Independent regulation of physiological and behavioral maturation of reproduction in female sand crickets ( Gryllus firmus )

In the first days of adulthood, ovary size and sexual receptivity increase in female sand crickets (Gryllus firmus Scudder, 1902). We tested whether these are mechanistically linked by juvenile hormone (JH), which has been implicated in gonadal development and sexual behavior in other insects. Treatment of young females with the JH analog, methoprene, accelerates oocyte maturation and triggers flight-muscle histolysis, but does not affect sexual receptivity. These results are consistent with earlier studies which suggest that physiological and behavioral components of sexual maturation in crickets are separately regulated.