This action funds an NSF Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for fiscal year 1999 for research and training in the area of animal behavior.
The research and training plan is entitled "Climatological effects of near-field recognition of mates in the North American field cricket, Gryllus pennsylvanicus." The research is addressing the proximate factors affecting the evolution of mate choice and other behaviorally complex reproductive systems in insects. The split-family, half-sib design will reveal the nature of male courtship song and epicuticular hydrocarbon profiles that facilitate mate recognition and will also estimate heritability of courtship song and mate choice. This study integrates the roles of development, seasonal effects on epicuticular hydrocarbons, physical contact, and acoustic cues in insects that use acoustic and chemotactile mating cues.
