Activity/rest rhythms of Drosophila populations selected for divergent eclosion timing under temperature cues

Despite the fact that the rhythm in adult emergence and rhythm in locomotor activity are two different rhythmic phenomena that occur at distinct life-stages of the fly life cycle, previous studies have hinted at similarities in certain aspects of the organisation of the circadian clock driving these two rhythms. In an earlier study, we have shown that selection on timing of adult emergence behaviour in populations of Drosophila melanogaster leads to the co-evolution of temperature sensitivity of circadian clocks driving eclosion. In this study, we were interested in asking if temperature sensitivity of the locomotor activity rhythm has evolved in our populations with divergent timing of adult emergence rhythm, with the goal of understanding the extent of similarity (or lack of it) in circadian organisation between the two rhythms. We found that in response to simulated jetlag with temperature cycles, late chronotypes (populations selected for predominant emergence during dusk) indeed re-entrain faster than early chronotypes (populations selected for predominant emergence during dawn), thereby indicating enhanced sensitivity of the activity/rest clock to temperature cues in these stocks (entrainment is the synchronisation of internal rhythms to cyclic environmental time-cues). Additionally, we found that late chronotypes show higher plasticity of phases across regimes, day-to-day stability in phases and amplitude of entrainment, all indicative of enhanced temperature sensitive activity/rest rhythms. Our results highlight remarkably similar organisation principles between emergence and activity/rest rhythms.

Shedding new light upon circadian emergence rhythmicity in the mountain pine beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae)

The phenological behaviours of temperate insects can be highly controlled by photoperiod. Some foundational studies of the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae (Hopkins) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), documented a diurnal emergence rhythm that was asynchronous with maximum daily temperatures in the field and persisted under constant temperature and light conditions. In the 1970s, researchers hypothesised that this emergence rhythm was regulated by an endogenous circadian mechanism. Reflecting upon these historical data, we consider that a diurnal pattern of D. ponderosae emergence may result from photoperiodic entrainment of the circadian clock during the immature stages. Mechanistically, we suggest that the long-wavelength-sensitive opsin that we previously found to be expressed across D. ponderosae life stages could mediate, from beneath the bark, the input of light–dark cycle cues that are usually required for entrainment of the insect circadian clock.

Influence of Daily Variations of Light and Temperature on the Emergence Rhythm of Grayling Fry (Thymallus thymallus)

The emergence rhythm of grayling fry (Thymallus thymallus) was studied in four aquaria fitted with traps under four different conditions of light and temperature. Both light and temperature induced an emergence rhythm characterized by a 24-h period. Under ambient Sight and constant temperature, emergence peaked at the end of the night before the onset of dawn. Under constant dim light and varying temperature, emergence peaked in early morning during the coldest hours. When both light and temperature fluctuated daily the emergence pattern was equivalent to the "sum" of these previous two regimes and was similar to that described in the field in a previous report. In the absence of light and temperature variations, no emergence rhythm was observed.

Diel pattern of emergence in grayling (Thymallus thymallus Linnaeus, 1758)

The emergence rhythm of grayling fry (Thymallus thymallus) was studied under semi-natural rearing conditions, using special traps buried in the gravel. The diel pattern of emergence proved to be mainly diurnal, with a maximum just after sunrise. The discussion emphasizes the fact that this distinguishes the grayling from other salmonids, and since eggs are buried at a reduced depth, proposes the hypothesis that light conditions during development influence the daily pattern of emergence.

Hybrids between Schistosoma mansoni and S. rodhaini: characterization by cercarial emergence rhythms

SummaryHybridization between Schistosoma mansoni, with a diurnal cercarial emergence rhythm and S. rodhaini, with a nocturnal cercarial shedding pattern leads to F1 and F2 generations, hybrid schistosomes whose chronobiological phenotype of cercariae is characterized by two unequal emergence peaks, one diurnal and the other nocturnal. The relative importance of diurnal and nocturnal peaks depends upon which S. mansoni strain (early or late) is used for the hybridization with S. rodhaini. The results are compared and discussed with those resulting from crosses between intraspecific sympatric and allopatric chronobiological variants (early and late) of S. mansoni. The genetic determinism of the cercarial emergence of schistosomes and the significant differences observed between cercarial shedding patterns of parental species and their hybrids allow the use of this behavioural marker in biological and genetical studies in schistosome populations.