The Role Of Octopamine In Syllable-Period Selective Phonotaxis In Female Cricket Acheta Domesticus

Female crickets respond phonotactically to the calls of conspecific males. Females\u27 phonotaxis has been reported to be variable, ranging from unselective to selectve in response to calls with varying syllable periods (30-90 ms). Octopamine, an intertebrate neurotransmitter, has been reported to increase aggressive behavior in crickets, (Stevanson et al. 2005) but the effects of octopamine on behaviors such as phonotaxis have not been investigated. The goal of this study is to determine the effects of octopamine on the syllable-period selective phonotactic response of females. Results suggest a decrease in phonotactic responsiveness shown by 5-10 day-okds after prothroacic nanoinjection of octopamine