Acoustic Signals Produced during Courtship in Diachasmimorpha (=Biosteres) longicaudata (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and Other Braconidae

Abstract

Sounds produced by courting males of three species of Braconidae as they approach and then mount females differ in frequency, sound duration, and intervals between sounds. Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead), a parasitoid of the Caribbean fruit fly, Anastrepha suspensa (Loew), has a sexually dimorphic response to broadcasts of recorded “approach song” that suggests the sound has a sexual function. Sounds directed at other males have longer pulse trains (buzzes) and shorter intervals between pulse trains than those sung to potential mates. D. longicaudata males have more oval wings than females, as is the case in some acoustically signaling Diptera. Microplitis croceipes (Cresson) and Cotesia marginiventris (Cresson) produce multiple frequency sounds that result in a warbling effect. The song of the latter species is very complex and includes two distinct forms of pulse trains.