Colonists and desperadoes: different fighting strategies in wing-dimorphic male Texas field crickets

Abstract

In many species, males fight one another for mates or resources. Fighting can vary among males, however, such that some males are highly aggressive whereas others are not. We observed that fighting was negatively associated with flight capability in the wing-dimorphic field cricket, Gryllus texensis. Long-winged males capable of flight had a significantly lower fighting propensity and displayed lower levels of aggression than short-winged, flight-incapable males in staged contests. Long-winged males no longer able to fly as a result of the histolysis of their flight muscles were more aggressive than long-winged males that had functional flight muscles, but were still less aggressive than short-winged males. Long-winged, flight-capable males were more aggressive after a brief flight just prior to an interaction with a rival, but only in contests with other flight-capable males. Flight capability and flight itself had no effect on the outcome of fights. Our results support the existence of an aggression flight syndrome in flight-dimorphic insects.