Department of Biology, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1S 5B6.
Department of Biology, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1S 5B6
J Exp Biol. 2019 Feb 20;222(Pt 4):jeb190660. doi: 10.1242/jeb.190660.
Many insects vary their song patterns to communicate different messages, but the underlying biomechanisms are often poorly understood. Here, we report on the mechanics of sound production and variation in an elytro-tergal stridulator, male bark beetles. Using ablation experiments coupled with high-speed video and audio recordings, we show that: (1) chirps are produced using a stridulatory file on the left elytron (forewing) and a protrusion (plectrum) on the seventh abdominal segment; (2) chirps are produced by 'spring stridulation', a catch-and-release mechanism whereby the plectrum catches on a file tooth and, upon release, springs forward along the file; and (3) variability in chirp types is caused by introducing multiple catch-and-release events along the file to create regular interruptions. These results provide experimental evidence for the mechanics of elytro-tergal stridulation, and provide insight into how an insect can incorporate variability into its acoustic repertoire using a spring-loaded mechanism.
许多昆虫通过改变其鸣叫声模式来传达不同的信息，但背后的生物力学机制往往理解得不够透彻。在这里，我们报告了一种鞘翅目树皮甲虫雄性的翼鞘摩擦发声器的发声机制和变化。我们通过消融实验，结合高速视频和音频记录，展示了：（1）使用左翅鞘（前翅）上的摩擦锉和第七腹节上的突起（弹片）产生鸣叫声；（2）鸣叫声是通过“弹击摩擦发声”产生的，这是一种捕捉-释放机制，弹片抓住锉齿，释放后沿锉齿向前弹；（3）鸣叫声类型的可变性是通过在锉齿上引入多个捕捉-释放事件来产生规则的中断造成的。这些结果为翼鞘摩擦发声的力学机制提供了实验证据，并深入了解了昆虫如何通过使用弹簧加载机制将可变性纳入其声学 repertoire 中。
