Swarming in locusts: from neurones to populations

Stephen Simpson

Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK

Over the past 10 years we have undertaken an integrative study of the processes underlying swarming in locusts. A key aspect is behavioural phase change, whereby locusts respond to crowding by switching from the shy, camouflaged 'solitarious' form to the highly mobile, brightly coloured, actively aggregating, swarm-forming 'gregarious' form. In my talk I will describe work that has explored the underlying neural and molecular mechanisms of this transition, its maternal inheritance, and its implications at the population level as studied using individual-based models, laboratory and field experiments.