Genetic and light intensity effects on the activity and emigratory behavior of the house fly, Musca domestica (L.)

The emigratory behavior and locomotor activity of yellow-eyed (y/y), wild-type (+/+), and heterozygous (+/y) house flies was examined at 8 fc (86 lx) and 1600 fc (17,223 lx) light intensities. At 8 fc, emigration rate and activity of the y/y flies was similar to that of the +/+ and +/y flies. However, at 1600 fc, the y/y flies emigrated at twice the rate and showed an activity of about one-third that of the other genotypes. The behavior of the +/+ and +/y flies remained similar regardless of the experimental design or light intensity. The excessive neural stimulation by high-intensity light resulting from reduced shielding pigments led to behavioral modifications in the visual and tactile responses of the y/y flies.