Andy, You state the eggs have all hatched over the last 48 hours. You also state the mulberry trees have broken buds over the past two days. Is it possible the opening buds are releasing some volatiles that diffused into the eggs and triggered the hatching?
Axel Ringe New Market, TN Andy Dyer wrote: >Hi everyone,=20 > >Silk moths are commonly used to demonstrate insect life history and a >number of other fun traits from kindergarten classes on up. Last >spring, I had a student with ten replicates of ten caterpillars mate and >produce about 50 batches of eggs. In the past 48 hours, they all began >hatching even though they were laid over the course of two weeks, the >parents had been treated with low and high food availability, and the >eggs had been stored for the past 10 months in the lab at room temp, >standard humidity, and without any windows. Synchronous emergence is >well documented in insects, but does it often carry over to the lab like >this? Interestingly, the food source (mulberry trees) here have just >broken buds in the last two days, so it just seems remarkable to me. >Being a plant person with an interest in germination strategies, I >expect there to be an environmental cue prior to the advent of any >activity. Granted these are probably somewhat inbred lines, but in >other organisms that show simultaneous behaviors, there is a consistent >environmental stimulus. Because they all emerged simultaneously, I have >to assume there was a cue even though they were maintained in an >interior room in the building. Any suggestions? Have I ignored >something obvious or is it just my entomological naivete? > >Thanks, > >Andy =20 > >=20 > >Andrew R. Dyer > >Asst. Professor of Ecology > >Dept. of Biology & Geology > >University of South Carolina Aiken > >471 University Parkway > >Aiken, SC 29801 > >Vox 803-641-3443 > >Fax 803-641-3251 > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >=20 > > > >
