ISSN:
1570-7458
Keywords:
Odonata
;
fluctuating asymmetry
;
insecticide
;
emergence
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Abstract Fluctuating asymmetry (FA), a measure of developmental stability, has been suggested as a monitoring tool for environmental pollution. However, there have been few investigations into the effects of short term pollution on the level of FA. This paper explores effects of exposing late instar larvae to short term pollution on the level of FA in the wings of adult damselflies. In these insects FA in wing length and in cell patterns have different ‘windows of opportunity’ in relation to environmental stress. If increased environmental stress is applied after the ‘window of opportunity’ of one trait had closed, while the window of the other trait was still open then the level of FA of the first trait should not be altered whereas that of the latter should increase. If short term pollution killed part of a population, symmetrical individuals (low FA) should survive better than highly asymmetrical ones, because FA reflects the overall ability of an individual to cope with stress. If the pollution event occurred at a time when the level of FA was already fixed, the level of FA of the remaining population should be lower than that in controls. An experiment was carried out, using 10 artificial ponds, each holding a population of larvae of the damselfly Xanthocnemis zealandica (McLachlan). Damselfly larvae were exposed to carbaryl at a nominal concentration of 100 μg l−1, which reduced emergence success after 10–20 days by ca. 50%. Based on laboratory experiments, it was assumed that despite the high mortality, the short exposure to carbaryl late in the last instar would ensure that the wing cell patterns of the damselflies were not altered by the increased stress. The level of FA in wing length increased in the damselflies surviving the exposure to carbaryl but the level of FA in cell patterns did not differ significantly between the treatment and the control. The effects of differential mortality, as well as the effects of pollution, on the level of FA in traits with different ‘windows of opportunity’ need further investigation.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1003727528977
Permalink