. The Biological bulletin. Biology; Zoology; Biology; Marine Biology. FIREFLY COURTING BEHAVIOR 621 INTERLOPER ATTEMPTS COPULATION WITH MATED PAIR MATED PAIR. INTERLOPING MALE COPULATION ATTEMPT — . 1 • > . 1 . , , . I , , , , I , , , , I , , . I . _ SECONDS FIGURE 9. Second (interloper) male attempts copulation with rotated mating pair. Neither member of mating pair emits any light (bumps in trace are artifacts caused by ]>en from lower trace). Note that this attempt to copulate with a female in copula has the characteristic form of a normal mating attempt. to-male pairings continued to
. The Biological bulletin. Biology; Zoology; Biology; Marine Biology. FIREFLY COURTING BEHAVIOR 621 INTERLOPER ATTEMPTS COPULATION WITH MATED PAIR MATED PAIR. INTERLOPING MALE COPULATION ATTEMPT — . 1 • > . 1 . , , . I , , , , I , , , , I , , . I . _ SECONDS FIGURE 9. Second (interloper) male attempts copulation with rotated mating pair. Neither member of mating pair emits any light (bumps in trace are artifacts caused by ]>en from lower trace). Note that this attempt to copulate with a female in copula has the characteristic form of a normal mating attempt. to-male pairings continued to behave normally, even making typical male displays to passing males. This behavior was not observed in the field, and so may not be normal. While normal synchronizing behavior and low mortality characterized groups of insects maintained in Santa Barbara for up to 45 days, no complete copulations were seen among those insects. Events subsequent to mating remain obscure. Pairs remain in copula for hours, perhaps all night. Both males and females leave the display sites in increasing numbers towards dawn and fly into nearby vegetation just above the high tide mark. Early in the evening females are seen in small numbers along the river bank near the display sites. They are invariably flying slowly and hovering a few inches off the ground while making long, single-peaked flashes. They are perhaps getting ready to oviposit. Males are never seen during the night in such places. DISCUSSION The present study, in showing that Pteroptyx tencr males engage in at least three modes of in-tree flashing, in addition to at least three close range interactions with females, has enlarged the male's known repertory while at the same time showing how much remains to be discovered. The male display flashes aimed outward from the tree are very probably long-range recruiting or convocational signals, as assumed in other synchronizing species, but whether they attract males and females indiscrimin
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Keywords: ., bookauthorlilliefrankrat, booksubjectbiology, booksubjectzoology
