Life Sciences Commons^™

Friends, Enemies, Or Hitchhikers? Exploring The Relationship Between Fungus, Butterfly, And Rest Plant At Fort Jackson, South Carolina, Miranda F. Hannah

Senior Theses

This study was undertaken to investigate the relationships between butterflies as pollinators, host plants, and fungi. Euptoieta claudia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) butterflies were captured on flowers at McCrady Training Center, Fort Jackson, South Carolina and the fungi isolated from the legs and abdomens of these butterflies was identified and analyzed. Butterflies were found to carry a variety of fungal species including Penicillium, Cladosporium, Curvularia, Fusarium, and Aspergillus. Butterflies carrying the highest quantity of different species of fungi were captured on Passiflora incarnata flowers, and the number of fungal species per butterfly seems to be due to chance. The most common species …