Correlated traits for migration in the Gerridae (Hemiptera, Heteroptera): a field test

Abstract. 1. The hypothesis that the migratory tendency of macropters is correlated with proportion macropterous in wing‐polymorphic insects is tested by comparing the migration of macropters of three species of waterstriders (Heteroptera, Gerridae) under natural conditions. 2. Migration of marked individuals among four permanent and seventeen ephemeral water bodies was recorded between 1 April 1986 and 2 June 1987, within an area of approximately 2 km2. 3. The proportion of macropters migrating was significantly lower for G.buenoi Kirkaldy than for L.dissortis Drake and Harris and G.comatus Drake and Hottes. Similar results were obtained in. comparisons of proportions captured on ephemeral sites. 4. Distances measured in this study appear to be small relative to the migratory capacity of all of the species, and migration distance did not differ significantly among species. All species migrated primarily in early spring, and differences among species were most apparent at this time. 5. The observed differences among species combined with the results of a similar study of macropters from the primarily apterous species, G.remigis Say, support the initial hypothesis. The implications of this for our understanding of the evolution and maintenance of wing polymorphisms are discussed.