Stink Bug Inter-Plant Communication with Signals Produced by Vibration of Lifted Wings

Abstract

Stink bugs communicate while mating on a plant by means of the substrate-borne component of the species and sex-specific calling, courtship and rival signals, produced by vibration of the abdomen. Courtship conducted over a close visual distance, chemical contact and mechanical exchange of information terminates in copulation. Here we describe characteristics, differences between species, transmission properties and the behavioral context of the stink bugs Chinavia impicticornis, C. ubica and Euschistus heros in relation to their buzzing signals, produced by vibration of lifted wings. Comparison between species reveals their species’ non-specific temporal parameters, characterized by irregular repetition rate and highly variable duration. Frequency spectral bands extend to several kHz above approximately 100\xa0Hz, which is the fundamental frequency and significantly higher in E. heros compared with both Chinavia species. Buzzing signals, recorded predominantly in the very early phase of mating behavior, precede emission of signals produced by abdomen vibration. Males and females emit signals spontaneously when alone on a plant or together with conspecific or alien species mates. Transmission of wing-produced signals along the plant shows characteristics similar to those produced by abdomen vibration. We suggest that amplitudes, measured on distant plants in direct contact or through soil and roots, together with the high sensitivity of relevant vibrational receptors, enable stink bugs to communicate between plants, using substrate-borne vibratory signals outside the limits of the single plant.