BODY-SIZE AND DEVELOPMENTAL TEMPERATURE IN DROSOPHILA-MELANOGASTER - ANALYSIS OF BODY-WEIGHT REACTION NORM

1. Phenotypic plasticity of body weight, wing and thorax length was an alysed in ten isofemale lines of D. melanogaster grown at seven differ ent temperatures (12-31 degrees C). 2. For each trait, concave reactio n norms were observed with a maximum at low temperature. The co-ordina tes of the maximum were calculated after polynomial adjustments. 3. Bo dy weight exhibited a specific reaction norm with a temperature of max imum value (16.7 degrees C) intermediate between those of wing (14.9 d egrees C) and thorax (17.8 degrees C). 5. Overall phenotypic plasticit y according to temperature was high for weight and wing length but muc h less for thorax length. 5. In several aspects wing length might be a better predictor of body size variation than thorax length. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.