The feeding behaviour of Schistocerca gregaria, the desert locust, on two starch mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana

Schistocerca gregaria, the desert locust, has been shown to regulate its di etary intake with respect to specific macronutrients in synthetic foods. Th is study examined the nutrients in the leaves of two starch mutants of Arab idopsis thaliana, and then compared the feeding behaviour of locusts on the two starch mutants. The high-starch mutant had c. 25 times more starch tha n the no-starch mutant. Newly molted 5th stadium locusts were preconditione d for 3 days on one of the mutants, and then observed for 90 min while expo sed to the same or the alternative mutant. Locusts pretreated with the no-s tarch mutant fed longer during the first meal on high-starch mutants, spent more time feeding, and had the smaller latency to begin a meal when compar ed to the locusts pretreated on the high-starch mutant. The results of the study are interpreted in light of an integrative model of nutrient balancin g.