21 separate datasets, total of 20,828 activity records (13,223 males and 7605 females). We used ordination analysis, with activity categories as response variables and controls for dataset identity and weather effects. Across species, basking and nectaring were prevailing morning activities, while mating peaked at afternoons. With the progressing season, males switched from maintenance behavior to mating activities, whereas opposite trend applied to females. Density predictors (sex ratio, daily population size) revealed that mating concentrated to high densities of the opposite sex and that female oviposition, resting and nectaring increased under low density of males. Exploring mark-recapture data for studying behavioral patterns proved to be fruitful but cannot replace focused observations or experiments.

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Acknowledgements

Many friends and colleagues helped with the mark-recapture studies reanalyzed here. Limited space and fading memory prevent naming them all. Weather data was provided by the Czech Hydro-Meteorological Institute (Brno, České Budějovice, Hradec Králové, Plzeň and Ústí nad Labem offices). Funding originated from numerous sources over the course of years; finalizing the paper was supported by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic (GA14-33733S).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Biology Centre, Institute of Entomology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, CZ-370 05, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    Petr Vlašánek, Zdeněk Faltýnek Fric, Irena Klečková, Pavel Vrba & Martin Konvička

  2. Regional Government of South Bohemia, Department of the Environment, Agriculture and Forestry, U Zimního stadionu 1952/2, 370 76, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    Kamil Zimmermann & Martin Konvička

  3. Monas Technology, Plav 122, 370 07, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    David Novotný

  4. Hutur NGO, J. Purkyne 1616, 500 02, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic

    Oldřich Čížek

  5. Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21, Praha 6 – Suchdol, Czech Republic

    Oldřich Čížek & Tomáš Kadlec

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  1. Petr Vlašánek
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  2. Zdeněk Faltýnek Fric
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Correspondence to Petr Vlašánek.

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Vlašánek, P., Fric, Z.F., Zimmermann, K. et al. Do Butterfly Activity Data from Mark-Recapture Surveys Reflect Temporal Patterns?. J Insect Behav 31, 385–401 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-018-9686-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-018-9686-9

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