Wing symmetry in wild drosophilids (Insecta, Diptera) is not affected by season in the Brazilian Cerrado

Authors

  • Luciana Costa Nascimento Laboratório de Biologia Evolutiva, Departamento de Genética e Morfologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade de Brasí­lia, Brasí­lia, DF, CEP 70.910-90
  • Francisco Das Chagas Roque Machado Instituto Federal de Brasí­lia, Campus Recanto das Emas, Recanto das Emas, DF, CEP 70297-400
  • Rosana Tidon Laboratório de Biologia Evolutiva, Departamento de Genética e Morfologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade de Brasí­lia, Brasí­lia, DF, CEP 70.910-90

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17648/heringeriana.v15i1.917941

Keywords:

Brazil, environmental stress, fluctuating asymmetry, seasonal variation

Abstract

The development of an organism is a controlled process, which can be disrupted by genetic or environmental stress. Although fluctuating asymmetry is widely used as an indicator of developmental instability, its effectiveness has been questioned due to the contradictory results produced by this technique which, at least in part, probably reflects methodological inappropriateness. Here, we investigated if wing asymmetry of drosophilids increases when they develop during the dry season in the Brazilian savanna, considered a stressful season for these insects. Using protocols designed to avoid methodological problems, we analysed the wings of Zaprionus indianus and three species of the genus Drosophila (D. mercatorum, D. simulans, and D. sturtevanti). There was no significative difference in wing asymmetry in any of the four species between the dry and rainy seasons. The similar wing asymmetry levels between seasons may mean that during the dry season drosophilids are submitted to strong natural selection and the asymmetric individuals have less chance of surviving. Alternatively, environmental drought may not affect the wing symmetry. Although our study added more data to the relationship between asymmetry and stress, this discussion seems to be far from being solved.

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Published

2021-05-10

How to Cite

Costa Nascimento, L., Das Chagas Roque Machado, F., & Tidon, R. (2021). Wing symmetry in wild drosophilids (Insecta, Diptera) is not affected by season in the Brazilian Cerrado. Heringeriana, 15(1), 17–26. https://doi.org/10.17648/heringeriana.v15i1.917941

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