Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-r5fsc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T20:28:16.983Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

SWARMING AND MATING OF CHIRONOMUS RIPARIUS (DIPTERA: CHIRONOMIDAE)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

V. G. Caspary  and
A. E. R. Downe
V. G. Caspary
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
A. E. R. Downe
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

By restricting the swarming behaviour of Chironomus riparius Meigen, in a series of five swarm suppression cages, it was found that reduced swarming resulted in fewer matings and less oviposition. With total suppression of swarming no matings occurred.

When swarming volume was incrementally reduced vertically or horizontally, it was found that the minimum vertical or horizontal dimension for swarming to occur was 2–3 cm. The mating rate was determined by the detection of labelled spermatozoa in autoradiographs. Thus swarming appears to have an epigamic function in C. riparius and is an essential precursor to mating and oviposition.

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 103 , Issue 3 , March 1971 , pp. 444 - 448
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1971

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Downes, J. A. 1958. Assembly and mating in the biting Nematocera. Proc. 10th int. Congr. Ent., Vol. 2, pp. 425–434.Google Scholar
Downes, J. A. 1969. The swarming and mating flight of Diptera. A. Rev. Ent. 14: 271–298.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gibson, N. H. E. 1945. On the mating swarms of certain Chironomidae (Diptera). Trans. R. ent. Soc. Lond. 95: 263–294.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jacob, J. and Sirlin, J. L.. 1958. Labelling of insect spermatozoa by adenine-8-14C. Experientia 14: 402–403.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nielsen, E. T. and Greve, H.. 1950. Studies on the swarming habits of mosquitoes and other Nematocera. Bull. ent. Res. 41: 227–258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nielsen, E. T. and Haeger, J. S.. 1960. Swarming and mating in mosquitoes. Misc. Publs ent. Soc. Am., No. 1, pp. 71–95.Google Scholar
Syrjämäki, J. 1964. Swarming and mating behaviour of Allochironomus crassiforceps Kief. (Dipt. Chironomidae). Ann. zool. fenn. 1: 125–145.Google Scholar
Syrjämäki, J. 1967. Laboratory studies on the swarming behaviour of Chironomus strenzkei Fittkau in litt. (Dipt. Chironomidae). Ann. zool. fenn. 4: 19–28.Google Scholar
Thienemann, A. 1954. Die Binnengewässer. XX: Chironomus. E. Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart.Google Scholar