Quantitative support for the metabolic load hypothesis: metabolic rate measures reveal host-dependent growth costs in a polyphagous herbivore

Quantitative support for the metabolic load hypothesis: metabolic rate measures reveal host-dependent growth costs in a polyphagous herbivore | Authorea try { document.documentElement.classList.add('js'); } catch (e) { } var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'G-8VDV14Y67G']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); Skip to main content Preprints Collections Wiley Open Research IET Open Research Ecological Society of Japan All Collections About About Authorea FAQs Contact Us Quick Search anywhere Search for preprint articles, keywords, etc. Search Search ADVANCED SEARCH SCROLL Ecology and Evolution This is a preprint and has not been peer reviewed. Data may be preliminary. 29 October 2025 V1 Latest version Share on Quantitative support for the metabolic load hypothesis: metabolic rate measures reveal host-dependent growth costs in a polyphagous herbivore Authors : Katharina Schneider 0009-0004-7727-594X [email protected] , Kevin Roberts , Philipp Lehmann , Christopher Wheat 0000-0003-1863-2340 , Niklas Janz , and Sören Nylin Authors Info & Affiliations https://doi.org/10.22541/au.176172513.33138276/v1 Published Ecology and Evolution Version of record Peer review timeline 292 views 257 downloads Contents Abstract Supplementary Material Information & Authors Metrics & Citations View Options References Figures Tables Media Share Abstract 1. The interactions between phytophagous insects and their host plants show a strong trend towards specialization. However, the reasons behind this trend remain largely unclear, at both the evolutionary and mechanistic level. 2. One possible explanation is an increased energy expenditure for digesting and metabolizing more challenging hosts included in a broader host repertoire, which may reduce the energy available for other processes such as growth and development (“metabolic load hypothesis”). Differences in the performance across various hosts could reflect such costs. 3. Using the polyphagous Polygonia c-album (comma butterfly), we tested whether observed performance differences can be linked to variation in the energetic requirements. For this, we measured the metabolic rate of larvae feeding on three different host plants and converted it into the amount of CO2 produced per gram of mass gain (“growth cost”) to assess how much energy is allocated to growth vs digestion and assimilation. 4. The metabolic rate of larvae feeding on a chemically more challenging plant ( Ribes uva-crispa ) was similar to that of individuals on the host supporting the highest growth rate ( Urtica dioica ). 5. However, larvae on Ribes uva-crispa exhibited a higher energy demand per unit of growth and a lower growth rate, indicating a different energy allocation in growing larvae than when they were reared on a chemically less challenging plant. 6. Our findings suggest that energy expenditure for digesting different hosts varies and can have direct consequences for the larval performance. This indicates that the trend towards ecological specialization may, at least partly, be driven by selection to reduce the energetic costs for detoxification and digestion, in support of the metabolic load hypothesis. Katharina Schneider 1* , Kevin T Roberts 2 , Philipp Lehmann 1,2 , Christopher W. Wheat 1 , Niklas Janz 1 , Sören Nylin 1 1 Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, 11418 Stockholm, Sweden; KS: [email protected] , CWW: [email protected] , NJ: [email protected] , SN: [email protected] 2 Department of Animal Physiology, Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany; PL: [email protected] , KTR: [email protected] *Corresponding author Katharina Schneider Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, 11418 Stockholm, Sweden [email protected] Conflict of interest The authors have no conflict of interest Author contribution Sören Nylin, Philipp Lehmann, Christopher W Wheat, Kevin T Roberts, Katharina Schneider and Niklas Janz conceptualized the study. Katharina Schneider, Sören Nylin and Niklas Janz collected the butterflies. Katharina Schneider reared the caterpillars with the help of the acknowledged interns and lab assistants. Katharina Schneider and Kevin T Roberts conducted the experiment and analysed the data. Katharina Schneider wrote the manuscript with input from all authors. Statement on inclusion Our study included authors from the multiple countries, with the majority based in the country where the study was conducted. All authors were involved in the study design to ensure a diverse set of perspectives. When relevant, literature from the local region was cited. Data availability statement Performance (Growth_rate.csv) and metabolic rate (Metabolic_rate.csv) data as well as all relevant scripts for this analysis (Metabolic_cost_analysis.R) have been submitted for review. Upon acceptance, scripts and datafiles will be made publicly available on GitHub and Zenodo. Supplementary Material File (metabolic_cost_ supplementary material.docx) Download 1017.33 KB File (metaboliccosts_maintext_clean.docx) Download 875.27 KB Information & Authors Information Version history V1 Version 1 29 October 2025 Peer review timeline Published Ecology and Evolution Version of Record 11 Dec 2025 Published Copyright This work is licensed under a Non Exclusive No Reuse License. Collection Ecology and Evolution Keywords ecological experiment evolutionary ecology invertebrate terrestrial Authors Affiliations Katharina Schneider 0009-0004-7727-594X [email protected] Stockholm University View all articles by this author Kevin Roberts University of Greifswald View all articles by this author Philipp Lehmann Stockholm University View all articles by this author Christopher Wheat 0000-0003-1863-2340 Stockholm University View all articles by this author Niklas Janz Stockholm University View all articles by this author Sören Nylin Stockholm University View all articles by this author Metrics & Citations Metrics Article Usage 292 views 257 downloads .FvxKWukQNSOunydq8rnd { width: 100px; } Citations Download citation Katharina Schneider, Kevin Roberts, Philipp Lehmann, et al. Quantitative support for the metabolic load hypothesis: metabolic rate measures reveal host-dependent growth costs in a polyphagous herbivore. Authorea . 29 October 2025. 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