Causes and Consequences of Rapid Sexual Signal Change in a Field Cricket

波利尼西亚田野蟋蟀原产于澳大利亚北方和太平洋群岛，并已被引入夏威夷。 只有在夏威夷，蟋蟀才会受到一种寄生蝇的影响。这种寄生蝇通过倾听雄性蟋蟀的鸣叫来寻找宿主，并将幼虫放入蟋蟀体内，最终杀死蟋蟀。这使蟋蟀陷入了进化的困境，因为鸣叫是蟋蟀吸引配偶的手段，但也使蟋蟀处于危险之中。 在考艾岛上，蟋蟀和苍蝇共存的三个夏威夷群岛中，受苍蝇侵扰的雄性比例最高，现在近90%的雄性蟋蟀显示出缺乏呼叫所需的器官的突变翅膀。 它们不能叫，这保护了它们不受苍蝇的伤害。 该项目研究了这种异常快速的进化（这种变化发生在16-20代之间）对蟋蟀交配行为的影响。 突变及其影响将在现场监测，实验室实验将研究雄性在没有呼叫的情况下实现交配成功的方式。 这项研究为进化生物学和动物行为的许多主题提供了一个令人信服的介绍，因为它以熟悉的动物-蟋蟀-在一个有吸引力的地方-夏威夷-通过自然选择逃避一种令人不快的“外星人”般的寄生虫，然后将雄性置于关于性的两难境地。 除了为本科生和研究生提供有价值和令人兴奋的研究机会外，PI还将通过大学的梅萨计划指导学校学生的数学和科学。

The Polynesian field cricket is native to northern Australia and the Pacific Islands, and has been introduced to Hawaii. Only in Hawaii it is subject to a parasitoid fly that finds its host by listening to the calling song of the male crickets and depositing larvae that burrow inside the cricket and eventually kill it. This puts the cricket in an evolutionary dilemma, because calling is his means to attract a mate, but also places him in danger. On the island of Kauai, where the proportion of males infested by the flies had been highest of the three Hawaiian Islands where the cricket and fly co-occur, nearly 90% of the male crickets now show a mutated wing that lacks the apparatus necessary for calling. They are thus unable to call, which protects them from the fly. This project examines the consequences of such extraordinarily rapid evolution (the change occurred over 16-20 generations) for the mating behavior of the crickets. The mutation and its effects will be monitored in the field, and laboratory experiments will examine the ways that males achieve mating success without calling. This research provides a compelling introduction to many topics in evolutionary biology and animal behavior because it features familiar animals - crickets - in an attractive place -Hawaii - evading an unpleasant "Alien"-like parasite via natural selection, which then places the males in a dilemma with regard to sex. In addition to providing valuable and exciting research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students, the PI will mentor school students in math and science through the university's MESA program.