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511

Influence of mimicry on extinction risk in Aculeata: a theoretical approachuse asterix (*) to get italics
Maxime Boutin, Manon Costa, Colin Fontaine, Adrien Perrard, Violaine LlaurensPlease use the format "First name initials family name" as in "Marie S. Curie, Niels H. D. Bohr, Albert Einstein, John R. R. Tolkien, Donna T. Strickland"
2023
<p style="text-align: justify;">Positive ecological interactions, such as mutualism, can play a role in community structure and species co-existence. A well-documented case of mutualistic interaction is Mullerian mimicry, the convergence of colour pattern between defended individuals living in sympatry. By reducing predation pressure, Mullerian mimicry may limits local extinction risks of defended species, but this positive effect can be weakened by undefended mimics (Batesian mimicry). While mimicry was well-studied in neotropical butterflies, it remains surprisingly poorly studied in wasps and bees (Aculeata - Hymenoptera). However, only females are defended in Aculeata and this female-limited defence may modulate the effect of Mullerian mimicry on extinction risks. Here, we focus on the effect of Mullerian mimicry on extinction risk in Aculeata, using a population dynamics model for two species. We show that Mullerian mimicry has a positive effect on species co-existence, but this effect depends on sex-ratio. We found that the probability of extinction increases as the proportion of undefended males increases in the population, however co-existence still occurs if females are sufficiently abundant or noxious. Furthermore, we have shown the destabilising effect of dual sex-limited mimicry (when each sex resembles a different model) on species co-existence. In a context of massive population decline caused by anthropic activities, our findings highlight the importance of Mullerian mimicry in limiting the extinction risk of wasp and bee species.</p>
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8124317You should fill this box only if you chose 'Scripts were used to obtain or analyze the results'. URL must start with http:// or https://
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8124317You should fill this box only if you chose 'Codes have been used in this study'. URL must start with http:// or https://
Mullerian mimicry, mutualism, population dynamics, sex-ratio, coexistence, aculeata
NonePlease indicate the methods that may require specialised expertise during the peer review process (use a comma to separate various required expertises).
Biodiversity, Coexistence, Eco-evolutionary dynamics, Evolutionary ecology, Facilitation & Mutualism
No need for them to be recommenders of PCIEcology. Please do not suggest reviewers for whom there might be a conflict of interest. Reviewers are not allowed to review preprints written by close colleagues (with whom they have published in the last four years, with whom they have received joint funding in the last four years, or with whom they are currently writing a manuscript, or submitting a grant proposal), or by family members, friends, or anyone for whom bias might affect the nature of the review - see the code of conduct
e.g. John Doe [john@doe.com]
2022-10-25 19:11:55
Amanda Franklin