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Related Experiment Videos

Developmental mechanisms of threshold evolution in a polyphenic beetle.

Armin P Moczek1, H Frederik Nijhout

  • 1Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA. arminmo@email.arizona.edu

Evolution & Development
|August 10, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Polyphenic development in dung beetles evolves through changes in juvenile hormone (JH) sensitivity and timing. This leads to novel horn lengths and body size relationships in natural populations.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary developmental biology
  • Animal behavior and evolution
  • Insect morphology

Background:

  • Polyphenic development is crucial for generating novel traits.
  • Understanding the evolution of polyphenisms in natural populations is limited.
  • Dung beetle (Onthophagus taurus) males exhibit polyphenism based on larval nutrition, developing horns under favorable conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate the developmental mechanisms driving polyphenism evolution in Onthophagus taurus.
  • Examine how rapid divergence in body size thresholds affects horn development.
  • Determine the role of juvenile hormone (JH) in mediating these evolutionary changes.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of divergent Onthophagus taurus populations.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Larval rearing experiments under controlled feeding conditions.
  • Assessing body mass accumulation, developmental timing, and sensitivity to juvenile hormone (JH) analogue methoprene.

    • Main Results:

    • Populations with evolved larger body size thresholds require more mass and time to develop horns.
    • These populations show reduced sensitivity and delayed sensitive periods to juvenile hormone (JH).
    • Evolutionary changes in JH sensitivity and timing mediate threshold evolution and affect larval development.

    Conclusions:

    • Polyphenism evolution in dung beetles is mediated by alterations in juvenile hormone (JH) sensitivity and its timing.
    • Rapid divergence in body size thresholds can lead to novel horn length-body size scaling.
    • This study provides the first evidence for the role of JH sensitive period timing in the evolution of novel thresholds.