Auditory-Visual Virtual Reality for the Study of Multisensory Integration in Insect Navigation

Insects have the ability to navigate through a complex environment. It has been reported that using multisensory information improves their ability to navigate. To reveal when and how insects utilize multiple sensory information, we developed a multisensory virtual reality system for crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus), which enables us to manipulate auditory and visual stimuli from every direction. We investigated how visual information influenced their phonotaxis towards a conspecific male calling song. Our results showed that crickets exhibit phonotaxis under virtual reality and that a visual target with a sound source reduced the variability of the body angle towards the source. These results suggested the possibility that crickets utilize visual cues to localize sound sources. Further investigation with our system will reveal how crickets effectively utilize multiple sensory information in complex environments.