Crickets may predict human survivability during glob...(t samples in summer 2006 and he is now w...)

Date:3/11/2009

t samples in summer 2006, and he is now working on breeding a second generation of crickets that is enduring current temperature conditions and those expected in 2025 and 2050. The next generation of the crickets will face temperatures expected in 2065 and 2080, and the final group will see temperatures expected in 2100. Altogether, the temperature will increase by 6 degrees Celsius (10.8 degrees Fahrenheit) from the start to finish of the study.

Winterhalter is simulating the daily and seasonal changes crickets are expected to experience during a growing season. Temperatures in the incubators start off low in the morning, increase until a little after noon and then decrease in the evening and into the night, when the lights shut off. In the morning, the lights come back on and the cycle begins again.

The entire experiment will include about 75,000 crickets, which eat carrots and kitten chow.

Existing studies show that when creatures are faced with changes in their environment, the impact can range from slow adaptation to extinction.

Winterhalter expects that once the study is finished, his innovative approach will be adapted to fit other creatures, such as lizards and frogs.

"One of the most exciting aspects of this project from a scientific perspective is that we are attempting to build a bridge between two fields that historically have had very little interaction," Winterhalter said. "By bringing together both climatologists and evolutionary ecologists, this project has the potential of making major advances in both fields."

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Contact: Zenaida Gonzalez Kotala zkotala@mail.ucf.edu 407-446-6567 University of Central Florida Source:Eurekalert

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