| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5766917 | Journal of Invertebrate Pathology | 2017 | 8 Pages |
â¢Direct cost of growth when resisting viral infection (i.e. reduced pupal mass).â¢Larvae had higher performance on drought stressed plants (i.e. heavier pupae).â¢Costs of drought and viral exposure were larval mass-dependent.â¢Large larvae buffer some costs of growth in response to drought and infection.
This study investigated the interactive effects of growth on drought stressed host plants and pathogen challenge with the baculovirus Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) on survival and fitness-related traits using the Speckled Wood butterfly, Pararge aegeria (L.). Exposure to AcMNPV significantly reduced survival to pupation. For surviving larvae, sub-lethal infection significantly decreased daily mass acquisition rates and pupal mass. Growth on drought stressed plants increased daily mass acquisition rates resulting in heavier pupae, and increased resource allocation to adult reproduction. The interaction between host plant drought and viral exposure resulted in different resource allocation strategies, and thus different growth trajectories, between larvae. This in turn resulted in significantly different allometric relationships between larval mass (at inoculation) and both development time and investment in flight muscles. For larvae with relatively lighter masses there was a cost of resisting infection when growth occurred on drought stressed host plants, both within the larval stage (i.e. longer larval development times) and in the adult stage (i.e. lower investment in flight muscle mass). This multi-factor study highlights several potential mechanisms by which the complex interplay between low host plant nutritional quality due to drought, and pathogen exposure, may differentially influence the performance of P. aegeria individuals across multiple life stages.
Graphical abstractDownload high-res image (137KB)Download full-size image
