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Female Preference and Offspring Performance in the Seed Beetle Gibbobruchus bergamini Manfio & Ribeiro-Costa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae): A Multi-Scale Comparison

  • Ecology, Behavior and Bionomics
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Abstract

The search for and choice of oviposition sites are a key step in the life cycle of herbivorous insects. Theory predicts that natural selection should favor the discrimination ability of female insects to select between high- and low-quality oviposition sites. However, correlation between female preference and offspring performance is apparently lacking or even negative in some herbivore-plant systems. A possible explanation for this seeming failure is that most studies have focused on a single factor and spatial scale. Here, we investigated the preference-performance relationship in the seed beetle Gibbobruchus bergamini Manfio & Ribeiro-Costa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). We took into account several potential factors affecting oviposition choices and larval survivorship through a multi-level approach. Hierarchical analysis that controlled for the non-independence of observations demonstrated that oviposition site choices were not related to the factors that most influenced larval survivorship. The apparent effects of other pod-feeding herbivores were greater at the plant and branch scales while at the pod level the most important factors were plant-related variables. Oviposition choices seemed to be time-constrained, meaning that females have little opportunity to further increase offspring performance through additional compensatory choices.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank L.B. Faria, R.D. Daud, and B.B. Santos for helpful comments on an early version of this manuscript. L.L.B was supported by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES). M.A.N received research fellowships (306843/2012-9 and 306870/2012-6, respectively) from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq).

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  1. Depto de Ecologia, Univ Federal de Goiás, 74001-970, Goiânia, GO, Brasil

    L L Bergamini & M Almeida-Neto

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  1. L L Bergamini
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  2. M Almeida-Neto
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Correspondence to L L Bergamini.

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Edited by Angelo Pallini – UFV

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Bergamini, L.L., Almeida-Neto, M. Female Preference and Offspring Performance in the Seed Beetle Gibbobruchus bergamini Manfio & Ribeiro-Costa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae): A Multi-Scale Comparison. Neotrop Entomol 44, 328–337 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-015-0294-5

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