Mating behaviour and mating signalling modalities in Drosophila nasuta. (March 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chowdanayaka, Rajanikanth; Basappa, Ramachandra Nallur
• Is Part Of: Animal behaviour. Volume 197(2023)
• Page Start: 43
• Page End: 50
• Publication Date: 2023-03
• Subjects: chemosensory cue -- Drosophila nasuta -- mate recognition -- sensory ablation -- signal modality; Animal behavior -- Periodicals; 591.5
• DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.12.010
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0003-3472

Abstract

Abstract : Mate recognition is a critical and often complex step in the premating reproductive behaviour of most organisms. Drosophila relies on multiple signal modalities such as visual, auditory, gustatory and olfactory cues for mate recognition. To understand the evolution and function of these signal modalities, the production and reception of these signals must be tested individually. Ablation of a single sensory channel of males and females can help us understand the role of individual modalities in successful mate recognition and copulation. In addition to ablation, measuring the courtship timing, such as courtship latency and courtship duration, will allow us to identify the stage of the courtship at which a particular signal is acting. Our study focused on Drosophila nasuta, a species belonging to the nasuta subgroup of Drosophila, which comprises a dozen morphologically similar species at different levels of reproductive isolation. We conducted no-choice mating experiments using two species of the nasuta subgroup to study the sequence of courtship behaviour. We did not observe any discernible variation in the sequence of courtship behaviour between species. We also performed no-choice mating experiments by ablating a single signal modality in D. nasuta and recorded the courtship index. Our experiments revealed that mate recognition was multimodal: eliminating visual and chemosensory signals eliminated copulation, making these signals essential for mating. Ablation of auditory cues did not affect the courtship frequency but significantly reduced the copulation frequency. Measuring courtship latency and duration allowed us to identify whether individual signals play a role in initiating courtship or stimulating the female to mate. We hypothesize that the females use visual cues to identify the type of pollinosity the males have on their forehead. The failure of mating in the absence of chemosensory cues is possibly due to the rapid interspecies divergence of chemosensory receptors and the cuticular hydrocarbon profiles. Highlights: Removal of visual and chemosensory cues eliminated copulation in Drosophila nasuta . Removal of auditory cues significantly reduced copulation. Removal of auditory cues significantly increased courtship duration. Auditory and chemosensory cues showed sex-specific effects on courtship success.