The presence of artificial light in particular, during the dark sequence of the biological rhythm, has suggested a negative relationship between exposure of light and effect on our sensory input, which in turn, directly affects behavior. In diurnal vertebrates such as human beings, constant illumination throughout sleep, (the least physically active time of the 24 hour cycle) inhibits the production of melatonin, potentially leading to cognitive dysfunction and behavioral changes due to stress, and ultimately anxiety from failure to reorient to the change in the environment.
This information posed the pressing question of whether organisms on the opposite side of the spectrum, nocturnal invertebrates, are also disturbed by the essence of light during the evening: where they are most active. Increasing evidence suggests that they are, specifically in crickets, where levels of overall activity decreased with lifetime subjection to light pollution. For this reason, house crickets, or Acheta domesticus, were the focal point of this study, with the objective to continue analysis on whether artificial light during the dark cycle affects activity, this time in shorter periods, to test the frequency of mating behaviors.
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