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Larger insects in a colder environment? Elevational and seasonal intraspecific differences in tropical moth sizes on Mount Cameroon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 December 2022

Fotoula Papandreou ,
Jiří Hodeček ,
Vincent Maicher ,
Sylvain Delabye ,
Tomasz Pyrcz  and
Robert Tropek
Fotoula Papandreou
Affiliation:
Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, CZ-12843 Prague, Czechia Department of Forestry and Natural Environment, Faculty of Geosciences, International Hellenic University, GR-66100 Drama, Greece
Jiří Hodeček
Affiliation:
Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, CZ-12843 Prague, Czechia University Center of Legal Medicine Lausanne – Geneva, Swiss Human Institute of Forensic Taphonomy, Chemin de La Vulliette 4, CH-1000, Lausanne 25, Switzerland
Vincent Maicher
Affiliation:
Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, CZ-12843 Prague, Czechia Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branisovska 31, CZ-37005 Ceske Budejovice, Czechia Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, 9 Circuit Dr., Durham, NC 27710, USA
Sylvain Delabye
Affiliation:
Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, CZ-12843 Prague, Czechia Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branisovska 31, CZ-37005 Ceske Budejovice, Czechia Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branisovska 1760, CZ-37005 Ceske Budejovice, Czechia
Tomasz Pyrcz
Affiliation:
Department of Evolution of Invertebrates, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9, PL-30-387 Krakow, Poland
Robert Tropek*
Affiliation:
Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, CZ-12843 Prague, Czechia Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branisovska 31, CZ-37005 Ceske Budejovice, Czechia
*
Author for correspondence: Robert Tropek, Email: robert.tropek@gmail.com
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Abstract

Bergmann’s Rule describes an increase in the body size of endothermic animals with decreasing environmental temperatures. However, in ectothermic insects including moths, some of the few existing studies investigating size patterns along temperature gradients do not follow the Bergmann’s Cline. Intraspecific differences in moth sizes along spatiotemporal temperature gradients are unknown from the Palaeotropics, hindering general conclusions and understanding of the mechanism responsible. We measured intraspecific forewing size differences in 28 Afrotropical moth species sampled in 3 seasons along an elevational gradient on Mount Cameroon, West/Central Africa. Size increased significantly with elevation in 14 species but decreased significantly in 5 species. Additionally, we found significant inter-seasonal size differences in 21 species. Most of these variable species had longer forewings in the transition from the wet to dry season, which had caterpillars developing during the coldest part of the year. We conclude that environmental temperature affects the size of many Afrotropical moths, predominantly following prevailingly following Bergmann’s Cline. Nevertheless, the sizes of one-third of the species demonstrated a significant interaction between elevation and season. The responsible mechanisms can thus be assumed to be more complex than a simple response to ambient temperature.

Keywords

AfrotropicsaltitudeBergmann’s Rulebody sizeelevational gradientsinsectsLepidopteramothsseasonalitytemperature
Type
Short Communication
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 39 , 2023 , e4
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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