@article {58047, title = {Phonotactic steering and representation of directional information in the ascending auditory pathway of a cricket}, year = {2020}, abstract = {

Directional hearing is crucial for animals depending on acoustic signals to locate a mate. We focused on crickets to explore the reliability of directional information forwarded to the brain by the ascending auditory interneuron AN1, which is crucial for phonotactic behavior. We presented calling song from -45\° to +45\° in steps of 3\°, and compared the phonotactic steering of females walking on a trackball with the directional responses of AN1. 40\% of females showed good steering behavior and changed their walking direction when the speaker passed the body\´s longitudinal axis. The bilateral latency difference between right and left AN1 responses was small and may not be reliable for auditory steering. In respect to spike count, all AN1 recordings presented significant bilateral differences for angles larger than \±18\°, yet 35\% showed a mean significant difference of 1-3 AP/Chirp when the frontal stimulus deviated by 3\° from their length axis. For small angles some females had a very similar AN1 activity forwarded to the brain, but the accuracy of their steering behavior was substantially different. Our results indicate a correlation between directional steering and the response strength of AN1, especially for large angles. The reliable steering of animals at small angles would have to be based on small bilateral differences of AN1 activity, if AN1 is the only source providing directional information. We discuss if such bilateral response difference at small angles can provide a reliable measure to generate auditory steering commands descending from the brain, as pattern recognition is intensity independent.

}, keywords = {AN1 interneuron, binaural differences, reliability, spike response, surface electrodes}, doi = {10.1152/jn.00737.2019}, url = {https://www.physiology.org/doi/10.1152/jn.00737.2019https://www.physiology.org/doi/pdf/10.1152/jn.00737.2019}, author = {Lv, Mingyue and Zhang, Xinyang and Hedwig, Berthold} } @article {58027, title = {Diversity of acoustic tracheal system and its role for directional hearing in crickets}, year = {2013}, abstract = {

Background: Sound localization in small insects can be a challenging task due to physical constraints in deriving sufficiently large interaural intensity differences (IIDs) between both ears. In crickets, sound source localization is achieved by a complex type of pressure difference receiver consisting of four potential sound inputs. Sound acts on the external side of two tympana but additionally reaches the internal tympanal surface via two external sound entrances. Conduction of internal sound is realized by the anatomical arrangement of connecting trachea. A key structure is a trachea coupling both ears which is characterized by an enlarged part in its midline (i.e., the acoustic vesicle) accompanied with a thin membrane (septum). This facilitates directional sensitivity despite an unfavorable relationship between wavelength of sound and body size. Here we studied the morphological differences of the acoustic tracheal system in 40 cricket species (Gryllidae, Mogoplistidae) and species of outgroup taxa (Gryllotalpidae, Rhaphidophoridae, Gryllacrididae) of the suborder Ensifera comprising hearing and non hearing species.

Results: We found a surprisingly high variation of acoustic tracheal systems and almost all investigated species using intraspecific acoustic communication were characterized by an acoustic vesicle associated with a medial septum. The relative size of the acoustic vesicle - a structure most crucial for deriving high IIDs - implies an important role for sound localization. Most remarkable in this respect was the size difference of the acoustic vesicle between species; those with a more unfavorable ratio of body size to sound wavelength tend to exhibit a larger acoustic vesicle. On the other hand, secondary loss of acoustic signaling was nearly exclusively associated with the absence of both acoustic vesicle and septum.

Conclusion: The high diversity of acoustic tracheal morphology observed between species might reflect different steps in the evolution of the pressure difference receiver; with a precursor structure already present in ancestral non-hearing species. In addition, morphological transitions of the acoustic vesicle suggest a possible adaptive role for the generation of binaural directional cues.

}, keywords = {Acoustic tracheal system, cricket, directional hearing, Interaural intensity difference (IID), Pressure difference receiver, Sound localization}, doi = {10.1186/1742-9994-10-61}, url = {http://frontiersinzoology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1742-9994-10-61}, author = {Schmidt, Arne KD and R{\"o}mer, Heiner} } @article {57947, title = {No Effect of Body Size on the Frequency of Calling and Courtship Song in the Two-Spotted Cricket, Gryllus bimaculatus}, year = {2016}, abstract = {

The relationship between body size and vocalization parameters has been studied in many animal species. In insect species, however, the effect of body size on song frequency has remained unclear. Here we analyzed the effect of body size on the frequency spectra of mating songs produced by the two-spotted cricket, Gryllus bimaculatus. We recorded the calling songs and courtship songs of male crickets of different body sizes. The calling songs contained a frequency component that peaked at 5.7 kHz. On the other hand, courtship songs contained two frequency components that peaked at 5.8 and 14.7 kHz. The dominant frequency of each component in both the calling and courtship songs was constant regard- less of body size. The size of the harp and mirror regions in the cricket forewings, which are the acoustic sources of the songs, correlated positively with body size. These findings sug- gest that the frequency contents of both the calling and courtship songs of the cricket are unaffected by whole body, harp, or mirror size.

}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.014699910.1371/journal.pone.0146999.g00110.1371/journal.pone.0146999.g00210.1371/journal.pone.0146999.t00110.1371/journal.pone.0146999.s001}, url = {https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0146999}, author = {Miyashita, Atsushi and Kizaki, Hayato and Sekimizu, Kazuhisa and Kaito, Chikara} } @article {57668, title = {The neuroethology of acoustic startle and escape in flying insects}, year = {1989}, abstract = {

The acoustic startle/escape response is a phylogenetically widespread behavioral act, provoked by an intense, unexpected sound. At least six orders of insects have evolved tympanate ears that serve acoustic behavior that ranges from sexual communication to predator detection. Insects that fly at night are vulnerable to predation by insectivorous bats that detect and locate their prey by using biosonar signals. Of the six orders of insects that possess tympanate hearing organs, four contain species that fly at night and, in these, hearing is sensitive to a range of ultrasonic frequencies found in the biosonar signals of bats. Laboratory and field studies have shown that these insects (including some orthopterans, lepidopterans, neuropterans and dictyopterans), when engaged in flight behavior, respond to ultrasound by suddenly altering their flight, showing acoustic startle or negative phonotaxis, which serve as bat-avoidance behavior. A neural analysis of ultrasound-mediated escape behavior was undertaken in the field cricket Telegryllus oceanicus. An identified thoracic interneuron, int-1, was shown to trigger the escape response, but only when the cell was driven (synaptically or electrically) at high spike rates, and only when the insect was performing flight behavior; avoidance steering only occurs in the appropriate behavioral context: flight. Thus, significant constraints operate upon the ability of int-1 to trigger the escape response. The integration of auditory input and flight central pattern generator output occurs in the brain. It is found that neural activity descending from the brain in response to stimulation by ultrasound is increased when the insect is flying compared to when it is not. Although the behavioral act of avoidance steering may appear to be a simple reflex act, further analysis shows it to be anything but simple.

}, author = {Ronald R. Hoy and Nolen, Tom and Brodfuehrer, Peter} } @article {57660, title = {Feedforward discharges couple the singing central pattern generator and ventilation central pattern generator in the cricket abdominal central nervous system}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

We investigated the central nervous coordination between singing motor activity and abdominal ventilatory pumping in crickets. Fictive singing, with sensory feedback removed, was elicited by eserine-microinjection into the brain, and the motor activity underlying singing and abdominal ventilation was recorded with extracellular electrodes. During singing, expiratory abdominal muscle activity is tightly phase coupled to the chirping pattern. Occasional temporary desynchronization of the two motor patterns indicate discrete central pattern generator (CPG) networks that can operate independently. Intracellular recordings revealed a sub-threshold depolarization in phase with the ventilatory cycle in a singing-CPG interneuron, and in a ventilation-CPG interneuron an excitatory input in phase with each syllable of the chirps. Inhibitory synaptic inputs coupled to the syllables of the singing motor pattern were present in another ventilatory interneuron, which is not part of the ventilation-CPG. Our recordings suggest that the two centrally generated motor patterns are coordinated by reciprocal feedforward discharges from the singing-CPG to the ventilation-CPG and vice versa. Consequently, expiratory contraction of the abdomen usually occurs in phase with the chirps and ventilation accelerates during singing due to entrainment by the faster chirp cycle.

}, keywords = {Abdominal ventilation, Central pattern generation, Corollary discharge, Fictive singing, Motor systems coordination}, doi = {10.1007/s00359-019-01377-7}, url = {http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00359-019-01377-7}, author = {Sch{\"o}neich, Stefan and Hedwig, Berthold} } @article {57650, title = {Matched Filters, Mate Choice and the Evolution of Sexually Selected Traits}, year = {2008}, abstract = {

Background: Fundamental for understanding the evolution of communication systems is both the variation in a signal and how this affects the behavior of receivers, as well as variation in preference functions of receivers, and how this affects the variability of the signal. However, individual differences in female preference functions and their proximate causation have rarely been studied.

Methodology/Principal Findings: Calling songs of male field crickets represent secondary sexual characters and are subject to sexual selection by female choice. Following predictions from the \‘\‘matched filter hypothesis\’\’ we studied the tuning of an identified interneuron in a field cricket, known for its function in phonotaxis, and correlated this with the preference of the same females in two-choice trials. Females vary in their neuronal frequency tuning, which strongly predicts the preference in a choice situation between two songs differing in carrier frequency. A second \‘\‘matched filter\’\’ exists in directional hearing, where reliable cues for sound localization occur only in a narrow frequency range. There is a strong correlation between the directional tuning and the behavioural preference in no-choice tests. This second \‘\‘matched filter\’\’ also varies widely in females, and surprisingly, differs on average by 400 Hz from the neuronal frequency tuning.

Conclusions/Significance: Our findings on the mismatch of the two \‘\‘matched filters\’\’ would suggest that the difference in these two filters appears to be caused by their evolutionary history, and the different trade-offs which exist between sound emission, transmission and detection, as well as directional hearing under specific ecological settings. The mismatched filter situation may ultimately explain the maintenance of considerable variation in the carrier frequency of the male signal despite stabilizing selection.

}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.000300510.1371/journal.pone.0003005.g00110.1371/journal.pone.0003005.g00210.1371/journal.pone.0003005.g00310.1371/journal.pone.0003005.g00410.1371/journal.pone.0003005.t001}, url = {https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0003005}, author = {Kostarakos, Konstantinos and Hartbauer, Manfred and Heiner R{\"o}mer}, editor = {Tregenza, Tom} } @article {57603, title = {Experience modulates an insect{\textquoteright}s response to anthropogenic noise}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

In response to anthropogenic noise, vertebrates express modified acoustic communication signals either through individual plasticity or local population adaptation. In contrast, how insects respond to this stressor is poorly studied. Field crickets Gryllus bimaculatus use acoustic signals to attract and locate mates and are commonly found in noisy roadside environments, offering a powerful system to study the effects of anthropogenic noise on insect communication. Rapid repetition of sexual calls (chirps) is essential to attract females, but calling incurs energetic costs and attracts predators. As a result, males are predicted to reduce calling rates when background noise is high. Here, we combine observations and experimental playbacks to show that the responses of field cricket males to anthropogenic noise also depend on their previous experience with passing cars. First, we show that males living on highway edges decrease their chirp rate in response to passing cars. To assess whether this behavioral response depends on previous exposure to car noise, we then broadcast recordings of car noise to males located at different distances from the road and, therefore, with different previous exposure to car noise. Although all tested individuals responded to broadcasted traffic noise, males closest to the road decreased their chirp rate less than individuals calling further from the road. These results suggest that regular exposure to anthropogenic noise may decrease individuals\’ sensitivity and behavioral responses to noise, allowing them to maintain effective signaling rates. Behavioral plasticity modulated by experience may thus allow some insect species to cope with human-induced environmental stressors.

}, keywords = {acoustic adaptation, anthropogenic noise, behavioral plasticity, Gryllus bimaculatus, Insect, sexual signals}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/arz159}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/advance-article/doi/10.1093/beheco/arz159/5574703}, author = {Gallego-Abenza, Mario and Mathevon, Nicolas and Wheatcroft, David}, editor = {Candolin, Ulrika} } @article {53247, title = {Crickets increase sexual signalling and sperm protection but live shorter in the presence of rivals}, journal = {Journal of Evolutionary Biology}, year = {2018}, month = {May-10-2019}, abstract = {

The sociosexual environment animals experience through their life can shape the evolution of key life history traits, including longevity. Male-male competition, for instance, may influence the resources allocated to traits involved in male reproductive success. Here, I test whether lifelong exposure to a competitor male influences male investment in pre- and post-copulatory sexual traits (calling effort and sperm quality) and how this affected the oxidative status and longevity of male field crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus). As expected, the visual exposure to a mating competitor promoted a higher calling effort in the male crickets but resulted in a decline in the haemolymph antioxidant content. The haemolymph antioxidant content negatively covaried with the antioxidant content of the sperm but interestingly, only when the males were exposed to a competitor. This suggests that when mating competition is high, males may prioritise sperm antioxidant protection against somatic maintenance. Finally, I provide evidence that male-male competition imposes additional costs to reproduction, as males exposed to a mating competitor lost a significant proportion of body antioxidant defences and body mass over time and in long-term, had a reduced lifespan. Overall, this study strongly suggests that intrasexual competition may impose additional oxidative costs during reproduction for males, with negative consequences on lifespan. Moreover, the results highlight the role of oxidative stress as a physiological mechanism underlying the trade-off between reproduction-longevity and through which sexual selection may contribute to the evolution of senescence patterns.

}, keywords = {calling effort, longevity, male-male competition, oxidative stress}, doi = {10.1111/jeb.13390}, url = {http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/jeb.13390}, author = {Noguera, Jos{\'e} C.} } @article {53146, title = {Auditory behavior of the cricket IV. Interaction of direction of tracking with perceived temporal pattern in split-song paradigms}, journal = {Journal of Comparative Physiology A}, volume = {163}, year = {1988}, pages = {13-22}, chapter = {13}, abstract = {

1. Split songs \— stimulus arrangements in which parts of cricket calling songs are delivered from different directions via two loudspeakers \— have been used to place constraints on the recognition and direction-determining processes in the field cricketGryllus bimaculatus, walking on the Kramer spherical treadmill. Parts of a calling song, each ineffective when delivered alone, can combine to elicit recognition and tracking when interleaved from two speakers 135\° apart in azimuth.

2. If two correct songs (40-ms syllable repetition interval) are delivered from the two speakers, but time-shifted by a half interval so that their composite (20-ms intervals) is incorrect, then the angle bisecting the speaker separation (where the two should appear equally loud) might be expected to be an \‘unfavored zone\’; the animals do in fact tend to avoid that region. As in controls on \‘choice\’ experiments with interleaving of complete chirps, if one speaker is increased in sound intensity it tends to be favored.

3. If two incorrect songs (80-ms syllable repetition interval) are delivered from the two speakers, again time-shifted by half a syllable interval so that the composite is correct (40-ms intervals), then angles near those bisecting the speaker separation might be expected to be favored, and most animals track in that way. Surprisingly, however, when one speaker is increased in sound intensity in this case most animals show a marked shift of tracking toward the less-loud speaker at test intensities near 60 and 70 dB. At 80 dB the effect is reversed.

4. About one-third of females track trill \— continuous trains of syllables at the correct syllable rate but with no subdivision into chirps; these were tested with split trills. If alternate syllables of the trill were delivered from the two speakers, or alternating doublets, tracking tended to bisect the 135\° angle between speakers. With alternating triplets or higher n-tuples, one or the other speaker was tracked quite accurately. This ability to lock on to one signal despite the presence of another (at 135\°) was tested at smaller speaker separations (90\°, 65\°, 45\°); the animals then usually fail to select one speaker.

5. The above results are difficult to explain via a putative \‘tracking comparator\’ with \‘cardioid\’ inputs from the two sides of the auditory system. In particular, the distinct behaviors with respect to intensity imbalance (2 and 3 above, for different ranges of syllable repetition interval of split songs) suggest that bilateral dynamic interactions in the CNS may be involved. Specific correlates of these effects can be sought in multiple-source or dual leg-phone experiments with electrophysiological monitoring of prothoracic and brain cells.

}, author = {Theo Weber and John Thorson} } @article {53118, title = {Anthropogenic noise disrupts mate searching in Gryllus bimaculatus}, journal = {Behavioral Ecology}, year = {2018}, month = {Apr-10-2018}, abstract = {

Many animals use acoustic communication as a means of sending important biological information, such as their location, to potential receivers. However, anthropogenic noise is known to affect the ability of some species to either produce or receive signals, which may influence their reproductive success. In this study, we investigate the effect of anthropogenic noise on the mate-searching behaviors of the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus. To accomplish this, phonotaxis trials were conducted with female field crickets under different acoustic conditions, and their ability to detect and move towards conspecific male calls was assessed. The presence of traffic noise reduced the likelihood that the female would approach the male calls and also reduced the time that the female spent attending to the calling stimulus before making her decision. However, the presence of white noise did not reduce the likelihood of approaching the calling speaker, indicating that the average amplitude of anthropogenic noise is, alone, not important in this conflict, but frequency and fluctuations in the stimulus or other characteristics might be. This study supports the hypothesis that anthropogenic noise does indeed influence the detectability of acoustic mate location signals, thus disrupting mate searching behavior.

}, keywords = {acoustic signals, anthropogenic noise, Gryllus bimaculatus, mate searching, sexual signals}, issn = {1045-2249}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/ary126}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/advance-article/doi/10.1093/beheco/ary126/5115667}, author = {Bent, Adam M and Ings, Thomas C} } @article {52757, title = {Effects of a tachinid parasitoid, Ormia ochracea, on the behaviour and reproduction of its male and female field cricket hosts (Gryllus spp)}, journal = {Journal of Insect Physiology}, volume = {41}, year = {1995}, month = {Jan-03-1995}, pages = {269 - 277}, abstract = {

The larvae of the tachinid parasitoid fly, Ormia ochracea, develop within the body of their host, the field crickets Gryllus integer and Gryllus rubens. The fly will also develop within the cricket Gryllus bimaculatus, which is not the natural host. For the first 3 days after entering a cricket, the first instar larvae grew inside the large thoracic muscles, but did little damage to the muscles during this time. They then migrated into the abdomen where they moulted, attached themselves to the body wall and fed primarily on the host\&$\#$39;s muscle and fat body, sparing the digestive system and CNS. Usually the host\&$\#$39;s reproductive system was only partially damaged. After the larvae entered the abdominal cavity, the host\&$\#$39;s mating, egg-laying and fighting ability (males) declined. This decline probably occurred due to the tissue damage wrought by the parasitoid. Less energy-demanding behaviours, such as grooming and feeding, were not affected during the entire period of infestation. During the first instar (when the parasitoid is embedded in the host\&$\#$39;s muscle), male crickets showed an increased tendency to attack other males. This increased incidence of agonistic behaviour occurred before the parasitoid caused significant tissue damage to the host and must therefore have been due to some other effect of the parasitoid.

}, issn = {00221910}, doi = {10.1016/0022-1910(94)00095-X}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/002219109400095X}, author = {Adamo, S.A. and Daniel Robert} } @article {52558, title = {Biophysik der Schallerzeugung durch die Vorderfl{\"u}gel der Grillen}, journal = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Vergleichende Physiologie}, volume = {74}, year = {1971}, month = {Jan-01-1971}, pages = {272 - 314}, abstract = {

In several cricket species (Gryllus campestris L., Gryllus bimaculatus de Geer, and Acheta domesticus L.) the sound-radiating parts of the tegmen have been determined for the calling song. The oscillatory properties of these structures have been analysed.

1.
Extirpation of one harp-area (Fig. 2) lowered the sound pressure level of the first maximum (4\–5 kHz) in the sound frequency spectrogram by 18 dB on the average (Fig. 4). This drop was partially reversed by installation of plastic substitutes (Fig. 5).

2.
The radiated sound can be changed by excising teeth on the pars stridens. By this means the damping characteristics of the tegminal resonator were calculated. The logarithmic decrements were between 0.086 and 0.262, depending on the animal.

3.
The sound level distribution on the surface of the tegmen of stridulating males was measured for the 5 kHz-component of the calling song. The fact that a distinct maximum of sound pressure was located on the harp (Fig. 7) demonstrates the sound-radiating function of this structure.

4.
The sound distribution around stridulating animals was measured in the equatorial and median planes (Fig. 8). The sound-radiation is directed. Microphone probe measurements in the 12 mm long cavity under the elevated tegmina showed a caudad directed sound-level-gradient of 9.3 dB on the average.

5.
The cavity under the tegmina has no resonator properties.

6.
The resonance frequency of the harp was calculated to be 5.6 kHz. This value corresponds closely to the measured resonance frequency of the harp, which varies with different specimens of Gryllus campestris from 4.2\–5.4 kHz.

7.
Motion pictures of the wing covered with cork powder and excited with sound showed in a direct way the resonator properties of the harp and the mirror (Fig. 9).

8.
The resonance curve of the harp was determined (Fig. 10), and it was shown that the harp is a uniform and linear resonance system (Figs. 11 and 12). The harp frame has no resonator function (Fig. 13).

9.
The amplitude of the harp displacement in response to a sound pulse is an exponential function for the building-up-transient as well as for the dying-out-transient (Figs. 14 and 15).\—From the resonance curve and the dying-out-transient the expected phaseshift between the driving force and the resonator displacement can be calculated. Calculated and experimentally determined values for the phase-shift are in good agreement (Fig. 17).

10.
Characteristics of the harp resonator (Q-factor, resonance frequency, response-threshold) were determined. The resonators of the right and left tegmen are differently tuned.

There is a close correlation between the resonance frequency of the harp and the location of the first maximum in the sound frequency spectrogram of the calling song (Table 3).

11.
In comparison with the pressure level of the radiated sound, the response threshold of the harp is rather low. For this reason a stridulating cricket can throw the harp of another animal into resonance (Fig. 18). This has been shown experimentally over distances up to 150 cm.

12.
The harp was artificially damped with a mass and the displacement of the resonance frequency was determined (Fig. 19). From this displacement the mass of the harp was calculated.

13.
In comparison with the harp the mirror is more strongly damped and it is tuned to a higher frequency of 7.2 kHz (Fig. 20 and Table 2).

14.
The tegminal resonators (harp and mirror) of Gryllus bimaculatus and Acheta domesticus (Fig. 21 and Table 2) are comparable to those of Gryllus campestris which have been studied in detail.

}, issn = {0340-7594}, doi = {10.1007/BF00297730}, url = {http://link.springer.com/10.1007/BF00297730}, author = {Nocke, Harald} } @article {47895, title = {Evolution of a Communication System by Sensory Exploitation of Startle Behavior}, journal = {Current Biology}, volume = {25}, year = {2015}, month = {Jan-12-2015}, pages = {3245 - 3252}, abstract = {

New communication signals can evolve by sensory exploitation if signaling taps into preexisting sensory biases in receivers [1 ;\  2]. For mate attraction, signals are typically similar to attractive environmental cues like food [3; 4; 5 ;\  6], which amplifies their attractiveness to mates, as opposed to aversive stimuli like predator cues. Female field crickets approach the low-frequency calling song of males, whereas they avoid high-frequency sounds like predatory bat calls [7]. In one group of crickets (Eneopterinae: Lebinthini), however, males produce exceptionally high-frequency calling songs in the range of bat calls [8], a surprising signal in the context of mate attraction. We found that female lebinthines, instead of approaching singing males, produce vibrational responses after male calls, and males track the source of vibrations to find females. We also demonstrate that field cricket species closely related to the Lebinthini show an acoustic startle response to high-frequency sounds that generates substrate vibrations similar to those produced by female lebinthine crickets. Therefore, the startle response is the most likely evolutionary origin of the female lebinthine vibrational signal. In field crickets, the brain receives activity from two auditory interneurons; AN1 tuned to male calling song controls positive phonotaxis, and AN2 tuned to high-frequency bat calls triggers negative phonotaxis [9 ;\  10]. In lebinthine crickets, however, we found that auditory ascending neurons are only tuned to high-frequency sounds, and their tuning matches the thresholds for female vibrational signals. Our results demonstrate how sensory exploitation of anti-predator behavior can evolve into a communication system that benefits both senders and receivers.

}, issn = {09609822}, doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2015.10.064}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0960982215013585}, author = {ter Hofstede, Hannah M. and Sch{\"o}neich, Stefan and Tony Robillard and Hedwig, Berthold} } @article {47782, title = {The calling song of the field cricket, Gryllus bimaculatus (de geer): constraints on transmission and its role in intermale competition and female choice}, journal = {Animal Behaviour}, volume = {36}, year = {1988}, month = {Jan-04-1988}, pages = {380 - 394}, abstract = {

Field studies of calling male field crickets, Gryllus bimaculatus, showed that males formed calling aggregations. Within aggregations males appeared to maintain an exclusive female-attraction zone about their burrows; calling song may thus serve as an aggressive signal to neighbouring males to maintain spacing. Calling song attenuates with distance. Furthermore, calls became degraded with distance by the loss of low frequency components and a reduction in the interval between chirps and pulses due to reverberation. Playback experiments suggested that the predictable degrading properties of the call may serve as a distance-finding mechanism maintaining observed male spacing. The intensity of calls and the repetition rate of chirps and pulses was positively correlated with male size. While information contained within the intensity parameter of calls may prove unreliable due to unpredictable attenuation and irregular amplitude fluctuations, the repetition rate of chirps and pulses was not affected by distance degradation. Playback experiments in which intensity was controlled suggested that females orientate preferentially to the calls of large males.

}, issn = {00033472}, doi = {10.1016/S0003-3472(88)80009-5}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0003347288800095}, author = {Simmons, L.W.} } @article {47776, title = {Variability in call structure and pairing success of male field crickets, Gryllus bimaculatus: the effects of age, size and parasite load}, journal = {Animal Behaviour}, volume = {44}, year = {1992}, month = {Jan-12-1992}, pages = {1145 - 1152}, abstract = {

The effects of male body size, age and gregarine parasite load on the structure of calls and success at attracting mates were investigated in a natural population of the field cricket, Gryllus bimaculatus. The syllable rate within chirps was negatively related to male size, and the duration of syllables was positively related to size. Older males had more variable syllable rates within their chirps. Size did not influence pairing success. However, paired males were significantly older than solitary calling males. Parasitic infection influenced the pairing success of young males but not old males. These data are discussed in the context of direct and indirect selection for female mating preferences.

}, issn = {00033472}, doi = {10.1016/S0003-3472(05)80326-4}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0003347205803264}, author = {Simmons, Leigh W. and Zuk, Marlene} } @article {20917, title = {Frequency tuning and directional sensitivity of tympanal vibrations in the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus}, journal = {Journal of The Royal Society Interface}, volume = {14}, year = {2017}, month = {Dec-28-20172018}, pages = {20170035}, abstract = {

Female field crickets use phonotaxis to locate males by their calling song. Male song production and female behavioural sensitivity form a pair of matched frequency filters, which in Gryllus bimaculatus are tuned to a frequency of about 4.7 kHz. Directional sensitivity is supported by an elaborate system of acoustic tracheae, which make the ears function as pressure difference receivers. As a result, phase differences between left and right sound inputs are transformed into vibration amplitude differences. Here we critically tested the hypothesis that acoustic properties of internal transmissions play a major role in tuning directional sensitivity to the calling song frequency, by measuring tympanal vibrations as a function of sound direction and frequency. Rather than sharp frequency tuning of directional sensitivity corresponding to the calling song, we found broad frequency tuning, with optima shifted to higher frequencies. These findings agree with predictions from a vector summation model for combining external and internal sounds. We show that the model provides robust directional sensitivity that is, however, broadly tuned with an optimum well above the calling song frequency. We therefore advocate that additional filtering, e.g. at a higher (neuronal) level, significantly contributes to frequency tuning of directional sensitivity.

}, issn = {1742-5689}, doi = {10.1098/rsif.2017.0035}, url = {http://rsif.royalsocietypublishing.org/lookup/doi/10.1098/rsif.2017.0035https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1098/rsif.2017.0035}, author = {Lankheet, Martin J. and Cerkvenik, Uro{\v s} and Ole N{\ae}sbye Larsen and van Leeuwen, Johan L.} } @article {17242, title = {Physical processes and mechanism of sound production in Field Cricket Gryllus bimaculatus De Geer}, journal = {Entomon}, volume = {13}, year = {1988}, pages = {109-120}, chapter = {109}, abstract = {

The paper describes the acoustic apparatus of field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus. A model is proposed for the mechanism of sound production. Physical and acoustic apparatus are reported. Mutilation experiments on the elytra of the insect were performed to study the relative contribution of the components of the acoustic apparatus. Different physical processes involved in the sound production such as signal generation, amplification, frequency modukation (FM) and amplitude modulation (AM) are discussed. The quality of the sound analysed by the sonagraphic technique. It consists of fundamnetal (5kHz) and two overtones (10,5 \& 16kHz), the former being prominent.

}, keywords = {amplifier, elytral vibration, file-scraper system, frequency geneartor, frequency modulator, frictional system, Gryllus bimaculatus, resonance}, author = {Adeel Ahmad and M. A. Siddiqui} } @article {16472, title = {Temperature Coupling and {\textquoteleft}Trade-Off{\textquoteright} Phenomena in the Acoustic Communication System of the Cricket, Gryllus bimaculatus De Geer (Gryllidae)}, journal = {Journal of Experimental Biology}, volume = {114}, year = {1985}, pages = {17-35}, chapter = {17}, url = {http://jeb.biologists.org/content/114/1/17.article-info}, author = {John A. Doherty} } @article {15453, title = {Volcanic ash decreases mating effort in the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus (Orthoptera: Gryllidae)}, journal = {Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology}, year = {2017}, month = {Jan-01-2017}, abstract = {

Volcanic eruptions have serious impacts on ecosystems from individual behavior to community structure. Volcanic ash has an especially widespread effect on organisms, as it can be dispersed over a greater distance by the wind than are other volcanic products. We examined the effect of volcanic ash on calling songs and mating behavior of the male field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus De Geer (Orthoptera: Gryllidae). Adult males were randomly assigned to one of four treatments comprising different floor material (volcanic ash, filter paper, vermiculite, and Akadama soil), and parameters of calling songs and mating behavior were measured. The dominant frequency of calling song lowered by the volcanic ash. Males reared on volcanic ash and soil exhibited lower calling rates per night. Furthermore, males reared on ash and vermiculite exhibited a longer latency to courtship period than those reared on the other floor materials. Our results showed that floor material does affect the mating efforts of male field crickets.

}, issn = {12268615}, doi = {10.1016/j.aspen.2017.01.005}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1226861516301960}, author = {Kuriwada, Takashi and Gadi V.P. Reddy} } @article {12665, title = {Selective phonotaxis of female crickets under natural outdoor conditions}, journal = {Journal of Comparative Physiology A}, volume = {200}, year = {2014}, month = {Jan-03-2014}, pages = {239 - 250}, abstract = {Acoustic mate choice in insects has been extensively studied under laboratory conditions, using different behavioural paradigms. Ideally, however, mate choice designs should reflect natural conditions, including the physical properties of the transmission channel for the signal. Since little is known about the discrimination ability of females between male song variants under natural conditions, we performed phonotaxis experiments with female field crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus) outdoors, using two-choice decisions based on differences in carrier frequency, sound pressure level, and chirp rate. For all three song parameters, minimum differences necessary for a significant preference between two song models were considerably larger outdoors compared to laboratory conditions. A minimum amplitude difference of 5 dB was required for a significant choice in the field, compared to only 1{\textendash}2 dB reported for lab-based experiments. Due to the tuned receiver system, differences in carrier frequency equal differences in perceived loudness, and the results on choice for differences in carrier frequency corroborate those in amplitude. Similarly, chirp rate differences of 50 chirps/min were required outdoors compared to only 20 chirps/min in the lab. For predictions about patterns of sexual selection, future studies need to consider the different outcomes of mate choice decisions in lab and field trials.}, keywords = {acoustic communication, Decision making, Female choice, Field cricket, phonotaxis}, issn = {0340-7594}, doi = {10.1007/s00359-014-0881-7}, url = {http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00359-014-0881-7}, author = {Hirtenlehner, Stefan} }