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Field Cricket Species Differences in the Temporal Patterns of Long‐Distance Mate Attraction Signals
Author(s) -
Bertram Susan M.,
Bowen Mia
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
ethology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.739
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1439-0310
pISSN - 0179-1613
DOI - 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2006.01234.x
Subject(s) - attraction , cricket , field cricket , variation (astronomy) , biology , mate choice , animal communication , wing , zoology , duration (music) , ecology , mating , acoustics , physics , thermodynamics , philosophy , linguistics , astrophysics
We quantify variation in the temporal components of long‐distance mate attraction signals produced by a North American field cricket, Gryllus rubens Scudder. Total signaling time, trilling bout duration, and hourly bout number exhibit high repeatability within individuals. Extensive variation exists across individuals: some males never signal while others signal for several hours each night; of the signalers, average trilling bout duration ranges from <1 min to well over an hour; some males produce only one trilling bout in an evening while others produce three bouts every 2 h. Body size, weight, wing morphology, and condition do not appear to explain the variation. We compare the temporal signaling components of G. rubens with its sister species, G. texensis . Although G. rubens produce slightly more trills per hour with slightly shorter trilling bout durations, the temporal components of these long‐distance mate attraction signals are surprisingly similar across species.