Stewart, JE;
Maclean, IMD;
Edney, AJ;
Bridle, J;
Wilson, RJ;
(2021)
Microclimate and resource quality determine resource use in a range-expanding herbivore.
Biology Letters
, 17
(8)
, Article 20210175. 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0175.
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Abstract
The consequences of climate change for biogeographic range dynamics depend on the spatial scales at which climate influences focal species directly and indirectly via biotic interactions. An overlooked question concerns the extent to which microclimates modify specialist biotic interactions, with emergent properties for communities and range dynamics. Here, we use an in-field experiment to assess egg-laying behaviour of a range-expanding herbivore across a range of natural microclimatic conditions. We show that variation in microclimate, resource condition and individual fecundity can generate differences in egg-laying rates of almost two orders of magnitude in an exemplar species, the brown argus butterfly (Aricia agestis). This within-site variation in fecundity dwarfs variation resulting from differences in average ambient temperatures among populations. Although higher temperatures did not reduce female selection for host plants in good condition, the thermal sensitivities of egg-laying behaviours have the potential to accelerate climate-driven range expansion by increasing egg-laying encounters with novel hosts in increasingly suitable microclimates. Understanding the sensitivity of specialist biotic interactions to microclimatic variation is, therefore, critical to predict the outcomes of climate change across species’ geographical ranges, and the resilience of ecological communities.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Microclimate and resource quality determine resource use in a range-expanding herbivore |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0175 |
| Publisher version: | http://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2021.0175 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Biology, Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine - Other Topics, Environmental Sciences & Ecology, Aricia agestis, ectotherm, host shift, Lepidoptera, local adaptation, thermal biology, CLIMATE-CHANGE, EVOLUTIONARY RESPONSES, INSECT HERBIVORE, ARICIA-AGESTIS, EXPANSION, MISMATCHES, ECOLOGY, DRIVEN, SHIFTS |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Genetics, Evolution and Environment |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10134335 |
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