Landscape effects on the thermotolerance of carabid beetles and the role of behavioral thermoregulation

Lucy Alford (1, 2) , Sacha Roudine (1) , Jean-Sébastien Pierre (1) , Françoise Burel (1) , Joan van Baaren (1)

1 ECOBIO - Ecosystèmes, biodiversité, évolution [Rennes]
2 University of Bristol [Bristol]

Physiological thermotolerance and behavioral thermoregulation are central to seasonal cold adaptation in ectothermic organisms. For species with enhanced mobility, behavioral responses may be of greater importance in the cold stress response. Employing the carabid beetles as a study organism, the current study compared physiological thermotolerance and behavioral thermoregulation in carabid species inhabiting cereal fields in different landscape contexts, from fine grain heterogeneous ’complex’ landscapes to homogenous ’simple’ landscapes. Physiological thermotolerance was determined via measurement of the CT(min) and chill coma temperature. Behavioral responses to cold temperature exposure were determined employing a purpose built arena, and thoracic temperature measured to estimate the efficacy of the behavior as a form of behavioral thermoregulation. Results revealed an influence of landscape composition on the cold tolerance of carabid beetles, although species differed in their sensitivity to landscape intensification. A reduced effect of landscape on the thermotolerance of larger carabid beetles was observed, thought to be the consequence of greater mobility preventing local acclimation to microclimatic variation along the landscape intensification gradient. Investigation into behavioral thermoregulation of the three largest species revealed burrowing behavior to be the main behavioral response to cold stress, acting to significantly raise carabid body temperature. This finding highlights the importance of behavioral thermoregulation as a strategy to evade cold stress. The use of behavioral thermoregulation may negate the need to invest in physiological thermotolerance, further offering explanation for the lack of landscape effect on the physiological thermotolerance of larger carabids.

Mots clés: plasticity; winter resistance; physiological thermal tolerance; local adaptation; agroecosystems

Domaines: Biodiversité et Ecologie

Lucy Alford, Sacha Roudine, Jean-Sébastien Pierre, Françoise Burel, Joan van Baaren. Landscape effects on the thermotolerance of carabid beetles and the role of behavioral thermoregulation. Insect Science, 2023, 30 (1), pp.251-263. ⟨10.1111/1744-7917.13044⟩. ⟨hal-03659680⟩