02526nas a2200265 4500008004100000245009400041210006900135300001300204490000800217520178100225653001102006653001402017653001602031653001202047653002002059653001202079653001802091653001602109653002102125653001502146100001602161700001902177700001502196856004902211 2007 eng d00aClicking caterpillars: acoustic aposematism in Antheraea polyphemus and other Bombycoidea0 aClicking caterpillars acoustic aposematism in Antheraea polyphem a993-10050 v2103 a

"Acoustic signals produced by caterpillars have been documented for over 100 years, but in the majority of cases their significance is unknown. This study is the first to experimentally examine the phenomenon of audible sound production in larval Lepidoptera, focusing on a common silkmoth caterpillar, Antheraea polyphemus (Saturniidae). Larvae produce airborne sounds, resembling ‘clicks’, with their mandibles. Larvae typically signal multiple times in quick  succession, producing trains that last over 1·min and include 50–55 clicks. Individual clicks within a train are on average 24.7·ms in duration, often consisting of multiple components. Clicks are audible in a quiet room, measuring 58.1–78.8·dB·peSPL at 10·cm. They exhibit a broadband frequency that extends into the ultrasound spectrum, with most energy between 8 and 18·kHz. Our hypothesis that clicks function as acoustic aposematic signals, was supported by several lines of evidence. Experiments with forceps and domestic chicks correlated sound production with attack, and an increase in attack rate was positively  correlated with the number of signals produced. In addition, sound production typically preceded or accompanied defensive regurgitation. Bioassays with invertebrates (ants) and vertebrates (mice) revealed that the regurgitant is deterrent to would-be predators. Comparative evidence revealed that other Bombycoidea species, including Actias luna (Saturniidae) and Manduca sexta (Sphingidae), also produce airborne sounds upon attack, and that these sounds precede regurgitation. The prevalence and adaptive significance of warning sounds in caterpillars is discussed."

10aACTIAS10aANTHERAEA10aAPOSEMATISM10aDEFENCE10aIMMATURE STAGES10aMANDUCA10aREGURGITATION10aSATURNIIDAE10aSOUND PRODUCTION10aSPHINGIDAE1 aBrown, S.G.1 aBoettner, G.H.1 aYack, J.E. uhttps://sphingidae.myspecies.info/node/21180