Submitted on September 29, 2008
Accepted on December 22, 2008
Harmonic Convergence in the Love Songs of the Dengue Vector Mosquito
Lauren J. Cator 1
, Ben J. Arthur 2, Laura C. Harrington 1, Ronald R. Hoy 2*
1 Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
2 Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Ronald R. Hoy , E-mail: rrh3{at}cornell.edu
These authors contributed equally to this work.
The familiar buzz of flying mosquitoes is an important mating signal, with the fundamental frequency of the female’s flight tone signalling her presence. In the yellow fever and dengue vector, Aedes aegypti, both sexes interact acoustically by shifting their flight tones to match, resulting in a courtship duet. Surprisingly, matching is made not at the fundamental frequency of 400 Hz (female) or 600 Hz (male), but at a shared harmonic of 1200 Hz, which exceeds the previously known upper limit of hearing in mosquitoes. Physiological recordings from Johnston’s organ (the mosquito’s "ear") reveal sensitivity up to 2000 Hz, consistent with our observed courtship behavior. These findings revise widely accepted limits of acoustic behavior in mosquitoes.
