Observations on the illness and consumption of a possibly medicinal plant Vernonia amygdalina (Del.), by a wild chimpanzee in the Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania

Animal self-medication and ethno-medicine: Exploration and exploitation of the medicinal properties of plants

Behavioral immunity in insects

Ophryocystis elektroscirrha sp. n., a Neogregarine pathogen of the Monarch Butterfly Danaus plexippus (L.) and the Florida Queen Butterfly D. gilippus berenice Cramer1

Virulence-transmission trade-offs and population divergence in virulence in a naturally occurring butterfly parasite

A natural toxic defense system: Cardenolides in butterflies versus birds

Host plant species affects virulence in monarch butterfly parasites

Behavioural resistance against a protozoan parasite in the monarch butterfly

Self-medication in animals

Jap de Rode (Jaap de Roode): Kako se leptiri sami leče

Kako se leptiri sami leče

Baš kao i mi, kravljevski leptiri se ponekad razboljevaju zahvaljujući gadnom parazitu. Ali biolog Jap de Rode primetio je nešto zanimljivo u vezi sa leptirima koje je proučavao - zaražene ženke leptira birale bi da svoja jaja legu na posebnoj vrsti biljke koja je pomagala da njihovo potomstvo izbegne bolest. Kako znaju da odaberu ovu biljku? Mislite o tome kao "drugom efektu leptira" - koji bi mogao da nas nauči kako da pronađemo nove lekove za ljudske bolesti.

Monarch butterflies battle deadly parasites by laying their eggs on specific milkweed plants that protect their offspring from disease. Although these insects have tiny brains, infected mothers consistently choose medicinal plants, which boosts their young's chances of survival. Just as elephants and porcupines self-medicate with plants, these butterflies challenge our assumptions about animal intelligence. Their strategies could inspire novel approaches for developing life-saving drugs in the face of evolving human pathogens.