Resources
Colorful wings send messages: Why are butterfly wings colorful?
Author(s): Melissa Kjelvik1, Adriana D. Briscoe2
1. Michigan State University 2. University of California, Irvine
301 total view(s), 83 download(s)
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- redpostmanbutterfly.jpg(JPG)
- Why are butterfly wings colorful? ‣ Data Nuggets
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Description
Overview of Module:
Two hypotheses are proposed and examined to evaluate how the presence of wing color and patterns in a tropical butterfly species affects interactions with conspecifics and avian predators. Students engage with an authentic research study, including design, motivation, and a curated dataset as a model of tropical fieldwork and the scientific process, more broadly. Additionally, a scientist profile is presented to explore humanizing information about research professionals and their career pathways.
Translations available:
The original Data Nugget for this activity has been translated into Spanish. You can find those files here: https://datanuggets.org/2017/06/butterfly-wings/
Learning Objectives:
Students will be able to:
- Describe the ecological importance of wing pattern and coloration for tropical butterflies. Explain how these signals may influence interactions within and across species.
- Identify the hypothesis(es) proposed for the importance of wing coloration and pattern and evaluate whether the study supports the hypothesis.
- Assess the benefits and downfalls of the scientific methods of the study.
- Analyze and interpret a dataset to examine whether wing pattern and coloration are signals to predators and potential mates.
- Construct an explanation that answers the proposed scientific question. Provide specific data that support the claim and sound reasoning that ties in ecological concepts.
- Propose potential future directions and scientific questions for the current study and identify potential data that could be collected to answer these new questions.
Support was provided by: Grants from the United States National Science Foundation (DBI-RCN-UBE 2120141, DUE-IUSE 2012014 and 2011995).
Cite this work
Researchers should cite this work as follows:
- Kjelvik, M., Briscoe, A. D. (2024). Colorful wings send messages: Why are butterfly wings colorful?. OCELOTS, QUBES Educational Resources. doi:10.25334/RHPP-YW28