Many butterfly and moth species have now developed fake extra eyes called eyespots and evolutionary and developmental biology studies why and how these eyespots came into existence. Arguable evidence has been found for the purpose of such eyespots. It is either to mimic the predators’ eyes or warn predators of toxic substances due to their conspicuous nature. However, the main goal is still predator avoidance.
Focusing on an article written by Brunetti et al (2001), it is stated that the development of such eyespots arise from the focus or the centre of the eyespot, which later induces surrounding cells to synthesise pigments. Several studies have identified development in 4 stages. The first stage occurs during the last larval developmental stage where a transcriptional factor of Distal-less (Dll) reflects potential for the pattern formation in each subdivision of the wing. The second stage shows the development of the innermost part called the focus (plural foci) in specific subdivisions of the wing. In the early pupa, the third stage occurs where the immediate cells surrounding the focus start adopting different colours. In the final stage during the late pupal stage, the adult colour pattern develops as the scales of the wing develop.
Such eyespots are also prominent on peacock feathers and are observable on the ears of mammals belonging to the Falidae family, on fishes or reptiles, all surviving the same purpose of predator avoidance. The main reason for such studies is to highlight the evolution that butterflies and moths go through for survival. Obviously they do not add onto the function of the organism, but still add significant value to the survival, which is why studying evolution of such phenomena is so crucial.
Article: Brunetti, Craig R, et al. “The Generation and Diversification of Butterfly Eyespot Color Patterns.” Current Biology, vol. 11, no. 20, 2001, pp. 1578–1585., https://doi.org/10.1016/s0960-9822(01)00502-4.
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