Phonotactic Selectivity
Brent Sherwin (Biology)
The role of Cl(-) channel-inhibition in the brain on the phonotactic selectivity of female crickets
The goal of this project was to determine if picrotoxin influences phonotactic selectivity of female crickets when nanoinjected into the supraesophageal ganglion. Adult females of Acheta domesticus were pre-tested for phonotaxis on a treadmill to a range of calling songs with different syllable periods. Following dissection to expose the brain, 9.2 nL of either saline (control group) or 10-5 M picrotoxin (experimental group) was nanoinjected into the supraesophageal ganglion. Post-tests following saline injection (10 min later) were similar to the pre-tests. Picrotoxin-treated females became more phonotactically selective displaying a preference for calling songs with the shorter syllable periods.