Innate Preferences for Radial Gradient Pattern Cues in the Cotton Bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera
2018
Information is lacking regarding the visual cues
used by Helicoverpa armigera moths
during nectar feeding. Here, we investigated the preference for radial gradient
patterns in H. armigera moths. The
results indicated that both sexes shared a preference to plain flower models of
blue and cyan. The radial gradient pattern (cyan as nectar guide color and blue
as petal color) was more attractive than its component plain colors (cyan or
blue), especially in male moths. Number of corolla petals did not influence the
attractiveness of the cyan-blue pattern. The addition of a tertiary floral
attractant to white-blue or cyan-blue radial gradient patterns could
dramatically enhance the attractiveness of visual cues in males rather than
females, suggesting that males gave a higher weight in olfactory modality than
females gave, while females gave a higher weight in vision modality than males
gave. All together, we found an optimal combination of floral cues in H. armigera sexes as follows: A tertiary
floral attractant (2 μL dose of phenylacetaldehyde, benzyl acetate, and
salicylaldehyde mixed in 26:15:2) added to white-blue radial gradient flower
model (3 cm in diameter). To our knowledge, this is the first time that rose
curve and radial gradient tools were used to simulate floral pattern in the
studies of flower-visiting insects.
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