甘肃鼢鼠的求偶和交配行为

甘肃鼢鼠 (Ｍｙｏｓｐａｌａｘｃａｎｓｕｓ)主要分布在我国黄土高原地区 ,该鼠的繁殖生态学已有许多报道[1～3] 。其繁殖行为尚未见报道。国内外已对高原鼢鼠 (Ｍｙｏｓｐａｌａｘｂａｉｌｅｙｉ)、裸瞎鼠 (Ｈｅｔｅｒｏｃｅｐｈａｌｕｓｇｌａｂｅｒ)、鼹形鼠 (Ｓｐａｌａｘｅｈｒｅｎｂｅｒｇｉ)和囊鼠 (Ｔｈｏｍｏｍｙｓｂｏｔｔａｅ)等地下鼠的繁殖行为作了研究[4～8] 。由于甘肃鼢鼠营严格的地下生活 ,在野外其繁殖行为无法观察。本文对室内甘肃鼢鼠的求偶行为和交配行为进行初步观察 ,将结果予以报道。1　材料和方法实验用成年甘肃鼢…     

Mating Status and Choice of Group Size in the Phoretic Fly Norrbomia frigipennis (Spuler) (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae)

The phoretic sphaerocerid fly Norrbomia frigipennis mates on scarabid dung beetles, follows them underground, and lays eggs in the collected dung. We found that male and female flies distribute themselves nonrandomly on beetles with respect to fly group size. The proportion of virgin females increased with group size, and females with mature eggs were most frequently found on beetles carrying fewer flies. Laboratory experiments revealed that mated females avoided larger groups, virgin females seemed to prefer large groups and mated females, small groups. Males showed no such pattern. These results suggest that N. frigipennis can estimate group size, presumably an adaptation with a reproductive function. However, flies did not join hosts on the basis of the sex of already mounted flies.     

Starvation and the Mating Success of Wild Male Mediterranean Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Recent evidence suggests that the nutritional state of male Mediterranean fruit flies, Ceratitis capitata (Wied.) (medfly), is an important influence on various components of their reproductive biology, including mating success. The objective of the present study was to examine experimentally the effect of temporary starvation on the mating success of wild male C. capitata. Males were maintained on protein–sugar or sugar-only diets, and for each diet we compared the mating success of continuously fed males versus males starved for 18 or 24 h immediately before testing. In trials conducted on field-caged, host trees, males starved for 24 h obtained only about half as many matings as fed males for both diets. However, when the starvation period was 18 h, starved males reared on the protein–sugar diet mated significantly less frequently than fed males, whereas starved males reared on sugar mated as often as fed males. Measurements of male pheromone calling and female attraction revealed that reduced mating success likely reflected the decreased signaling activity of starved males.     

双额岩小粪蝇生物学特性研究

双额岩小粪蝇Bifronsina bifronS (stenharnmar) 为中国大陆新记录种,近年来,在广州草菇场大量发生.本文观察了其生活史,对各虫态的形态特征进行了描述.     

Systematics of Crumomyia Macquart and Alloborborus Duda (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae)

ABSTRACT. The phylogenetic relationships of two sphaerocerid genera, Alloborborus Duda (1923) and Crumomyia Macquart (1835), are analysed, and their taxonomic status within the tribe Copromyzini (= Copromyza Fallén s.lat.) is clarified. Accepted here are a monotypic Alloborborus , which includes A.pallifrons (FalléAn) from northern and central Europe, and twenty-six species of the Holarctic Crumomyia. Within Crumomyia , five species-groups are recognized: pedestris group: pedestris (Meigen); annulus group: immensa (Spuler), maculipennis (Spuler), annulus (Walker), nipponica (Richards), pruinosa (Richards); notabilis group: glabifrons (Meigen), glacialis (Meigen), absoloni (Bezzi), notabilis (Collin), rohaceki sp.n., zuskai (Roháček); nitida group: nitida (Meigen); setitibialis group: setitibialis (Spuler), pilosa sp.n., nigra (Meigen), parentela (Séguy), deemingi (Hackman), pollinodorsata (Papp), subaptera (Malloch), gelida (Hackman), fimetaria (Meigen), roserii (Rondani); unplaced species: hentscheli (Duda), hungarica (Duda), promethei (Nartshuk). Apterina Macquart, Fungobia Lioy and Speomyia Bezzi are synonymized with Crumomyia , and the following nominal species are synonymized: tuxeni Collin with nigra, freyi Hackman with setitibialis , and annulipes Duda with annulus. C. pruinosa is considered distinct from annulus, and Copromyza subaptera is placed in Crumomyia. The identity of C.glacialis , the type species of Crumomyia , is clarified, and lectotypes are designated for five nominal species: rufoannulata Duda, annulipes, annulus, flavipennis Haliday and pallifrons. The cladistic relationships of the species of Crumomyia and Alloborborus are established and their phylogeny and biogeography are discussed. Keys to the species of Crumomyia and to the Holarctic genera of the Copromyzinae are provided.     

Identification of the Cues Used in the Host Finding Behavior During the Phoretic Association Ceroptera rufitarsis (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) and Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)

Ceroptera rufitarsis (Meigen) (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) is a tiny fly phoretic on several roller dung beetles of the genus Scarabaeus L. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). We investigated the attractiveness of Scarabaeus sacer L. and S. cicatricosus Lucas both under field and laboratory conditions. Several cues potentially responsible for the host finding behavior were tested in order to determine the basis of attraction of Ceroptera rufitarsis to Scarabaeus beetles. Visual cues, especially host movements, constituted the main factor responsible for host finding behavior and host choice while chemical cues did not play any role in host discrimination.     

Checklist of the family Sphaeroceridae (Diptera) of Finland

A checklist of the family Sphaeroceridae (Diptera) recorded from Finland.     

Multiple Mating and Reproductive Success of Male and Female Apple Maggot Flies, Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Mature male and female apple maggot flies mated frequently on a field-caged host tree during a 14-day study. Each sex averaged one mating per day (mean of 1.0 ± 0.1), but some females mated up to eight times per day and some males up to six times per day. Reproductive success was estimated based both on observed numbers of matings in the field cage and on previous work relating fecundity and fertility to female mating status. Male and female flies did not differ in mean or variance in reproductive success, indicating that this is a polygamous mating system consisting of both polygyny and polyandry. We discuss the significance of this with regard to the framework of insect mating control and frequency proposed by others. We also discuss behaviors (such as movements, agonistic encounters, occurrences on fruit, and ovipositions) that do and do not show correlations with mating success in apple maggot flies.     

Wolbachia in Anastrepha Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Endosymbiotic bacteria of the genus Wolbachia are widespread among arthropods and cause a variety of reproductive abnormalities, such as cytoplasmic incompatibility, thelytokous parthenogenesis, male-killing, and host feminization. In this study, we used three sets of Wolbachia-specific primers (16S rDNA, ftsZ, and wsp) in conjunction with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), cloning and sequencing to study the infection of fruit flies (Anastrepha spp. and Ceratitis capitata) by Wolbachia. The flies were collected at several localities in Brazil and at Guayaquil, Ecuador. All of the fruit flies studied were infected with Wolbachia supergroup A, in agreement with the high prevalence of this group in South America. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the wsp gene was the most sensitive gene for studying the relationships among Wolbachia strains. The Wolbachia sequences detected in these fruit flies were similar to those such as wMel reported for other fruit flies. These results show that the infection of Anastrepha fruit flies by Wolbachia is much more widespread than previously thought.     

Contrasting Brood-Sex Ratio Flexibility in Two Opiine (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) Parasitoids of Tephritid (Diptera) Fruit Flies

Mass-rearing of fruit fly parasitoids for augmentative release would be more economical if production could be biased towards females. If sex ratios are ever to be manipulated under rearing conditions it is important to determine if, then understand why, sex ratio flexibility exists. Unequal brood-sex ratios are common in parasitic Hymenoptera and two reasons are generally advanced for such cases: 1) avoidance of Local Mate Competition (LMC) predicts that the number of females exploiting a host-patch can influence the optimal sex ratio of their offspring; and 2) one sex is more likely to develop under a particular set of physical/competitive conditions. We hypothesized that LMC is more often encountered in relatively uncommon species with coarse-grained distributions. As a result, isolated females of such species would be more likely to expect future LMC to be high and to bias offspring sex ratios towards females. We proposed that the opiine braconid Utetes anastrephae is such a coarse-grained species and compared its responses to differences to LMC (isolated females and those paired with a conspecific competitor) with those of another opiine, Diachasmimorpha longicaudata believed to have a finer-grained distribution. Adult sex ratios were mutable in D. longicaudata and U. anastrephae and, as predicted by avoidance of LMC, males were relatively more abundant among the paired females in both species. However, superparasitized hosts yielded relatively more daughters, perhaps because female larvae are superior intrinsic competitors. Contrary to prediction, there was no suggestion that U. anastrephae was more likely to than D. longicaudata to avoid LMC. While these results did not reveal any species differences in sex-allocation patterns or suggest any modifications to the present practice of fruit fly mass-rearing for augmentative release they did provide new information regarding U. anastrephae, a widespread natural enemy of Anastrepha spp. about which relatively little is known.     

Courtship behavior of the mosquitoSabethes cyaneus (Diptera: Culicidae)

Unlike any other mosquito reported, Sabethes cyaneus(Fabricius) displays an elaborate courtship before and during copulation. A male approaches a female suspended from a horizontal stick, suspends himself in front of her as he grasps her folded wings, and proceeds with a series of discrete stereotyped behaviors that involve proboscis vibration and movement of iridescent blue paddles on his midlegs. The sequence of these behaviors is as follows: freeleg waving, swinging, copulation attempt, superficial coupling, waving, genital shift, waggling, and release. Insemination occurs after genital shift. The only overt reciprocation by the female is abdomen lowering during the male's swinging. Courtship is often unsuccessful, and males are usually rejected during freeleg waving. The relation between male performance and mating success remains obscure.     

Sexual receptivity and post-emergence ovarian development in females of Coproica vagans (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae)

Abstract .Males and females of the dung fly species Coproica vagans Haliday 1833 (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) mate soon after emergence from the puparium. At this time females still have immature ovaries. Therefore, mating precedes vitellogenesis in this species. Data presented here show that mating enhances oogenesis in C. vagans females. Mated females mature their first egg batch sooner and oviposit four days earlier than virgin conspecifics. Mating-related enhancement of oogenesis could be explained either through nutritional benefits to females or male chemical or stimulatory manipulation of the females. Oogenesis was divided into six arbitrary stages, with vitellogenesis beginning in stage 4. Ovarian development beyond stage 4 is rapid compared with pre-vitellogenetic development. Virgin females pause oogenesis in stage 4. The genital opening of mated females is blocked by a mating plug that persists until oviposition begins. The plug seems to ensure the paternity of the last male to mate by preventing females from remating. The operational sex ratio in C. vagans populations is presumed to be strongly male-biased.     

Phylogeny of the Archiborborinae (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) Based on Combined Morphological and Molecular Analysis

The Archiborborinae is a diverse Neotropical subfamily of Sphaeroceridae, with many undescribed species. The existing generic classification includes three genera consisting of brachypterous species, with all other species placed in the genus Archiborborus. We present the first phylogenetic hypothesis for the subfamily based on morphological, molecular, and combined datasets. Morphological data include 53 characters and cover all valid described taxa (33 species in 4 genera) in the subfamily, as well as 83 undescribed species. Molecular data for five genes (mitochondrial 12S rDNA, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, and cytochrome B, and nuclear alanyl-tRNA synthetase and 28S rDNA) were obtained for 21 ingroup taxa. Data support the separation of the Archiborborinae from the Copromyzinae, with which they were formerly combined. Analyses support consistent groups within the subfamily, but relationships between groups are poorly resolved. The validity of the brachypterous genera Penola Richards and Frutillaria Richards is supported. The former genus Archiborborus Duda is paraphyletic, and will be divided into monophyletic genera on the basis of this work. Aptery and brachyptery have evolved multiple times in the subfamily. Antrops Enderlein, previously including a single brachypterous species, is a senior synonym of Archiborborus.     

Courtship in long-legged flies (Diptera: Dolichopodidae): function and evolution of signals

Analyzing the courtship behavior of long-legged flies (Diptera:Dolichopodidae), we focus on the evolutionary development ofcourtship signals. Long-legged flies may serve as a model forthis evolutionary process, because males of some species presentsexually dimorphic badges during courtship, whereas others donot exhibit such conspicuous signals but present lavish courtshipbehavior, including dynamic flight maneuvers. A comparison ofthese two groups within a single taxonomic family provides insightinto the evolution of courtship signals and the correspondingbehavior. Males of the closely related Empididae do not possesssuch badges. Within the super-family Empidoidea, we proposean evolutionary shift from dynamically courting and mating onthe wing (in Empididae) to courting and mating on ground (inDolichopodidae), accompanied by signaling through badge-waving.By comparing previously published data and observations on courtshipbehavior in Dolichopodidae, we present the hypothesis that thelatter replaced the former energetically expensive behavioras a case of automimicry and sensory trap.     

Courtship Disruptions and Male Mating Strategies: Examples from Female-Defense Mating Systems

Males frequently interrupt the copulation attempts of other males, and these courtship disruptions may limit the extent to which a few males are able to monopolize mating access to females. Males actively defend sexually receptive females in many species in which females form dense aggregations during the breeding season. Across and within such species there is considerable variation in the mating tactics adopted by males, with males in some cases defending groups of females and in other cases sequentially consorting with individual females. Colonial blackbirds have been central to studying this mating system, and we develop a conceptual model for how courtship disruption may account for variation in male mating tactics in this group. Our model assumes that the frequency of disruptions increases with greater colony size. As a consequence, successful copulations are less likely to occur at large colonies than at small colonies, and males are expected to switch from defending multiple females at the colony to consorting individual females away from it. Results from two species of blackbird support the basic assumptions of this model. In one species, the Montezuma oropendola, disruptions occur rarely and males defend groups of females, whereas in the other species, the yellow-rumped cacique, disruptions are frequent and males defend single females. Moreover, consistent with a key prediction, within each species, males associated with small colonies remain at the colony and defend groups of females, whereas males spend little time defending groups of females at large colonies and rarely attempt copulations there. This model has the potential to explain variation in male mating strategies and female monopolization for other taxa in which females form breeding aggregations.     

鹅喉羚的求偶交配行为

于2009~2010年研究了卡拉麦里山有蹄类自然保护区鹅喉羚Gazella subgutturosa的求偶交配行为。共记录4大类17种求偶交配行为。鹅喉羚的发情期分为2个阶段:发情准备期和高峰期。从发情准备期开始,雄羚开始沿雌羚每日移动路线建立领域并在整个白昼呆在领域内。高峰期持续时间较短,但雄羚整个高峰期始终停留在领域内。排泄物标记是鹅喉羚采用最多的领域标记方式,而角标记则持续时间更长。小跑是鹅喉羚圈雌时采用频率最高的步法,其次是走动和奔跑,走动步法持续时间最长,不同步法的组合使用是圈雌成功率和能量节约的最优化权衡。鹅喉羚的求偶交配过程可分为3个阶段,第一阶段为试探接近阶段,若雌羚已作好交配准备,则进入第二阶段,雄羚以直立行走或碎步行走接近雌羚,第三阶段为爬跨交配阶段。鹅喉羚的交配模式属于Dewsbury交配行为模式分类系统的第13类和Dixson分类系统的第14类。鹅喉羚成功交配后,并不存在个体配偶看护,而是通过守卫领域以提高总体配偶看护水平。     

The Diversity of Yellow-Related Proteins in Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae)

Yellow-related proteins (YRPs) present in sand fly saliva act as affinity binders of bioamines, and help the fly to complete a bloodmeal by scavenging the physiological signals of damaged cells. They are also the main antigens in sand fly saliva and their recombinant form is used as a marker of host exposure to sand flies. Moreover, several salivary proteins and plasmids coding these proteins induce strong immune response in hosts bitten by sand flies and are being used to design protecting vaccines against Leishmania parasites. In this study, thirty two 3D models of different yellow-related proteins from thirteen sand fly species of two genera were constructed based on the known protein structure from Lutzomyia longipalpis. We also studied evolutionary relationships among species based on protein sequences as well as sequence and structural variability of their ligand-binding site. All of these 33 sand fly YRPs shared a similar structure, including a unique tunnel that connects the ligand-binding site with the solvent by two independent paths. However, intraspecific modifications found among these proteins affects the charges of the entrances to the tunnel, the length of the tunnel and its hydrophobicity. We suggest that these structural and sequential differences influence the ligand-binding abilities of these proteins and provide sand flies with a greater number of YRP paralogs with more nuanced answers to bioamines. All these characteristics allow us to better evaluate these proteins with respect to their potential use as part of anti-Leishmania vaccines or as an antigen to measure host exposure to sand flies.     

Genetic variability in the wingless subantarctic genus Anatalanta (Diptera, Sphaeroceridae): a preliminary approach

The first study on the genetic variability of a wingless subantarctic fly (Diptera: Sphaeroceridae) at Iles Crozet is presented. Flies of the genus Anatalanta live mainly in seabird colonies from the littoral level to 700 m a.s.l. Two species are known: A. aptera Eaton and A. crozetensis Enderlein. Several morphological forms from 2 islands have been surveyed and 21 enzyme systems, involving 30 common putative enzyme loci, were scored from reared individuals. Mean heterozygosity values vary from 0.053 to 0.169. Genetic differentiation is weak with low Nei's distances. Noticeable gaps between morphological and genetic data are emphasized and question the real taxonomic status of the two recognized species. It is now necessary to compare populations of the genus Anatalanta from its whole distributional range (Iles Crozet, Iles Kerguelen and Heard Island). An improved understanding of the historical processes by which these islands were colonized could result from these studies. Received: 12 August 1996 / Accepted: 30 June 1997     

Grass Flies (Diptera,Chloropidae) of Crimean Peninsula

The fauna of grass flies (Diptera: Chloropidae) of the Crimean Peninsula is reviewed for the first time. The study is based on examination of the collection of the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences (St. Petersburg), which includes the material collected in Crimea by the authors, the collections of the Zoological Museum of the M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University and V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University (Simferopol). The annotated list includes 92 species in 34 genera and three subfamilies. Most of the species (61) are recorded from Crimea for the first time. Six species, Chlorops horridus Becker, Ch. puncticornis Loew, Dicraeus (Oedesiella) beschovskii Nartshuk, Lasiosina chandleri Ismay, Meromyza meigeni Nartshuk and Oscinimorpha longirostris (Loew) are recorded for the first time from Russia and Eastern Europe. The characters for distinguishing Oscinimorpha arcuata Duda from O. longirostris (Loew), i.e., the structure of head and the male genitalia, are provided. The boreo-montane species Oscinella vastator (Curtis) and Meromyza curvinervis (Zetterstedt) are found on the Chatyrdag Mountain and Yaila (mostly forestless plateau in the Crimean Mountains). Species with southern European, Mediterranean and Macaronesian-Mediterranean ranges were recorded mostly on the South Coast of Crimea. The Crimean fauna of Chloropidae is compared with the faunas of Sardinia and Turkey.