Exploring the Floral Interactions of Diurnal Arctiid Moths Using Citizen Science

Abstract

An important number of floral visitors are insects, though interactions between moths, particularly arctiid moths (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae), and plants are underreported. Furthermore, although nocturnal moths visit flowers with shorter floral tubes, small apertures, landing platforms and mainly green colours, there is limited information on whether diurnal arctiid moths visit similar flowers. Therefore, we explored the mutualistic interactions between diurnal arctiid moths and flowers across different ecoregions in Argentina, using data collected from citizen science and social network platforms. Using image-based records of diurnal arctiid moths feeding on flowers, we examined the floral traits and the geographical origin of plants most visited by the moths. A total of 529 interactions were recorded between 65 diurnal arctiid moth species and 136 plant species. Diurnal arctiid moths mainly visited native Asteraceae species, rotaceous floral architecture and white colour flowers. The ecoregion with the highest number of links between diurnal arctiid moth species and plant species was the Alto Paraná Atlantic forests, whereas the Humid Pampas had the highest number of total interactions. Overall, the flowers visited by diurnal arctiid moths had similar characteristics to those visited by both nocturnal moths and butterflies. Image-based records from citizen science and social network platforms can be important data sources of mutualistic interactions, though their limitations in sampling efforts, such as across ecoregions, need to be considered.