Sexual Selection In Crickets

Sexual selection is one of the defining characteristics of any given species. Female organisms select their mates based on a multitude of different factors based on their species, including size, color, displays of power, and mating or calling sounds. The process of mate selection is very important for organisms because through it they are trying to ensure the best levels of fitness for their future offspring. Mate selection can be divided into two arenas: preference functions, the varying significance of different male characteristics, and choosiness, the lengths a female will go to in time and energy to find and select a mate (Judge, Ting, & Gwynne, 2014). In most species, the males perform displays of power or aggression, making calling sounds, or have attractive colors or other physical characteristics in order to attract female mates. One of the key factors in sexual selection for crickets is the calling song which is
Phonotaxis, moving in response to a sound, toward the male making the calling sound is the first step in mate selection for female crickets, which further shows their importance in the process of sexual selection for female crickets. (Hirtenlehner & Römer, 2014). These calling songs are specific to male crickets of different species and differ in frequency, pulse and chirp pattern. Different preference profiles exist for each species of cricket based on these three characteristics and others like rate duration, pausing and cycling and this allows the female crickets to differentiate between their own species and others (Hennig, Blankers, & Gray, 2016). Speciation is process in which organisms become reproductively isolated and thus form different species. Differences in sexual selection are one of the factors that contribute to this isolation and thus differences in male phenotype related to sexual selection are expected between different