ArticlePeerJ2021
Evidence of phenotypic plasticity along an altitudinal gradient in the dung beetle
Article in PeerJ, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- The Genomic Landscape of Metallic Colour Variation in Ground Beetles.Molecular ecology · 2026Article
- Article
- Altitude and ground brightness explain interpopulation variation in dorsal coloration in a lizard.Current zoology · 2025Article
- Thermal Melanism inInsects · 2025Article
- Current evidence of climate-driven colour change in insects and its impact on sexual signals.Ecology and evolution · 2024Review
- Article
- Article
- Morphometric changes on dung beetleEcology and evolution · 2023Article
- A trait-based framework for dung beetle functional ecology.The Journal of animal ecology · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHigh altitude insects are an ecologically specialized group and possess a suite of adaptions which allow persistence in the inhospitable conditions often associated with mountain tops. Changes in body coloration and reductions or increases in body size are thought to be examples of such adaptions. Melanic individuals, or individuals containing high levels of eumelanin, possess several traits which increase resistance to ultraviolet radiation and desiccation, while aiding thermoregulation. Trait variation is often observed in dung beetles and is associated with dimorphism and sexual selection. In this study, we identified trait changes which occur across an altitudinal gradient by measuring morphological color and body size traits in a montane insect.
methodsUsing standard digital photography and Image J, we examined individuals of Afromontane dung beetle
resultsThe results of this study provide one of the first descriptions of trait changes associated with elevation in an African dung beetle. We suggest that color polymorphism in
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