Effect of mating status on the fecundity of a cricket, Teleogryllus emma

Fecundity in some insects is affected by mating status. The effect of mating status on the fecundity and total egg production of Teleogryllus emma （Ohmachi et Matsumura） （Orthoptera： Gryllidae） was examined in this study. The results showed that the pre-oviposition period was shorter for amphigonic females than that for virgin females. However, no significant difference in pre-oviposition was found between amphigonic females and those that had mated with a male with either the phallodeum or testes extirpated. There is no difference in adult longevity between the above four groups. The fecundity and total egg production were much higher in amphigonic females than in those controlled under the three non-amphigonic treatments. The females of T. emma that mated with the testes-extirpated males produced more eggs （up to two-fold more） than both the virgin females and those that mated with the phallodeum-extirpated males, but there was no difference between them. The fecundity-enhancing substances transferred from male to female can stimulate the female to produce more eggs, but this stimulation has to occur in collaboration with sperm.

Relationship between copulation and cold hardiness in Ophraella communa(Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Ophraella communa(Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), the ragweed leaf beetle, is a biological control agent of the invasive common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia(Asterales: Asteraceae). Adults can survive cold conditions that occur during winter. The adults mate before entering overwintering. Understanding the connection between copulation and overwintering will be useful for determining O. communa seasonality. Determining the relationship between overwintering and copulation required comparison of mated and unmated beetles at mean lethal temperature(LTemp_(50)) exposures for 2 h. Cold-related physiological indices, including the water ratio, super cooling point(SCP), cryoprotectant levels, and energy reserve levels, were also measured. Mating treatment decreased the LTemp_(50) of both sexes by reducing their mean SCP and water ratios. Although the changes of cryoprotectant levels in mated adults were not precisely consistent in between the genders, they increased greatly in both males and females. Body sugar may play a role in copulation and may also elevate cold hardiness in O. communa.

Do males choose their mates in the lekking moth Achroia grisella？ Influence of female body mass and male reproductive status on male mate choice

Lekking males aggregate to attract females and contribute solely to egg fer- tilization, without any further parental care. Evolutionary theory therefore predicts them to be nonchoosy toward their mates, because any lost mating opportunities would out- weigh the benefits associated with such preferences. Nevertheless, due to time costs, the production of energetically costly sexual displays, and potential sperm limitation, the mat- ing effort of lekking males is often considerable. These factors, combined with the fact that many females of varying quality are likely to visit leks, could favor the evolution of male mate preferences. Here, we show that males of the lekking lesser wax moth, Achroia grisella, were indeed more likely to mate with heavier females in choice experiments, even at their virgin mating （i.e., when their reproductive resources have not yet been depleted by previous matings）. This differential female mating success could not be attributed to female behavior as heavy and light females showed similar motivation to mate （i.e., la- tency to approach the males） and time to copulate. Males seem to benefit from mating with heavier females, as fecundity positively correlated with female mass. This new em- pirical evidence shows that male mate choice may have been tmderestimated in lekking species

Using Doubly-Labeled Water to Measure Energy Expenditure in an Important Small Ectotherm Drosophila melanogaster

Energy expenditure is a key variable in the study of ageing, and the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is a model organism that has been used to make step changes in our understanding of the ageing process. Standard methods for measurement of energy expenditure involve placing individuals in metabolic chambers where their oxygen consumption and CO2 production can be quantified. These measurements require separating individuals from any social context, and may only poorly reflect the environment in which the animals normally live. The doubly-labeled water （DLW） method is an isotope-based technique for measuring energy expenditure which overcomes these problems. However, technical challenges mean that the smallest animals this method has been previously applied to weighed 50-200 mg. We overcame these technical challenges to measure energy demands in Drosophila weighing 0.78 mg. Mass-specific energy expenditure varied between 43 and 65 mW·g^-1. These estimates are considerably higher than estimates using indirect calorimetry of Drosophila in small metabolic chambers （around 18 mW·g^-1）. The methodology we have established extends downwards by three orders of magnitude the size of animals that can be measured using DLW. This approach may be of considerable value in future ageing research attempting to understand the genetic and genomic basis of ageing.