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Aggregation behaviour of cockroaches (Blattaria: Blaberidae): intraspecific and interspecific preference
Varadínová, Zuzana ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Janda, Milan (referee)
Cockroaches (Blattaria) are considered to be nearly universally gregarious insect order. In spite of this fact most of the research effort has been devoted to the behaviour of domiciliary species. It is thus not surprising we still do not have comparable information about aggregation behaviour in common laboratory blaberid species. We have investigated aggregation behaviour of adult males and females in six blaberid species: four South American species (Blaberinae: Eublaberus posticus, Eublaberus distanti, Blaberus discoidalis, Blaberus craniifer) and two Madagascar species (Oxyhaloinae: Gromphadorhina portentosa, Princisia vanwaerebeki). Intraspecific aggregation behaviour was determined using two approaches: the binary choice tests arena and free interaction arena tests. Results obtained with both methods were largely consistent. We have found that blaberid clades clearly differed in their aggregation patterns. (1) Females of Eublaberus species aggregated while only a slight and less consistent aggregation tendency was recorded in conspecific males. (2) Both sexes of Blaberus species aggregated, especially when tested in the arena. (3) The Madagascar hissing cockroaches of the Gromphadorhina-Princisia clade are not gregarious, the aggregation tendency was entirely absent in the males of both species and...
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Aggregation behaviour of cockroaches (Blattaria: Blaberidae): intraspecific and interspecific preference
Varadínová, Zuzana ; Frynta, Daniel (advisor) ; Janda, Milan (referee)
Cockroaches (Blattaria) are considered to be nearly universally gregarious insect order. In spite of this fact most of the research effort has been devoted to the behaviour of domiciliary species. It is thus not surprising we still do not have comparable information about aggregation behaviour in common laboratory blaberid species. We have investigated aggregation behaviour of adult males and females in six blaberid species: four South American species (Blaberinae: Eublaberus posticus, Eublaberus distanti, Blaberus discoidalis, Blaberus craniifer) and two Madagascar species (Oxyhaloinae: Gromphadorhina portentosa, Princisia vanwaerebeki). Intraspecific aggregation behaviour was determined using two approaches: the binary choice tests arena and free interaction arena tests. Results obtained with both methods were largely consistent. We have found that blaberid clades clearly differed in their aggregation patterns. (1) Females of Eublaberus species aggregated while only a slight and less consistent aggregation tendency was recorded in conspecific males. (2) Both sexes of Blaberus species aggregated, especially when tested in the arena. (3) The Madagascar hissing cockroaches of the Gromphadorhina-Princisia clade are not gregarious, the aggregation tendency was entirely absent in the males of both species and...
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