Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
J Insect Sci. 2011;11:25. doi: 10.1673/031.011.0125.
Heliconius butterflies are known to maximize fitness by feeding on pollen from Gurania sp. and Psiguria sp. (Cucurbitales: Curcurbitaceae), and Psychotria sp. (Gentianales: Rubiaceae). This specialization involves specific physical, physiological, and behavioral adaptations including efficient search strategies in the forest to locate pollen host plants, pollen removal, and pollen external digestion. Reducing pollen host plant search time is crucial to out-compete other flower visitors and to reduce exposure to predators. One way in which this can be achieved is by using chemical cues to learn from experienced foragers in roosting aggregations. Similar strategies have been documented in bumblebees, where inexperienced individuals learn floral odors from experienced foragers. Behavioral experiments using plants preferred by Heliconius erato suggest that pollen preference in H. erato is an innate trait and consequently learning of chemical cues at roosting aggregations is unlikely.
已知姬蛱蝶通过取食 Gurania sp. 和 Psiguria sp.（葫芦目：葫芦科）和 Psychotria sp.（玄参目：茜草科）的花粉来最大限度地提高适应性。这种特化涉及特定的物理、生理和行为适应，包括在森林中寻找花粉源植物、花粉采集和花粉体外消化的高效搜索策略。减少花粉源植物的搜索时间对于在与其他访花者的竞争中胜出和减少暴露于捕食者的风险至关重要。实现这一目标的一种方法是利用化学线索从栖息地聚集的有经验的觅食者那里学习。类似的策略在熊蜂中已有记载，其中无经验的个体从有经验的觅食者那里学习花的气味。使用 Heliconius erato 偏爱的植物进行的行为实验表明，H. erato 对花粉的偏好是一种先天特征，因此，在栖息地聚集处学习化学线索的可能性不大。
