Abstract
Interactions between prey and predators are often mediated by signals sent by the prey. Passive signals such as aposematic coloration and active signals such as pursuit deterrence signals are thought to prevent attack from predators. In true fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), the defensive wing display is called supination, and studies have shown that supination effectively reduces the chance of being attacked by salticid predators. In this study, we investigated the proximal causes of supination in staged interactions in an arena. We asked whether the movement of the display target influences the likelihood of triggering supination in the Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens. We tested the effect of motion on fly display in three different ways using (1) a manually moved dead spider or beetle, (2) live bouts with a spider and a katydid and (3) video playback experiments where movement of the display target was controlled. Our results show that flies are more likely to perform supination when the display target moves. The identity of the display target did not influence display propensity, suggesting that the supination of flies is a generalised display behaviour against any possible threat.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Diana Pérez-Staples, Ajay Narendra and anonymous reviewers for valuable comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. Thanks are due to Pablo Nuñez Berea for help in rearing the spiders and Dina Orozco (Subdirector of Production, MoscaFrut) for flies. We thank Quiyari Santiago for identifying the beetle. This project was funded by a Ciencia-Basica CONACyT grant (no. 168746) to D.R.
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10164_2015_442_MOESM1_ESM.mov
Video demonstrating the defensive display of the tephritid fly Anastrepha ludens against a jumping spider Phidippus audax (MOV 2149 kb)
10164_2015_442_MOESM2_ESM.mov
Video demonstrating the display of the tephritid fly Anastrepha ludens against the katydid. Note the initiation of the display when the katydid moves (MOV 3257 kb)
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Aguilar-Argüello, S., Díaz-Fleischer, F. & Rao, D. Motion-triggered defensive display in a tephritid fly. J Ethol 34, 31–37 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-015-0442-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-015-0442-8