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Review
. 2022 Feb 28;13(3):242.
doi: 10.3390/insects13030242.

Visible beyond Violet: How Butterflies Manage Ultraviolet

David Stella  1   2 , Karel Kleisner  2
Affiliations
Review

Visible beyond Violet: How Butterflies Manage Ultraviolet

David Stella et al. Insects. .

Abstract

Ultraviolet (UV) means 'beyond violet' (from Latin 'ultra', meaning 'beyond'), whereby violet is the colour with the highest frequencies in the 'visible' light spectrum. By 'visible' we mean human vision, but, in comparison to many other organisms, human visual perception is rather limited in terms of the wavelengths it can perceive. Still, this is why communication in the UV spectrum is often called hidden, although it most likely plays an important role in communicating various kinds of information among a wide variety of organisms. Since Silberglied's revolutionary Communication in the Ultraviolet, comprehensive studies on UV signals in a wide list of genera are lacking. This review investigates the significance of UV reflectance (and UV absorption)-a feature often neglected in intra- and interspecific communication studies-mainly in Lepidoptera. Although the text focuses on various butterfly families, links and connections to other animal groups, such as birds, are also discussed in the context of ecology and the evolution of species. The basic mechanisms of UV colouration and factors shaping the characteristics of UV patterns are also discussed in a broad context of lepidopteran communication.

Keywords: UV; communication; lepidoptera; mating; reproduction.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Various specimens of Pieris napi in UV light. The UV component of natural light decreases at higher latitudes due to a lower angle of the sun, which is why UV signals must be stronger to facilitate functional communication. Therefore, different specimens reflect different amounts of UV light.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Locations of the 407 specimens of the green-veined white (Pieris napi) from the Palaearctic region from [61]. Female Pieris napi generally exhibit a less intense UV reflectance in western and southern regions of the Palaearctic.
Figure 3
Figure 3
A relatively large proportion of studies fails to consider the widespread UV phenomena and many researchers neglect the UV spectrum as part of the integrated visual system.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

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