Effect of mating status on the fecundity of a cricket, Teleogryllus emma

Abstract Fecundity in some insects is affected by mating status. The effect of mating status on the fecundity and total egg production of Teleogryllus emma (Ohmachi et Matsumura) (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) was examined in this study. The results showed that the pre-oviposition period was shorter for amphigonic females than that for virgin females. However, no significant difference in pre-oviposition was found between amphigonic females and those that had mated with a male with either the phallodeum or testes extirpated. There is no difference in adult longevity between the above four groups. The fecundity and total egg production were much higher in amphigonic females than in those controlled under the three non-amphigonic treatments. The females of T. emma that mated with the testes-extirpated males produced more eggs (up to two-fold more) than both the virgin females and those that mated with the phallodeum-extirpated males, but there was no difference between them. The fecundity-enhancing substances transferred from male to female can stimulate the female to produce more eggs, but this stimulation has to occur in collaboration with sperm.