Mating behaviour of the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus and its dependence on social and environmental cues

Abstract

Abstract. A Markov analysis of Gryllus bimaculatus mating behaviour yielded significant behavioural transitions in all three stages of mating. Antennal contact initiated by either males or females was required to elicit courtship behaviour and courtship singing. Visual stimuli alone were insufficient to elicit courtship behaviour in either males or females. Performing courtship behaviour increased sexual receptivity in both male and female crickets and this effect lasted for 10-15 min after courtship had been terminated. During this time crickets responded sexually to anaesthetized females and mute males even though these animals were normally ineffective in eliciting mating behaviour. Animals held in colonies, instead of in social isolation, did not differ in the timing or in the behavioural sequence of their courtship. This suggests that social contact and prior sexual experience do not affect courtship. The robustness of courtship behaviour in G. bimaculatus makes it an attractive model system for studies in behavioural physiology and behavioural ecology.