In:
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, The Royal Society, Vol. 284, No. 1865 ( 2017-10-25), p. 20171426-
Abstract:
From mammals to insects, acoustic communication is in many species crucial for successful reproduction. In the duetting bushcricket Ancylecha fenestrata , the mutual acoustic communication between males and females is asymmetrical. We investigated how those signalling disparities are reflected by sexual dimorphism of their ears. Both sexes have tympanic ears in their forelegs, but male ears possess a significantly longer crista acustica containing 35% more scolopidia. With more sensory cells to cover a similar hearing range, the male hearing organ shows a significantly expanded auditory fovea that is tuned to the dominant frequency of the female reply to facilitate phonotactic mate finding. This sex-specific auditory fovea is demonstrated in the mechanical and neuronal responses along the tonotopically organized crista acustica by laservibrometric and electrophysiological frequency mapping, respectively. Morphometric analysis of the crista acustica revealed an interrupted gradient in organ height solely within this auditory fovea region, whereas all other anatomical parameters decrease continuously from proximal to distal. Combining behavioural, anatomical, biomechanical and neurophysiological information, we demonstrate evidence of a pronounced auditory fovea as a sex-specific adaptation of an insect hearing organ for intraspecific acoustic communication.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0962-8452
,
1471-2954
DOI:
10.1098/rspb.2017.1426
Language:
English
Publisher:
The Royal Society
Publication Date:
2017
detail.hit.zdb_id:
1460975-7
SSG:
12
SSG:
25
Bookmarklink
