Evolution of acoustic communication in the Gomphocerinae (Orthoptera: Caelifera: Acrididae)

a 2011 The Authors d Zoologica Scripta a 2011 The Norwegian Nattier, R., Robillard, T., Amedegnato, C., Couloux, A., Cruaud, C. & Desutter-Grandcolas, L. (2011). Evolution of acoustic communication in the Gomphocerinae (Orthoptera: Caelifera: Acrididae). — Zoologica Scripta, 40, 479–497. We used a phylogenetic analysis to study the communication behaviour in the Gomphocerinae (Insecta, Orthoptera, Acrididae), which are characterised by their stridulatory apparatus and a diversified acoustic repertoire. Song-emitting behaviour, together with the general description, temporal dimension and amplitude of signals were used to describe the calling song of 34 species, resulting in a matrix of 39 acoustic characters. A phylogeny using 59 gomphocerine species and two outgroups was built based on four mitochondrial markers and the acoustic characters. Based on acoustic character optimisations, ancestral calling song was reconstructed and the evolution of calling song is discussed, with a comparison to courtship behaviours. Our results show a dynamic process of calling song evolution and underline a balance between calling and courtship diversity leading to two mating strategies corresponding to two major clades in the phylogeny. Corresponding author: Romain Nattier, Departement Systematique et Evolution, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, UMR 7205 CNRS (OSEB), Case postale 50 (Entomologie), 75231 Paris Cedex, France. E-mail:[email protected] Tony Robillard, Christiane Amedegnato (deceased), and Laure Desutter-Grandcolas, Département Systématique et Evolution, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, UMR 7205 CNRS (OSEB), Case postale 50 (Entomologie), 75231 Paris Cedex, France. E-mails: [email protected], amedeg@ mnhn.fr, [email protected] Arnaud Couloux and Corinne Cruaud, Genoscope, Centre National de Sequencage, 2, rue Gaston Cremieux, CP5706, 91057 Evry Cedex, France. E-mails: [email protected], cruaud@ genoscope.cns.fr