Altitudinal adaptation of the life cycle in Allonemobius fasciatus DeGeer (Orthoptera: Gryllidae)

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Abstract
Allonemobius fasciatus DeGeer maintains a univoltine life cycle with an embryonic diapause over an altitudinal gradient of as large as 1100 m. Hatching time differs by more than 1.5 months between the highest and lowest altitudes studied. Little or no genetic difference was detected between populations from different altitudes when physiological traits such as diapause intensity, postdiapause development, and nymphal development were compared in the laboratory. Photoperiod influenced the duration of the nymphal stage and the number of instars, compensating for the shorter growing season at higher elevations. This photoperiodic regulation of nymphal development would also serve as a mechanism synchronizing adult emergence within a population of this species.
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