Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
190,335 studies31 sourcesUpdated 58 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Ecology and Evolution

Experience Improves Spatial Foraging Performance in a Complex Environment in Heliconius Butterflies

  • P. A. Moura1,2
  • M. Z. Cardoso1,3
  • S. H. Montgomery4,5
5 affiliations
  1. 1Departamento de Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte Natal RN Brazil
  2. 2Department of Integrative Biology University of Texas at Austin Austin Texas USA
  3. 3Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Biologia Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil
  4. 4School of Biological Sciences University of Bristol Bristol UK
  5. 5Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
Read full textPDFDOICite

Abstract

Heliconius butterflies rely on spatial memory to maintain trapline foraging routes, repeatedly visiting pollen resources along memorized paths. Increased foraging performance resulting from learning the spatial distribution of resources is thought to have driven the evolution of this specialized behavior. Here, we experimentally test whether prior experience in a spatially complex environment influences relative foraging performance in the pollen‐feeding butterfly Heliconius erato , a species with well‐documented behavioral, ecological and neuroanatomical specializations for spatial learning. We reared freshly eclosed adults in either an open cage or a cage that was matched for resource distribution but structurally divided to increase the spatial complexity experienced by the butterflies. We then tested them individually in a controlled foraging assay under familiar and unfamiliar environments. Butterflies reared in the spatially complex environment efficiently reached the feeder regardless of familiarity with the environment, whereas butterflies reared in the open environment showed strong context dependence, performing well only in the open cage. These results indicate that prior experience of a spatially complex environment supports greater foraging efficiency in Heliconius butterflies, highlighting environmental structure as a likely determinant of the ecological value of spatial learning in this group, with potential consequences for foraging behavior in natural environments.

Versions

Related

  1. Evolution of compound eye cell types shapes visual behaviors across Heliconius butterflies
    W. Lu, N. W. VanKuren, C. Catalano +3
    bioRxivPreprintCC BY-NCFull textEvolutionary biologybioRxiv
  2. Dietary nanoencapsulated A-Ghrelin improves growth performance and health status in juvenile Siberian sturgeon
    Mina Ahmadpour, Behrooz Heidari, AbdolMajid Valipour +3
    Scientific ReportsPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Full textEcologyCrossref
  3. Strategic seasonal nutritional supplementation improves honey quality, colony performance, immune response, and pest resilience in Apis mellifera in Bangladesh
    Anika Yesmin Sorna, Roni Chandra Saha, Mohammad Saiful Alam +2
    Scientific ReportsPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Full textZoology & animal behaviourCrossref
  4. Surfactant Compatibility Screening Improves Formulation Performance of Metarhizium anisopliae for Control of the Tomato Leafminer Phthorimaea absoluta
    Song Mei, Amr Abou El-Ela, Yuanqiu Dong +5
    InsectsPeer-reviewedCC BYFull textGeneral biologyEurope PMC
  5. Are children really more creative than adults? A mixed-methods examination of creative performance and experience
    Janika Saretzki, Ines Fratzl, Baptiste Barbot +1
    PLOS OnePeer-reviewedCC BYFull textNeurosciencePLOSEurope PMC

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{moura2026experience,
  title = {{Experience Improves Spatial Foraging Performance in a Complex Environment in Heliconius Butterflies}},
  author = {P. A. Moura and M. Z. Cardoso and S. H. Montgomery},
  journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1002/ece3.74541},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74541},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Experience Improves Spatial Foraging Performance in a Complex Environment in Heliconius Butterflies
AU  - P. A. Moura
AU  - M. Z. Cardoso
AU  - S. H. Montgomery
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/27
JO  - Ecology and Evolution
DO  - 10.1002/ece3.74541
UR  - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74541
AB  - Heliconius butterflies rely on spatial memory to maintain trapline foraging routes, repeatedly visiting pollen resources along memorized paths. Increased foraging performance resulting from learning the spatial distribution of resources is thought to have driven the evolution of this specialized behavior. Here, we experimentally test whether prior experience in a spatially complex environment influences relative foraging performance in the pollen‐feeding butterfly Heliconius erato , a species with well‐documented behavioral, ecological and neuroanatomical specializations for spatial learning. We reared freshly eclosed adults in either an open cage or a cage that was matched for resource distribution but structurally divided to increase the spatial complexity experienced by the butterflies. We then tested them individually in a controlled foraging assay under familiar and unfamiliar environments. Butterflies reared in the spatially complex environment efficiently reached the feeder regardless of familiarity with the environment, whereas butterflies reared in the open environment showed strong context dependence, performing well only in the open cage. These results indicate that prior experience of a spatially complex environment supports greater foraging efficiency in Heliconius butterflies, highlighting environmental structure as a likely determinant of the ecological value of spatial learning in this group, with potential consequences for foraging behavior in natural environments.
SN  - 2045-7758
SN  - 2045-7758
ER  -