Behavior and performance data of monarch butterfly caterpillars

Plants have evolved multiple defensive traits in response to herbivory; in turn, herbivore specialists evolved adaptive behaviors to avoid or tolerate such defenses. Here, we employ milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) to test two defenses, latex and trichomes, for their independent and interactive effects on behavior and performance of monarch caterpillars (Danaus plexippus). Latex exuded upon damage and the density of leaf trichomes positively correlate across milkweed species, suggesting they may have evolved together as synergistic defenses. Nonetheless, the complementary roles of these two traits have been little-studied. We focus on two behaviors: shaving, or the removal of trichomes, and chewing, which encompasses both deactivation of latex and leaf consumption. In an experiment with seven milkweed species, with and without manipulated latex flow, we found latex to be the primary determinant of reducing chewing, while both defenses positively predicted shaving behavior in the first in..., , , # Craig and Agrawal 2024

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.63xsj3vb6](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.63xsj3vb6)

## Description of the data and file structure

Data provided is from two experiments, one testing for behavioral effects of two plant defenses on monarch caterpillar behavior, and the other testing for both behavioral and performance-related effects of the plant defenses.

### Files and variables

#### File: Craig\_\_\_Agrawal\_2024\_Data.xlsx

##### Variables, Experiment 1:

* Replicate: Which of 5 temporal replicates an individual was a part of
* Species: Which of seven milkweed species a caterpillar was reared on
* Treatment: Which treatment, latex (intact plant) or no latex (cut leaf)
* Latex exudation: Latex mass exuded upon plant damage, in milligrams
* Trichome density: Number of trichomes, in hairs per millimeters squared
* Chewing: Time caterpillar spent chewing, in seconds
* Shaving: Time caterpillar spent shaving, in seconds
* Walking: Time caterpillar spent walking, ...,