Temporal parameters of male—female sound communication in Leptophyes punctatissima

ABSTRACT. Quantitative information is presented about acoustic communication between the sexes of the speckled bush cricket Leptophyes punctatissima Bosc (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae). The male song elicits an acoustic response from a receptive female with a net delay (excluding the travelling time of the sound) of about 25 ms depending upon ambient temperature. Only when the female responses fall within the narrow temporal window between 20 and 50 ms after the onset of his song does the male perform phonotaxis. The precise timing of this duet is described, and its advantages and disadvantages are discussed.