Treidel Lisa A, Huebner Christopher, Roberts Kevin T, Williams Caroline M
University of California, Berkeley, Department of Integrative Biology, Berkeley CA 94720.
Curr Res Insect Sci. 2022 May 25;2:100038. doi: 10.1016/j.cris.2022.100038. eCollection 2022.
Insects behaviorally thermoregulate across the diel cycle, and their preferred microhabitats change based on current resources available and the thermal performance optima of traits. Specific combinations of traits being prioritized are set by life history strategies, making life history an important intrinsic determinant of thermal preferences. However, we do not know how life history strategies shape plasticity of behavioral thermoregulation, limiting our ability to predict responses to environmental variability. We compared female variable field crickets () that are flight-capable (long-winged) and flightless (short-winged) to test the hypothesis that life history strategy determines plasticity of thermal preferences across the diel cycle and following starvation. Thermal preferences were elevated during the nocturnal activity period, and long-winged crickets preferred warmer temperatures compared to short-winged crickets across the diel cycle when fully fed. However, thermal preferences of starved crickets were reduced compared to fed crickets. The reduction in thermal preferences was greater in long-winged crickets, resulting in similar thermal preferences between starved long- and short-winged individuals and reflecting a more plastic response. Thus, life history does determine plasticity in thermoregulatory behaviors following resource limitations and effects of life history on thermal preferences are context dependent.
昆虫在昼夜周期中进行行为性体温调节，其偏好的微生境会根据当前可利用的资源以及性状的热性能最优值而发生变化。被优先考虑的特定性状组合由生活史策略决定，这使得生活史成为热偏好的一个重要内在决定因素。然而，我们并不清楚生活史策略如何塑造行为性体温调节的可塑性，这限制了我们预测对环境变化的反应的能力。我们比较了具有飞行能力（长翅）和无飞行能力（短翅）的雌性可变场蟋蟀（ ），以检验以下假设：生活史策略决定了昼夜周期以及饥饿后热偏好的可塑性。在夜间活动期间，热偏好升高，并且在饱腹状态下，长翅蟋蟀在整个昼夜周期中比短翅蟋蟀更喜欢温暖的温度。然而，与饱腹的蟋蟀相比，饥饿蟋蟀的热偏好降低。长翅蟋蟀热偏好的降低幅度更大，导致饥饿的长翅和短翅个体之间具有相似的热偏好，这反映出一种更具可塑性的反应。因此，生活史确实决定了资源受限后体温调节行为的可塑性，并且生活史对热偏好的影响取决于具体情境。
