Thesis Colloquium at CES on 10 July 2015 at 11:00 am titled "CES: 10th July 2015: Investigating pattern recognition and bi-coordinate sound localization in the tree cricket species Oecanthus henryi" by Monisha Bhattcharya from CES, IISc Bangalore

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Topic: 
CES: 10th July 2015: Investigating pattern recognition and bi-coordinate sound localization in the tree cricket species Oecanthus henryi
Speaker: 
Monisha Bhattcharya, CES, IISc Bangalore
Date & Time: 
10 Jul 2015 - 11:00am
Event Type: 
Thesis Colloquium
Venue: 
CES Seminar Hall, 3rd Floor, Biological Sciences Building
Coffee/Tea: 
Before the talk
Abstract:

An acoustic communication system consists of a sender, a receiver and a signal. In my thesis I have focused on the receiver. The model system I chose was the tree cricket species, Oecanthus henryi. In a cricket mating system, usually the male calls and the female recognizes and responds to the call. A female in a cricket mating system is thus faced with three kinds of issues: recognizing the conspecific call, localizing the call and discriminating among conspecific males based on individual differences in the calls. My thesis objectives are focused upon these three broad themes. I have examined the role of call carrier frequency in maintaining sender-receiver match thus aiding conspecific recognition. I have also explored the role of carrier frequency in discrimination among conspecific males. O. henryi is found in sympatry with a congeneric calling tree cricket species, O. indicus. I studied reproductive isolation between the two based on calls. Finally since O. henryi is found on bushes, the males and females are separated in azimuth as well as in elevation; hence I studied the mechanism of 3D sound localization in these insects.

Speaker Bio: 
Integrated Ph D. student Dr. Rohini Balakrishnan’s Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science.