OVIPOSITION SITE SELECTION BY DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER AND DROSOPHILA SIMULANS

The effects of texture and larval residues in the medium on oviposition site selection (OSS) by Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila simulans were studied. Drosophila melanogaster laid over 95% of its eggs in sieved medium (vs. unsieved medium); D. simulans laid all of its eggs in sieved medium. Surgical removal of antennal segments, and of fore-, mid-, or hindtarsi did not affect this result, indicating that sense organs involved in discriminating between sieved and unsieved medium are not confined to only one of the tested structures. In a "multiple choice" experiment, females were allowed to lay eggs in sieved medium of three types: unconditioned (fresh) medium, medium conditioned by D. melanogaster larvae (i.e., medium containing larval residues of D. melanogaster), and medium conditioned by D. simulans larvae. This choice experiment was performed with D. melanogaster and with D. simulans, using three densities of females (10, 20, and 40 per experimental unit). Both species laid more eggs in unconditioned medium than in either of the conditioned media, and density had no effect. D. melanogaster laid more eggs near the edges of food patches than in the center, whereas D. simulans showed no preference for edge or center. Under crowded conditions, both species survived at a higher rate in conditioned media (egg-to-adult survival) than in unconditioned medium, leading to the anomalous conclusion that females of these species seem not to maximize the survival of their offspring. This anomaly was partially resolved by the finding that medium already containing larvae gave lower survival rates than unoccupied medium.