Pupation site choice of a North American lycaenid butterfly: the benefits of entering ant nests

Abstract

Abstract. Larvae of the North American lycaenid butterfly Hemiargus isola Reakirt tended by the ant Formica perpilosa Wheeler often enter nests of this ant species, and pupate in tunnels and chambers near the surface. Untended larvae and those tended by the ants Dorymyrmex Forel sp. (smithi complex), Forelius foetida (Buckley), and Myrmecocystus mimicus Wheeler pupate in crevices in the ground, under bark, and on leaves; but rarely inside ant nests. The location and structure of F.perpilosa nests facilitates discovery by H.isola prepupae. At the southeast Arizona study site, F.perpilosa nests are located at the base of H.isola's host plant, whereas other species’nests are in open ground. Also, F.perpilosa nest openings are wide, whereas those of other species may be too narrow for prepupae to enter. Prepupae associated with F.perpilosa spent 67% less time on the ground searching for pupation sites than prepupae associated with other ant species. Pupae in artificial chambers connected to F.perpilosa nests were 4–5 times less likely to disappear overnight, presumably due to predation, than those not connected to nests. Formica perpilosa ants tend pupae inside nests. However, in the laboratory experiments tended pupae did not lose more weight prior to eclosion than untended ones, suggesting that chemicals or sounds produced by pupae as ant attractants are inexpensive, or are produced whether or not ants are present. Newly‐eclosed butterflies exited nests unmolested by ants in the field, but were attacked if confined with ants for several minutes after eclosion in the laboratory.