The Afrotropical breeding grounds of the Palearctic-African migratory painted lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui)

Migratory insects are key players in ecosystem functioning and services, but their spatiotemporal distributions are typically poorly known. Ecological niche modeling (ENM) may be used to predict species seasonal distributions, but the resulting hypotheses should eventually be validated by field data. The painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) performs multigenerational migrations between Europe and Africa and has become a model species for insect movement ecology. While the annual migration cycle of this species is well understood for Europe and northernmost Africa, it is still unknown where most individuals spend the winter. Through ENM, we previously predicted suitable breeding grounds in the subhumid regions near the tropics between November and February. In this work, we assess the suitability of these predictions through i) extensive field surveys and ii) two-year monitoring in six countries: a large-scale monitoring scheme to study butterfly migration in Africa. We document new breeding locations, year-round phenological information, and hostplant use. Field observations were nearly always predicted with high probability by the previous ENM, and monitoring demonstrated the influence of the precipitation seasonality regime on migratory phenology. Using the updated dataset, we built a refined ENM for the Palearctic-African range of V. cardui. We confirm the relevance of the Afrotropical region and document the missing natural history pieces of the longest migratory cycle described in butterflies.This work was funded by the National Geographic Society (grant WW1-300R-18); by the British Ecological Society (grant LRB16/1015); by the Research and Conservation Projects of the Fundació Barcelona Zoo; by the grant PID2020-117739GA-I00/MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the Spanish State Research Agency to G.T.; by the grant LINKA20399 from the Spanish National Research Council iLink program to G.T., C.P.B., N.E.P., and R.V.; by fellowship FPU19/01593 of the program Formación de Profesorado Universitario (FPU) to A.G.-B.; by the Turkana Basin Institute, National Geographic Society, and Whitley Fund for Nature to D.J.M.; and by grant 2018-00738 of the New Frontiers in Research Fund (Government of Canada) to G.T. and C.P.B.Significance Abstract Results Field Surveys, Larval Hostplants, and Field-Based Model Validation Monitoring Results and Population Dynamics across Regions A Refined Model for the Afrotropical Region Discussion The Afrotropical Breeding Grounds of V. cardui: Multiple Generations Shift South Toward the Tropics Diversity and Phenology of Larval Hostplants in the Afrotropics The Ecological Relevance of Delimiting Spatiotemporal Distributions in Migratory Insects Conclusion Methods December-January Field Surveys and Year-Round Monitoring Spatiotemporal Ecological Niche Modeling Data, Materials, and Software Availability Acknowledgments Supporting Information Reference

The genome sequence of the red admiral, Vanessa atalanta (Linnaeus, 1758)

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Vanessa atalanta (the red admiral; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Nymphalidae). The genome sequence is 370 megabases in span. The majority of the assembly (99.44%) is scaffolded into 32 chromosomal pseudomolecules, with the W and Z sex chromosome assembled. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl has identified 12,493 protein coding genes.Species taxonomy Background Genome sequence report Methods Sample acquisition and nucleic acid extraction Sequencing Genome assembly Gene annotation Ethical/compliance issues Data availability Author information Reference

Evolution of migratory behavior in butterflies: phylogenetic-wide heterozygosity patterns and signatures of selection in the highly- mobile Vanessa genus

Póster presentado en el Congreso Evolution in Sweden 2023, celebrado en Uppsala, suecia del 10 al 12 de enero de 202

Morphological traits sand goby

File containing all raw data and transformed morphological data from sand goby dissection

Nest colonisation data sand goby

File containing field experimental data of artificial substrate colonisation rates of male sand gobie

Data from: Understanding resource driven female-female competition: ovary and liver size in sand gobies

The operational sex ratio (OSR, ready-to-mate males to females) is a key factor determining mating competition. A shortage of a resource essential for reproduction of one sex can affect OSR and lead to competition within the opposite sex for resource-holding mates. In the sand goby (Pomatoschistus minutus), a fish with paternal care, male readiness to mate depends on acquiring a nest-site, whereas food abundance primarily impacts female egg production. Comparing body condition and gonadal investment of fish from two populations with different availability in resources (Baltic Sea: few nest-sites, more food; North Sea: many nest-sites, less food), we predicted females carrying more mature eggs in the Baltic Sea than in the North Sea. As predicted, ovaries were larger in Baltic Sea females, and so was liver (storage of energy reserves and vitellogenic compounds) for both sexes, but particularly for females. More females were judged (based on roundness scores) to be ready to spawn in the Baltic Sea. Together with a nest colonisation experiment confirming a previously documented difference between the two areas in nest-site availability, these results indicate a more female-biased OSR in the Baltic Sea population, compared to the North Sea, and generates a prediction that female-female competition for mating opportunities is stronger in the Baltic population. To our knowledge, this is the first time that female reproductive investment is discussed in relation to OSR using field data

Evolution of migratory behavior in butterflies: phylogenetic-wide heterozygosity patterns and signatures of selection in the highly- mobile Vanessa genus

Póster presentado en el Congreso Evolution in Sweden 2023, celebrado en Uppsala, suecia del 10 al 12 de enero de 202

Migratory behaviour is positively associated with genetic diversity in butterflies

Migration is typically associated with risk and uncertainty at the population level, but little is known about its cost¿benefit trade-offs at the species level. Migratory insects in particular often exhibit strong demographic fluctuations due to local bottlenecks and outbreaks. Here, we use genomic data to investigate levels of heterozygosity and long-term population size dynamics in migratory insects, as an alternative to classical local and short-term approaches such as regional field monitoring. We analyse whole-genome sequences from 97 Lepidoptera species and show that individuals of migratory species have significantly higher levels of genome-wide heterozygosity, a proxy for effective population size, than do nonmigratory species. Also, we contribute whole-genome data for one of the most emblematic insect migratory species, the painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui), sampled across its worldwide distributional range. This species exhibits one of the highest levels of genomic heterozygosity described in Lepidoptera (2.95 ± 0.15%). Coalescent modelling (PSMC) shows historical demographic stability in V. cardui, and high effective population size estimates of 2 -20 million individuals 10,000 years ago. The study reveals that the high risks associated with migration and local environmental fluctuations do not seem to decrease overall genetic diversity and demographic stability in migratory Lepidoptera. We propose a "compensatory" demographic model for migratory r-strategist organisms in which local bottlenecks are counterbalanced by reproductive success elsewhere within their typically large distributional ranges. Our findings highlight that the boundaries of populations are substantially different for sedentary and migratory insects, and that, in the latter, local and even regional field monitoring results may not reflect whole population dynamics. Genomic diversity patterns may elucidate key aspects of an insect's migratory nature and population dynamics at large spatiotemporal scales.This work was funded by the National Geographic Society (grant WW1-300R-18) and by the grant PID2020-117739GA-I00 from MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 to G.T., by fellowship FPU19/01593 to A.G.-B., by project LINKA20399 from the CSIC i-LINK-2021 programme to G.T., N.E.P., R.V. and N.B., by grants from the Putnam Expeditionary Fund of the Museum of Comparative Zoology to G.T. and N.E.P., by projects PID2019-107078GB-I00/MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and 2017-SGR-991 (Generalitat de Catalunya) to R.V. and G.T., by the University of Malaya (grant H50001-A-000027) to K.G.C., by the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Science (SCAS; Natural Sciences Programme, Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, Postdoc funding) to D.S., by NSF grant DEB-1541560 to N.E.P., and by the Swedish Research Council FORMAS (grant 2019-00670) to N.B., G.T. and R.V.1 INTRODUCTION 2 MATERIALS AND METHODS 2.1 Heterozygosity estimates 2.2 Behavioural scoring 2.3 Comparative analyses 2.4 Vanessa cardui sampling and sequencing 2.5 Vanessa cardui reference-based assemblies 2.6 Vanessa cardui demographic inference 3 RESULTS 3.1 Heterozygosity rates in Lepidoptera 3.2 Vanessa cardui demographic history 4 DISCUSSION 4.1 Genomic heterozygosity, effective population size and migration 4.2 Short-term migratory cost but long-term demographic stability 4.3 Delimiting populations in migratory insect species AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS CONFLICT OF INTERES

Erratic spatiotemporal vegetation growth anomalies drive population outbreaks in a trans-Saharan insect migrant

R.L.-M. was supported by the program Junta para la Ampliación de Estudios (JAE-intro) from the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Grant JAEICU-21-IBB-005). A.G.-B. was supported by the program Formación de Profesorado Universitario (FPU) (Grant FPU19/01594). C.P.B., M.S.R., and G.T. were supported by Grant NFRE-2018-00738 of the New Frontiers in Research Fund (Government of Canada). C.D.-M. was supported by the Catalan Government under Grant SGR2017-1690. G.T. was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Grants PID2020-117739GA-I00/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and RYC2018-025335-I) and by Grant WW1-300R-18 of the National Geographic Society

Modéliser la réponse des espèces au changement climatique dans les iles subantarctiques : étude de cas chez les oursins du Plateau des Kerguelen

International audienceIn the Kerguelen Islands, the multiple effects of climate change are expected to impact coastal marine habitats. Species distribution models (SDM) can represent a convenient tool to predict the biogeographic response of species to climate change but biotic interactions are not considered in these models. Nevertheless, new species interactions can emerge in communities exposed to environmental changes and the structure of biotic interactions is directly related to the potential resilience of ecosystems. Trophic interaction studies can help predict species vulnerability to environmental changes using carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) stable isotope ratios to generate trophic models. Using new available data inputs, we generated robust SDM and trophic interaction models to assess the potential response and sensitivity of three echinoid species to future worst-case scenarios of environmental change in the Kerguelen Plateau region. The two modelling approaches provide contrasting insights into the potential responses of each species to future environmental changes with both approaches identifying Abatus cordatus to be particularly vulnerable due to its narrow ecological niche and endemism to near-shore areas. Coupling insights gained from trophic niche ecology with species distribution modelling represents a promising approach that can improve our understanding and ability to predict the potential responses of species to future habitat changes.Les multiples effets du changement climatique impactent d’ores et déjà les habitats marins côtiers des îles Kerguelen. Les modèles de distribution d’espèces (SDM) peuvent permettre de prédire la réponse des espèces au changement climatique mais ces modèles n’intègrent pas le rôle joué par les interactions entre espèces. La structure de ces interactions est pourtant déterminante dans le potentiel de résilience des écosystèmes. Elle peut être modifiée et de nouvelles interactions peuvent émerger dans les communautés exposées aux changements environnementaux. L’étude des interactions trophiques permet d’évaluer en partie la vulnérabilité des espèces aux changements environnementaux, l’analyse de bio-marqueurs tels que les rapports isotopiques du carbone (δ13C) et de l’azote (δ15N) permettant en particulier de produire des modèles d’interactions trophiques. Afin d’évaluer la réponse potentielle et la sensibilité d’espèces des Kerguelen aux changements environnementaux, nous avons produit des modèles de distribution d’espèces et de niche trophique grâce à de nouvelles données de terrain. Trois études de cas ont été choisies parmi les oursins, éléments communs et abondants des communautés benthiques côtières des Kerguelen. Les deux approches de modélisation prédisent des réponses contrastées des espèces aux changements environnementaux futurs selon le scénario le plus pessimiste du GIEC. D’autre part, les deux modèles identifient la même espèce, Abatus cordatus, comme étant particulièrement menacée en raison d’une niche écologique étroite et de son fort endémisme. L’utilisation conjointe de modèles de distribution et de modèles trophiques représente une réelle perspective d’amélioration desprédictions de réponse des espèces aux changements environnementaux