Temperature Sensitive Programming of the Silkmoth Flight Clock: A Mechanism for Adapting to the Seasons

When males of the silkmoth Antheraea pernyi were exposed to 12 degrees C diuring adult development and then tested for flight activity at 25 degrees C, the time of the onset of the activity was advanced to the early part of the night. This change in the time of activity was stable and persisted through the life of the moth. Females showed a corresponding shift in the time of sex pheromone release when they were treated in the same fashion.