Allozyme genotypes of Drosophila buzzatii: feeding and oviposition preferences for microbial species, and habitat selection.

Mature, mated female D. buzzatii were given a choice of nine microbial communities actively growing on cactus homogenate in laboratory population cages, and tests were made to determine if flies of different genotypes (for seven allozyme loci) chose different microorganism species for either feeding or oviposition. Variation in feeding preferences was determined from assays of electrophoretic genotypes and the ingested microorganism species of individual flies. Oviposition preference variation was analyzed indirectly by assaying the genotypes of individuals raised from eggs laid on different microorganisms. No significant evidence was found for differences in feeding preferences among adults of different genotypes. For oviposition preferences, there were significant microorganism-genotype associations for each of seven polymorphic loci. Analyses of the total electrophoretic genotype, rather than of individual loci, showed that the genotypes of eggs laid on the same microorganism species were more similar than those laid on different species. That is, females of different genotypes show habitat selection for oviposition sites, which would facilitate the maintenance of genetic polymorphisms.