INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE
OF BIOPHYSICS
Conference
on Biophotons 1999
Abstracts of the Conference Reports in
alphabetic Order
BIOLUMINESCENCE AND BIOCUMMUNICATION OF Lampyridae
Jiin-Ju Chang *# and Fritz-Albert Popp#
* Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. 100101, Beijing
China Fax. 0086 10 6488 8428, E-Mail. changjj@sun5.ibp.ac.cn; # International
Institute of Biophysics e.V., IIB. D-41472 Neuss, Germany Fax 0049 02182/825132,
E-Mail: Biophotonik.KL@t-online.de
It is well known that male Lampyridae, commonly known as fireflies,
search for females at night by emitting flashes of light in a characteristic
pattern. Females respond to the patterns by flashing back at species-specific
time intervals after the male flashes. This is a typical example of biocommunication
by light. However there is no clear picture of how the light communication
carried out. By using Chinese Lampyridae captured in Beijing Hunting
park, photon emission in different conditions of the flies were measured
by the double chamber with coincidence counting system (CCS) and by PMS-1
with light illuminating in Dr. Popp's Lab.in order to answer the above
questions. The results show that the females respond to the male flashing
only when she is in free flying conditions as showed in Fig. 1(the left).
However when they were put separately in a small cuvette where they can
not fly freely they will communicate in another way flashing back.
The female flies also respond light illumination but in a very special
manner showed as Fig.2.(the right). The arrow shows the time of illumination
with white light. After a short decrease in the intensity, the photon emission
from the fly appear in an oscillation pattern with decreasing frequency.
Analysis of photocount statistics and cross-correlation of photon emission
from the Lampyridae showed that they followed Possonian distribution
and they are correlated each other.
© International
Institute of Biophysics 2001 E-mail: iib@lifescientists.de
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