Social interactions during development in the ovoviviparous cockroach Schultesia lampyridiformis
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Abstract
Cockroaches are generally divided into solitary and gregarious species. Schultesia lampyridiformis (Zetoborinae) is a neotropical cockroach presenting unusual characteristics: it inhabits only pendulous nests of colonial Cacicus birds and feeds on broken eggs or bird corpses. This patchy habitat and food resource was expected to favour gregarious habits, which were effectively observed in adults. However, young nymphs dispersed during the first hours following birth. The gregarious life style should thus appear during the course of nymphal development. This study is aimed at specifying the timing of apparition of gregariousness during the development, and identifying the behaviours characterising the solitary and gregarious phases. We compared under experimental conditions social interactions and spatial distribution in pairs of nymphs at different instars (1, 2, 3, 5 and last instar) and in pairs of adult females. The gregarious phase appeared progressively in the last nymphal instars, and was characterized by a simultaneous increase in several behavioural features: length of interaction sequences, proportion of mutual antennal contacts, rate of answer to social stimulations from conspecifics and proportion of time spent close to conspecifics. This behavioural change is discussed regarding its possible function and importance for comparative studies of gregariousness.
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| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 505 | 100 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 131 | 12 | 2 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 160 | 28 | 1 |
Social interactions during development in the ovoviviparous cockroach Schultesia lampyridiformis
In: BehaviourSearch for other papers by Joan van Baaren in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Elodie Eckstein in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Pierre Deleporte in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Veronique Biquand in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Thierry le Rouzo in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Jean-Sébastien Pierre in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
Cockroaches are generally divided into solitary and gregarious species. Schultesia lampyridiformis (Zetoborinae) is a neotropical cockroach presenting unusual characteristics: it inhabits only pendulous nests of colonial Cacicus birds and feeds on broken eggs or bird corpses. This patchy habitat and food resource was expected to favour gregarious habits, which were effectively observed in adults. However, young nymphs dispersed during the first hours following birth. The gregarious life style should thus appear during the course of nymphal development. This study is aimed at specifying the timing of apparition of gregariousness during the development, and identifying the behaviours characterising the solitary and gregarious phases. We compared under experimental conditions social interactions and spatial distribution in pairs of nymphs at different instars (1, 2, 3, 5 and last instar) and in pairs of adult females. The gregarious phase appeared progressively in the last nymphal instars, and was characterized by a simultaneous increase in several behavioural features: length of interaction sequences, proportion of mutual antennal contacts, rate of answer to social stimulations from conspecifics and proportion of time spent close to conspecifics. This behavioural change is discussed regarding its possible function and importance for comparative studies of gregariousness.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 505 | 100 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 131 | 12 | 2 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 160 | 28 | 1 |
