Document Type
Student Paper
Publication Date
Spring 2-25-2026
Disciplines
Biology
Description, Abstract, or Artist's Statement
This study examines how different virus strains compete within a single host population of Dione vanillae butterflies, which is important in the study of disease ecology research. For this study, we conducted controlled experimental epidemics on passionflower plants (Passiflora caerulea) in the field. First, we infected caterpillars with one of two different virus strains from Butterfly Farms in North County (BFF004) and the City of San Diego (GRM060) and placed these caterpillars on P. caerulea plants in one of three treatments (control, BFF004, and GRM060; n=3 plants per treatment). Next, we allowed healthy butterflies in the local population to lay eggs on these plants and begin our healthy larvae populations on the experimental plants. Lastly, we observed the numbers of healthy and infected larvae on each plant over time as the outbreaks progressed in order to compare between virus strains and virus densities. We examined whether virus outbreaks looked different for each virus strain to assess strain competition and if one of the viruses has a stronger effect on the host population.
Digital USD Citation
Reyes, Lizbeth, "Controlled Epidemics: Examining the Effect of Virus Density and Strain Competition in Gulf Fritillary (Dione vanillae)" (2026). Biology: Student Scholarship & Creative Works. 2.
https://digital.sandiego.edu/biology-student/2