Triggers of the Postural Display of Courtship in Drosophila persimilis Flies.

ABSTRACT: D. persimilis courtship shows some flexibility and courting males sometimes perform an elaborate postural display in addition to the standard courtship behaviours shared by most Drosophila species. This postural display includes the acrobatic contortion and tremulation of their abdomen, accompanied by the generation of substrate-borne vibrations, and they proffer a nutritional droplet to the female. Here, we use courtship and choice assays to ask what triggers this display and what advantages males may gain from it during courtship. In pair assays, we found no differences in the courtship duration and copulation success between displaying and non-displaying males. In trio assays, however, the female always mated with the male who performed the display. To investigate what pro

SUBMITTER: Hernandez MV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5656710 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature