Courtship signals

Bushmann PJ, Atema J (1997) Shelter sharing and chemical courtship signals in the lobster Homarus americanus. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 54 647-654... 

Fig. 17.2 Compilation figure (using data from Hebets 2005, 2008 Hebets and Uetz 2000) depicting female receptivity responses to video playbacks of courting conspecific males in the presence (black bars) and absence (white bars) of a seismic courtship signal for (a) Schizocosa uetzi and (b) S. stridulans...

The chemoreceptive mechanisms in amphibia are undoubtedly worthy of further analysis, not only for their own sake, but to provide clues as to the origination of advanced chemosignal systems. As noted above, a pheromonal signal from the mental gland acts as a courtship/ receptivity inducer. The plethodontid receptivity factor (PRF) (Chap. 3) despite its size (22 kD), seems to have been converted from its internal role as an inter-cellular cytokine, to an inter-individual coordinator of reproductive activity (Rollmann et al., 1999). Endocrine or... 

Feldhoff R.C., Rollman S.M. and Houck L.D. (1999). Chemical analysis of courtship pheromones in a Plethodontid Salamander. In Advances in Chemical Signals in Vertebrates (Johnston R.E., Miiller-Schwarze D. and Sorenson P., eds.). Kluwer, New York, pp. 117-126. 

In the plethodontid salamander D. ocoee, courtship duration was reduced for male-female pairs in which the female received a protein signal from the 20-25 kDa fraction of the male courtship pheromone. We interpret this reduction in courtship duration as an increase in receptivity for females receiving the pheromone. 

The delivery of male courtship pheromones is widespread among plethodontid salamanders (Houck and Arnold 2003), and other courtship pheromones are being discovered for this group (Houck, Palmer, Watts, Arnold, Feldhoff and Feldhoff 2007). The mode by which these pheromones are transferred to the female apparently has been modified from delivery via diffusion into the circulatory system to delivery that directly stimulates vomeronasal receptors (Fig. 20.1 Houck and Sever 1994 Watts et al. 2004 Palmer et al. 2005 Palmer et al. 2007). The behavior patterns and morphologies associated with these two delivery modes often remain static for millions of years. In contrast, evolution at the level of pheromone signals is apparently an incessant process that continuously alters the protein sequence and composition of pheromones both within and among species (Watts et al. 2004 Palmer et al. 2005 Palmer et al. 2007). 

Houck, L.D. 1986. The evolution of salamander courtship pheromones. In D. Duvall, D. MiHler-Schwarze and R.M. Silverstein. (Eds.) Chemical Signals in Vertebrates, Vol. IV Ecology, Evolution, and Comparative Biology. Plenum Press, New York. Pp. 173-190. 

All indications are that we are only just beginning to see a few threads of the rich fabric of chemical signals that link lobsters to each other and to their environment. Exoskeleton, bladders, glands, and control of currents all indicate that these animals can be chemically quiet and release specific signals at critical times during aggression and courtship. Chemical signals appear to be used to remember individuals and to facilitate stable dominance hierarchies. 

Chemical cues are important to advertise one s sex and to attract the opposite sex as the first step in sexual behavior. Other functions of sexual signals are to signal current sexual status and to alter the behavior of the potential partner(s) via courtship or scent marking to facilitate mating. Typically, the odor of the opposite sex is attractive, at least in the breeding season. (Priming pheromones are covered separately in Chapter 8.)... 

Female fathead minnows, Pimephaluspromelas, produce a chemical signal that stimulates males to approach and lead them, both courtship patterns. This signal is produced if a female is injected with prostaglandin. (Cole and Smith, 1987). 

Bioluminescence is the production of light by living systems. The best-known example of this phenomenon is the characteristic glow of the firefly, but other luminous species include bacteria, fungi and other animals such as jellyfish, scale-worms, deep-sea squid, prawn and fish. In animals bioluminescence is used as a diversionary tactic when disturbed, to attract prey and of course as a mating signal during courtship. 

The social spider Mallos gregalis is arrested by ether-soluble components of silk of conspecifics (Jackson, 1982). However, courtship behavior is not released by female silk (Jackson, 1978), in contrast to the behavior seen with silk of female Mallos trivittata (as trivittatus) silk. Male silk is inactive (Jackson, 1978). Coelotes terrestris males recognized female silk or a substratum on which females had been running (Roland, 1984) and males also exhibited courtship on empty female webs (Krafft, 1978). Courtship behavior, mainly vibratory signals in empty female webs, has also been observed in Amaurobius similis and Amaurobius fenestralis. This behavior is only performed on conspecific webs. A third species, Amaurobius ferox, exhibited no responses to silk cues (Krafft, 1978). 

The recording of vibratory signals performed by spiders during courtship. Symposia of the Zoological Society, London 42 59-67. 

Males may compete for females. For example, Grapholita molesta males can display variability in their sequence of courtship behaviors (see p. 290), such that a later-arriving male may truncate his courtship sequence, bypassing extrusion of his hairpencils and dissemination of courtship pheromone, and proceed directly to a copulatory attempt, at the expense of the honest, hairpencil-extruding signaler (Baker, 1983). 

We did not discover any published literature on the pheromone biology of ephemeropterans and odonates, likely because these two groups are known to use visual signals in courtship behavior (Thornhill and Alcock 1983). 

Behavioral observations on the courtship behavior of a few species of scorpionflies have established that males release some form of chemical signals that attract females formating. Two eversible vesicles on the terminal abdominal... 

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