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Routes and stations in the processing of auditory directional information in the CNS of a grasshopper, as revealed by surgical experiments

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Summary

Male grasshoppers of the acridid speciesChorthippus biguttulus respond to conspecific female song by turning abruptly toward the sound source and then singing themselves. The orienting response requires that (i) the male recognizes the female song and (ii) determines the location of its source. By observing the effects of various forms of surgical interference (cutting connectives, splitting ganglia, destruction of a tympanal organ) on the subsequent behavior, we were able to narrow down the paths of information flow necessary for these abilities and to make an estimate of the contributions of individual ganglia to the evaluation of sound direction.

  1. 1.

    The information from a single tympanal organ is sufficient for therecognition of the conspecific song. From the metathoracic ganglion (TG3) sufficient information for song recognition ascends both in the ipsilateral and in the contralateral connective chain. Thus, information for song recognition is transmitted to the opposite side within the metathoracic ganglion.

  2. 2.

    For a singing response to be elicited by hearing a female chirp, it is necessary and sufficient that the connectives linking TG3 and the supraesophageal ganglion (brain) of the male be intact on at least one side (as has been shown forGomphocerippus rufus by Loher and Huber 1966, and Elsner and Huber 1969). Neither the three thoracic ganglia alone nor the thoracic-ganglion complex plus the subesophageal ganglion suffice to elicit either the turning or the singing response. The most probable explanation of our results is that the information paths for both responses make a loop via the brain.

  3. 3.

    A crucial step in sound direction processing takes place within TG3 itself. The results after connective cutting indicate a reciprocally inhibitory interaction within this ganglion by which the difference between right and left tympanal input is enhanced.

  4. 4.

    The information about sound direction carried in either connective alone is incomplete. Therefore, an additional ‘comparator element’ must exist, which receives the ‘directional signals’ from both connectives and converts them into an unambiguous turning command. This step in direction processing must occur either in the brain or along the pathways descending from the brain to the anterior two thoracic ganglia.

  5. 5.

    The anterior two thoracic ganglia, as well as the subesophageal ganglion, make either no contribution or a negligibly small contribution to the determination of sound direction.

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Abbreviations

CNS :

Central nervous system

Brain :

Supraesophageal ganglion

SOG :

Subesophageal ganglion

TG1 :

Prothoracic ganglion

TG2 :

Mesothoracic ganglion

TG3 :

Metathoracic ganglion (including the first 3 abdominal ganglia, which are fused to it)

TO :

Tympanal organ

SA :

Stridulation apparatus

TA :

Turning apparatus

IRM :

Innate releasing mechanism

LS :

Loudspeaker

n :

Total number of stimulus (female chirp) presentations

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Zoologie II der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, Staudtstrasse 5, D-8520, Erlangen, Germany

    Bernhard Ronacher, Dagmar v. Helversen & Otto v. Helversen

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  1. Bernhard Ronacher
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  2. Dagmar v. Helversen
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  3. Otto v. Helversen
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Dedicated to Prof. Franz Huber on the occasion of his 60. birthday

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Ronacher, B., Helversen, D.v. & Helversen, O.v. Routes and stations in the processing of auditory directional information in the CNS of a grasshopper, as revealed by surgical experiments. J. Comp. Physiol. 158, 363–374 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00603620

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