Data from: Warning signals are seductive: relative contributions of color and pattern to predator avoidance and mate attraction in Heliconius butterflies

Visual signaling in animals can serve many uses, including predator deterrence and mate attraction. In many cases, signals used to advertise unprofitability to predators are also used for intraspecific communication. Although aposematism and mate choice are significant forces driving the evolution of many animal phenotypes, the interplay between relevant visual signals remains little explored. Here, we address this question in the aposematic passion-vine butterfly Heliconius erato by using color- and pattern-manipulated models to test the contributions of different visual features to both mate choice and warning coloration. We found that the relative effectiveness of a model at escaping predation was correlated with its effectiveness at inducing mating behavior, and in both cases wing color was more predictive of presumptive fitness benefits than wing pattern. Overall, however, a combination of the natural (local) color and pattern was most successful for both predator deterrence and mate attraction. By exploring the relative contributions of color versus pattern composition in predation and mate preference studies, we have shown how both natural and sexual selection may work in parallel to drive the evolution of specific animal color patterns.

动物的视觉信号具有多重功能，包括威慑天敌与吸引配偶。在诸多情形中，用于向天敌昭示自身不可食用的信号，同时也会被用于种内交流。尽管警戒色（aposematism）与配偶选择是推动诸多动物表型演化的关键动力，但相关视觉信号之间的交互作用仍鲜有研究。本研究以具有警戒色的红带袖蝶（Heliconius erato）为研究对象，通过构建颜色与图案均经过人工修饰的实验模型，探究不同视觉特征在配偶选择与警戒色两方面的作用。研究发现，模型个体逃脱天敌捕食的相对效率，与其诱导交配行为的效率呈正相关；且相较于翅膀图案，翅膀颜色更能预测推测的适合度收益。但整体而言，兼具本地自然颜色与图案的模型，在威慑天敌与吸引配偶两方面均表现最优。本研究通过在捕食与配偶偏好实验中探究颜色与图案组成的相对贡献，揭示了自然选择与性选择如何协同作用，推动特定动物色彩图案的演化。