What’s the buzz? Ultrasonic and sonic warning signals in caterpillars of the great peacock moth (Saturnia pyri) |
| |
Authors: | Veronica L Bura Alan J Fleming Jayne E Yack |
| |
Institution: | (1) Department of Biology, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1S 5B6 |
| |
Abstract: | Caterpillars have many natural enemies and, therefore, have evolved a diversity of antipredator strategies. Most research
focuses on those strategies (crypsis, countershading, and warning coloration) targeting visually guided predators. In contrast,
defensive sounds, although documented for more than a century, have been poorly studied. We report on a novel form of sound
production—chirping—in caterpillars of the common European Great Peacock moth (Saturnia pyri). Chirps are broadband, with dominant peaks ranging between the sonic (3.7 kHz) and ultrasonic (55.1 kHz) and are generated
by a rapid succession of mandibular “tooth strikes.” Chirp trains are induced by simulated predator attacks and precede or
accompany the secretion of a defensive chemical from integumental bristles, supporting our hypothesis that these sounds function
in acoustic aposematism. We propose that these caterpillars generate multimodal warning signals (visual, chemical, and acoustic)
to target the dominant sensory modalities of different predators, including birds, bats, and invertebrates.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. |
| |
Keywords: | Caterpillar Acoustic Aposematism Chemical defense Ultrasound |
本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
|