Abstract
A NUMBER of organisms have been reported to possess supernumerary or B chromosomes 1–3, although the origins and function of these chromosomes have largely remained an enigma. A large proportion of individuals in populations of the grasshopper Myrmeleotettix maculatus from the warmer and dryer parts of Great Britain contain B chromosomes in both germ-line and somatic cells. The frequency of individuals containing B chromosomes decreases in less favourable environments, and populations which live in even more stringent conditions, for example in Scotland, have none4. Individuals which possess these supernumerary chromosomes have an increased chiasma frequency and variance compared with standard grasshoppers in the same population5. Furthermore, this B chromosome is markedly heterochromatic during meiotic prophase.
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