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Natural variation in the growth and development of Protopiophila litigata (Diptera: Piophilidae) developing in three moose (Artiodactyla: Cervidae) antlers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 June 2019

Christopher S. Angell*
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, 30 Marie-Curie Private, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 6N5, Canada
Olivia Cook
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, 30 Marie-Curie Private, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 6N5, Canada
*
1Corresponding author (e-mail: [email protected])

Abstract

In animals, the early-life environment influences growth and development, which can have lasting effects on life history and fitness into adulthood. We investigated the patterns of growth, pupal development time, and their covariation in Protopiophila litigata Bonduriansky (Diptera: Piophilidae) larvae of both sexes collected from three discarded moose (Alces alces (Linnaeus) (Artiodactyla: Cervidae)) antlers of varying size, chewing damage (used to infer relative age), and P. litigata density. Males tended to be smaller and their pupation lasted longer than females. One of the antlers was highly attractive to adult P. litigata, whereas the other two attracted few or none. Individuals from one antler of low attractiveness were smaller and took longer to eclose than individuals from either other antler, perhaps due to its high larval density. The relationship between body size and pupal development time also differed among antlers, being positively correlated in the most attractive antler and negatively correlated in the two other antlers.

Type
Biodiversity and Evolution–NOTE
Copyright
© Entomological Society of Canada 2019 

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Footnotes

Subject editor: Leah Flaherty

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