Behaviour, physiological states and thermal characteristics of aggregating male Hybomitra illota (Diptera: Tabanidae)

Male Hybomitra illota (Osten Sacken) were found aggregating in clearings in wooded areas in Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. At these sites they perched on a variety of substrates, and made frequent flights in pursuit of insects flying overhead. We know that these pursuit flights were part of the mating behaviour because some pursuits of female H. illota resulted in copulation. We call the aggregation sites 'mating arenas' and the behaviour exhibited by males 'perch-and-pursue'. Aggregation occurred only on sunny days, when ambient temperatures exceeded 18 degrees C. Males perched in sunny areas, except during hot afternoons, when some males were found in dappled shade. Some marked males remained at or returned to sites for up to 13 days, but most males did not remain at the same area within a site, even during the same day. The contents of the oesophageal diverticula of males were depleted daily. Concentration of diverticular carbohydrates changed through the season. Thoracic temperatures of males were high (c. 37 degrees C) and were regulated, probably both behaviourally and physiologically. The sites and behaviour of male H.illota at aggregation arenas bear some resemblance to lek sites and lekking in vertebrates. Males are aggregated in an arena but, within the perching component of the behaviour, we saw no evidence of male territoriality, display, or female choice. However, competition, display, or mate choice could occur within the pursuit-flight component.