ArticlePloS one2018
Limitations of learning in the proboscis reflex of the flower visiting syrphid fly Eristalis tenax.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 34 citations in OpenAlex.
- Learning to be unfaithful - preferences and flower constancy of Eristalis tenax (Syrphidae) decrease with experience.The Journal of experimental biology · 2026Article
- Extinction of Innate Floral Preferences in the Generalist Solitary Pollinator Eristalis tenax.Journal of chemical ecology · 2025Article
- Reproductive strategies of two color morphs ofFrontiers in plant science · 2025Article
- The enantiostylous floral polymorphism of Barberetta aurea (Haemodoraceae) facilitates wing pollination by syrphid flies.Annals of botany · 2023Article
- Clever pest control? The role of cognition in biological pest regulation.Animal cognition · 2023Review
- Colour vision in stomatopod crustaceans: more questions than answers.The Journal of experimental biology · 2022Article
- Geographic Mosaics of Fly Pollinators With Divergent Color Preferences Drive Landscape-Scale Structuring of Flower Color in Daisy Communities.Frontiers in plant science · 2021Article
- Distribution of wild bee (Hymenoptera: Anthophila) and hoverfly (Diptera: Syrphidae) communities within farms undergoing ecological transition.Biodiversity data journal · 2021Article
- Nectar mimicry: a new phenomenon.Scientific reports · 2020Article
- Can anthophilous hover flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) discriminate neonicotinoid insecticides in sucrose solution?PloS one · 2020Article
- Psychophysics of the hoverfly: categorical or continuous color discrimination?Current zoology · 2019Article
- How are pollinators guided by colourful floral structures? A commentary on: 'The role of pollinator preference in the maintenance of pollen colour variation'.Annals of botany · 2019Article
- High innate preference of black substrate in the chive gnat, Bradysia odoriphaga (Diptera: Sciaridae).PloS one · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Flower visiting Eristalis hoverflies feed on nectar and pollen and are known to rely on innate colour preferences. In addition to a preference for visiting yellow flowers, the flies possess an innate proboscis reflex elicited by chemical as well as yellow colour stimuli. In this study we show that the flies' proboscis reflex is only triggered by yellow colour stimuli and not altered by conditioning to other colours. Neither in absolute nor in differential conditioning experiments the flies learned to associate other colours than yellow with reward. Even flies that experienced only blue nutrients during the first four days after hatching could not be trained to extend the proboscis towards other colours than yellow. The natural targets of the visually elicited proboscis reflex are yellow pollen and yellow anthers. One consequence of our findings is that flowers might advertise nectar and pollen rewards for Eristalis hoverflies by a yellow colour hue of nectar guides, nectaries, stamens or pollen. Alternatively, flowers might protect their pollen against Eristalis by displaying other pollen colours than yellow or direct flies by yellow pollen-mimicking floral guides towards nectar resources. Testing the proboscis extension of various hoverfly species in the field showed that only Eristalis hoverflies possess the proboscis reflex elicited by yellow colour hues.
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