Document Type
Article
Publication Date
3-14-2025
Abstract
In a chemosensing system, the local olfactory environment experienced by a foraging organism is defined as an odorscape. Using the nocturnal pink bollworm moth (Pectinophora gossypiella), we tested the combined effect of three biophysical aspects in its immediate odorscape to shed light on the coupling effects of biotic and abiotic factors on navigation performances of a nocturnal forager: i) the quality of the pheromone source, ii) the pheromone availability, and iii) the airflow characteristics. The navigation performance of the males was investigated using a wind tunnel assay equipped with 3D infrared high-speed cameras. The navigation performance of the males was analyzed using ethological and biomechanical parameters.
The results of this work indicate that: (1) the biophysical factors have combined effects on the navigation performance of mate-searching males; (2) Natural and sexual selection play an important role in shaping the pheromone-mediated sensory performance of nocturnal male moths; herein, the role of natural selection overrides that of sexual selection; (3) During odor-mediated mate-finding navigation, the male moth applies a tradeoff decision-making process based on weighted information from the biological and physical characteristics of the odorscape. This decision-making process includes weighting the tradeoff between the cost involved in flying under different flow conditions, the availability of different odor sources, and their quality.
Descriptive data was added below, with CC-BY 4.0 license; data doi: 10.17632/k39xx7hngn.1
This article was published Open Access through the CCU Libraries Open Access Publishing Fund. The article was first published in Movement Ecology: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-025-00547-4
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Golov, Y., Gurka, R., Liberzon, A. et al. Physical and biological effects on moths’ navigation performance. Mov Ecol 13, 17 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-025-00547-4. Available at https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/physics-engineering/4/
Descriptive Data
Included in
Aerodynamics and Fluid Mechanics Commons, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Entomology Commons
