Amazing stuff! Mind boggling!
Can you even imagine a butterfly flying across the Atlantic Ocean?
"... "The butterflies could only have completed this flight using a strategy alternating between active flight, which is costly energetically, and gliding the wind," ... "We estimate that without wind, the butterflies could have flown a maximum of 780 km (485 miles) before consuming all their fat and, therefore, their energy." ..."
"Highlights
• In a world-first, an international team of scientists demonstrated that Painted Lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui) flew at least 4,200 km over the ocean from West Africa to French Guiana, South America.
• Using novel techniques, among them isotope-based geolocation, they found that the butterflies probably originated in Europe, extending this migratory flight over 7000 km.
• The butterflies made the transatlantic journey in 5 to 8 days, actively flying but aided by favorable trade winds."
From the abstract:
"The extent of aerial flows of insects circulating around the planet and their impact on ecosystems and biogeography remain enigmatic because of methodological challenges. Here we report a transatlantic crossing by Vanessa cardui butterflies spanning at least 4200 km, from West Africa to South America (French Guiana) and lasting between 5 and 8 days. Even more, we infer a likely natal origin for these individuals in Western Europe, and the journey Europe-Africa-South America could expand to 7000 km or more. This discovery was possible through an integrative approach, including coastal field surveys, wind trajectory modelling, genomics, pollen metabarcoding, ecological niche modelling, and multi-isotope geolocation of natal origins. The overall journey, which was energetically feasible only if assisted by winds, is among the longest documented for individual insects, and potentially the first verified transatlantic crossing. Our findings suggest that we may be underestimating transoceanic dispersal in insects and highlight the importance of aerial highways connecting continents by trade winds."
Non-stop flight: in a world-first, researchers map a 4,200 km transatlantic flight of the Painted Lady butterfly (original news release) This discovery and the use of next-generation molecular techniques and tools open new areas of research in insect migration in the context of climate change.
While scientists could confirm the 2,600-mile journey, they believe the butterflies might actually cover almost twice that distance
No comments:
Post a Comment