Frog-Biting Flies Tune In to Mating Calls, Study Finds

A groundbreaking study conducted in the Australian rainforest has revealed, for the first time in Oceania, that frog-biting flies exhibit acoustic selectivity by focusing on the calls of male frogs. Female flies, which require blood for reproduction, utilize sound to find their hosts. In trials involving seven artificial sounds, pitches of 0.5, 0.8, and 1.4 kHz successfully attracted the flies, while other frequencies did not. The most appealing low pitch corresponded with local frog calls, suggesting an evolutionary response. Frogs face risks from blood loss and parasites, which can shape their evolution. To evade flies, smaller frogs might amplify their high-pitched calls. Stony creek frogs (Rhyaconastes wilcoxii) do not show a strong inclination for low-frequency calls and are often targeted. The research was spearheaded by Timothy Cutajar, a PhD candidate at UNSW Sydney, with contributions from Jane and James Slack and others.