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Biology
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Feeding Biology and Nutrition in Insects
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Feeding Biology and Nutrition in Insects

A special issue of Biology (ISSN 2079-7737). This special issue belongs to the section "Ecology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 3376

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Carlos A. Pascacio Villafán

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Red de Manejo Biorracional de Plagas y Vectores, Clúster Científico y Tecnológico BioMimic®, Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Xalapa, Mexico
Interests: nutritional physiology and ecology of insects; insect rearing; artificial diet; biology of larval feeding; biorational management of insect pests
Prof. Dr. Christopher W. Weldon

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
Interests: nutritional physiology and ecology of insects; life history evolution; insect stress tolerance; insect monitoring, distributions and movement; insect rearing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Insects are the most diverse group of animals on Earth, adapted to nearly every environment. Their feeding strategies and habits are often contrasting, not only across species but also between immature and adult stages. Insects and their diet participate in several ecological interactions that are key to the functioning of ecosystems. Furthermore, the nutritional quality and chemical composition of their diets are frequently suboptimal, prompting the evolution of diverse physiological and behavioral adaptations to overcome these limitations. The study of insect feeding and nutrition is crucial not only for advancing fundamental biological knowledge but also for informing applied fields such as pest and vector management and farming for food and feed production.

To further develop our knowledge of the diverse ways that diets shape the behavior, development, ecology, evolution, physiology, and reproduction of insects, this Special Issue will compile research contributions on insect feeding biology and nutrition in insects. In particular, this Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current research and the future directions on the topic of insect feeding and nutrition.

As part of this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  1. The morphology of feeding apparatus and digestive systems;
  2. The feeding mechanisms/modes of diet intake;
  3. The mechanisms of digestion and absorption of nutrients;
  4. Taste and nutrient perception;
  5. The role of microorganisms as food sources or in the digestion or detoxification of allelochemicals;
  6. The behavioral, physiological, and ecological aspects of nutrition;
  7. The influence of environmental change on feeding and nutrition;
  8. The evolutionary adaptations of insects to their diet.

Papers that report on the development of tools/practices for improved insect rearing are also welcome if they address the aspects of the nutrition and biology of the studied species. Papers reporting on the use of insects as model organisms to better understand the physiological processes, cellular mechanisms, and genetics of human diseases related to nutrition are encouraged.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Carlos A. Pascacio Villafán
Prof. Dr. Christopher W. Weldon
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biology is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • diet
  • digestion
  • ecology
  • evolution
  • feeding
  • insects
  • mass-rearing
  • microbiome
  • nutrients
  • taste

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2356 KB  
Article
Effect of Different Larval Diets on Life History Traits and Nutritional Content in Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae)
by Fátima L. Fernández, María Josefina Ruiz, Pilar Medina Pereyra, Fabián H. Milla, Alejandra C. Scannapieco, Diego F. Segura, María Teresa Vera, David Nestel and Lucía Goane
Biology 2025, 14(10), 1332; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology14101332 - 27 Sep 2025
Viewed by 382
Abstract
Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a major fruit pest in several countries of South America and is mass-reared for use in integrated pest control strategies, including the sterile insect technique (SIT), and as a host for rearing biocontrol agents. Optimizing these rearing protocols [...] Read more.
Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a major fruit pest in several countries of South America and is mass-reared for use in integrated pest control strategies, including the sterile insect technique (SIT), and as a host for rearing biocontrol agents. Optimizing these rearing protocols requires a deeper understanding of how larval diet impacts adult traits. This study investigated the effects of three larval diet formulations differing in nutrient composition on larval development and adult fitness traits. All diets contained inactive non-hydrolyzed brewer’s yeast and sucrose. Two of them included wheat germ, either alone (wheat germ diet) or combined with mashed carrot (carrot diet), whereas the corn flour diet did not contain wheat germ. The carrot diet produced the heaviest pupae, adults with longer wings, and the lowest rate of deformed adults. The corn flour diet prolonged larval and pupal development and increased adult lipid and carbohydrate content. Both the corn flour and carrot diets led to greater glycogen accumulation and more skewed weight distributions compared to the wheat germ diet. Present results highlight how larval diet composition determines developmental traits with direct consequences on adult physiology in A. fraterculus. These characteristics could enhance the effectiveness of control programs such as SIT and other biological control strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feeding Biology and Nutrition in Insects)
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16 pages, 1041 KB  
Article
Isolation and Characterization of Cultivable Microbes from the Gut of Zophobas atratus (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) Larvae Reared on Two Types of Artificial Diets
by Vladislava Baklanova, Alexander Kuprin, Ivan Baklanov and Vadim Kumeiko
Biology 2025, 14(7), 824; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology14070824 - 7 Jul 2025
Viewed by 841
Abstract
Gut microbes are important for saproxylophagous insects, but little is known about the specific types of microbes that we can grow in the lab and how their diet affects them. We characterized aerobic culturable microbes from the superworm Zophobas atratus larvae reared on [...] Read more.
Gut microbes are important for saproxylophagous insects, but little is known about the specific types of microbes that we can grow in the lab and how their diet affects them. We characterized aerobic culturable microbes from the superworm Zophobas atratus larvae reared on a standard diet (SD) and a fungal-based diet (FD) using the selective plating and 16S rRNA sequencing of isolates. Five functional groups were cultured: amino acid autotrophs, enterobacteria, yeasts, cellulolytic bacteria, and molds. A quantitative assessment revealed distinct diet-dependent patterns: SD-fed larvae showed the dominance of enterobacteria and amino acid autotrophs, while FD-fed larvae exhibited a higher abundance of enterobacteria and yeasts. Mold populations remained minimal under both diets. A phylogenetic analysis of bacterial isolates showed four core bacterial phyla (Pseudomonadota, Actinobacteria, Bacillota, and Bacteroidota) with diet-sensitive genus-level variations. Pseudomonadota dominated both diets, but certain genera were associated with different diets: Micrococcus and Brucella in the SD versus Citrobacter and Pseudomonas in the FD. Shared genera (Klebsiella, Enterobacter, and Bacillus) may represent a core culturable community. These findings demonstrate the influence of diet on culturable gut microbes while highlighting the need for complementary molecular approaches to study unculturable taxa. The isolated strains provide resources for investigating microbial functions in insect nutrition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feeding Biology and Nutrition in Insects)
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10 pages, 1000 KB  
Communication
Nutritional Trade-Offs in Drosophila melanogaster
by Juliano Morimoto
Biology 2025, 14(4), 384; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology14040384 - 7 Apr 2025
Viewed by 1090
Abstract
Animals often regulate their nutrient intake according to their physiological needs. There is evidence that different traits require specific nutrient blends, and that animals cannot always maximize all traits with a single diet (“nutritional trade-offs”). However, we still do not have a clear [...] Read more.
Animals often regulate their nutrient intake according to their physiological needs. There is evidence that different traits require specific nutrient blends, and that animals cannot always maximize all traits with a single diet (“nutritional trade-offs”). However, we still do not have a clear understanding of which traits might be involved in nutritional trade-offs. I compiled data from the Geometric Framework of Nutrition literature on the ratio of proteins and carbohydrates that maximize (best PC ratios) or minimize (worst PC ratios) several larval and adult traits in Drosophila melanogaster. Best and worst PC ratios clustered into three regions in the protein-carbohydrate nutrient space: (1) Low PC ratios (1:8 or higher) are best for lifespan but worst for growth or reproductive traits; (2) High PC ratios (1:1 or lower) are best for adult body mass, male reproduction, and larval developmental time but worst for lifespan; and (3) Intermediate PC ratios (<1:1 and >1:8) are best for female lifetime egg production, female reproductive rate, and larval survival. These findings support lifespan–reproduction nutritional trade-offs, highlight the potential for metamorphosis to solve nutritional trade-offs across life stages, and underscore the potential for intralocus sexual conflict to emerge over the expression of metabolic genes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feeding Biology and Nutrition in Insects)
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