Age-dependent increase in male courtship behaviors.

Still images, representing individual courtship behaviors of group-housed male flies (4-weeks) were made from infrared video recordings taken during periods of darkness (midnight to 1:00am). Recordings and images of 4-week old WT males show extensive male courtship, which include (A) multi-male courtship bouts or chaining behaviors, (B) wing extension or male courtship singing (arrows) and (C) attempts to copulation (arrows). (D) The average number of male courtship events that occurred during light (noon) and dark (midnight) time periods were determined for 1 and 4-week control (w¹¹¹⁸/+) and Atg8a-OE (4 Wk Rescue) male flies. (E) RNA was isolated from adult fly heads and used to examine the expression profiles of the Obp56g, Obp57a, Obp57c and Obp99b genes in young (1-week) and middle-aged (4-week) WT (w¹¹¹⁸/+) and Atg8a-OE male flies. * P ≤ 0.05 and *** P ≤ 0.001.