Butterflies, ithomiine

Brown, K. S., Jr (1984). Adult-obtained pyrrolizidine alkaloids defend ithomiine butterflies against a spider predator. Nature 309 707-709. 

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids differential acquisition and use patterns in Apocynaceae and Solanaceae feeding ithomiine butterflies (Lepidoptera Nymphalidae). Biological Journal of the Linnaean Society 58 99-123. 

Pliske T. E. (1975b) Courtship behavior and use of chemical communication by males of certain species of ithomiine butterflies. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 68, 935-942. 

Trigo J. R., Brown K. S., Jr, Witte L., Hartmann T., Ernst L. and Barata L. E. S. (1996) Pyrrolizidine alkaloids different acquisition and use patterns in Apocynaceae and Solanaceae feeding ithomiine butterflies (Lepidoptera Nymphalidae). Biol. J. Linnean... 

MASTERS, A.R., Pyrrolizidine alkaloids in artificial nectar protect adult ithomiine butterflies from a spider predator. Biotropica, 1990,22,298-304. 

Some insects ingest plant matter containing alkaloids and use alkaloids in its own metabolism. For example, Ithomiine butterflies utilize pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Moreover, it was reported even in the 1970s that some butterflies Darutus spp.) use p5rrrolizidine alkaloids from the Senecio spp. directly in their sexual life. They sequester and accumulate alkaloids during their entire adulthood and use them as pheromones. The male of the species intakes alkaloids and uses them for this purpose. It is known that the female... 

A series of polyhydroxylated tropane alkaloids have been isolated from the leaves of Solanum tuberosum and from both a sphingid moth and an ithomiine butterfly, the larvae of which feed on Solanum species (Nash et al., 1993). These alkaloids are potent glycosidase inhibitors, in a manner similar to certain hydrox3q)yrrolidine and indolizidine alkaloids see Chapter 30). 

Pliske, T. E., J. A. Edgar, and C. C. J. Culvenor, The chemical basis of attraction of ithomiine butterflies to plants containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids, J. Chem. Ecol., 2, 255-262 (1976). 

Although the larvae of many ithomiine butterflies feed on solanaceous plants and must be adapted to the presence of steroid alkaloids, the distasteful properties of adults are... 

Drummond, B. A., Ill, Coevolution of ithomiine butterflies and solanaceous plants, in Solanaceae. Biology and Systematics (W. G. D Arcy, ed.), 307-327, Columbia University Press, New York, 1986. 

Brown, K.S., Jr., and J. Vasconcellos Neto Predation on Aposematic Ithomiine Butterflies by Tanagers Pipraeidea melanonota). Biotropica 8, 136-141 (1976). 

Brown, Jr., K. S. and Neto, J. V. (1976) Predation on aposematic ithomiine butterflies by Tanagers Pipraeidea melanota). Biotropica, 8, 136-41. 

A number of male courtship pheromones are known to be synthesized from the necine base moiety of plant-acquired PAs by certain alkaloid sequestering Arctiidae, Danainae, and Ithomiinae [75,96] (Fig. 11). The giant white danaine butterfly Idea leuconoe [97,98] and most ithomiine butterflies even use lactones as pheromones derived from necic acids such as the (-)-viridifloric acid from... 

There are cases where the host plant supplies the precursor to compounds exhibiting pheromone activity. For example, adult male danaid and ithomiine butterflies are attracted to plants containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids which they modify into dihydropyrrolizines 482—486). These substances then occur in the hairpencil secretions. 

---