Crickets emit odour to bypass rivals in mating
March 23rd, 2011 - 12:40 pm ICT by IANSSydney, March 23 (IANS) Field crickets emit a special odour to bypass dominant rivals in order to attract a female, says new research.
The study authors show that just as male birds may have flamboyant plumage, insects too excrete chemicals through cuticles to signal their status.
Melissa Thomas and Leigh Simmons from the University of Western Australia found that dominant male crickets barred subordinate males from performing courtship songs, reports journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
However, the silenced males compensated by producing a scent to boost their chances with females, according to a University of Western Australia statement.
Researchers found that the scent is composed of hydrocarbons whose composition undergoes short-term changes, depending on the cricket’s success or failure in these confrontations.
“Subordinate males may adopt alternative tactics of silently searching for females, relying more heavily on olfactory signals to induce them to mate,” the authors wrote.
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Tags: confrontations, courtship songs, cricket, crickets, cuticles, females, hydrocarbons, insects, journal proceedings, male birds, male crickets, melissa thomas, proceedings of the royal society, proceedings of the royal society b, rivals, simmons, study authors, sydney march, term changes, university of western australia