TY - JOUR
T1 - A "spare" compensates for the risk of destruction of the elongated penis of earwigs (Insecta
T2 - Dermaptera)
AU - Kamimura, Yoshitaka
AU - Matsuo, Yoh
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgements We wish to thank Tadashi Suzuki, Tamotsu Kusano, Fumio Hayashi, Shin'ichi Katada, Hidetaka Ichiyanagi, and Yasuoki Takami for valuable advice during this study. We are also grateful to Fumio Hayashi, Rowan E. Hooper, and anonymous referees for helpful suggestions to improve this manuscript. Y.K. was supported by a JSPS Research Fellowship for Young Scientists.
PY - 2001
Y1 - 2001
N2 - Male animals in several groups have multiple intromittent organs that outnumber the corresponding female gonopore. In Dermaptera (earwigs), males of the family Anisolabididae have paired, elongated male intromittent organs (virgae), while females have a single sperm-storage organ (spermatheca). Several authors have assumed that one of the paired virgae is non-functional, because it points in the "wrong" direction. We investigated the mating success of handicapped males of Euborellia plebeja in which one of their paired virgae was removed experimentally. These handicapped males succeeded in inseminating a mate. Males with genital damage are found in the field, suggesting that the "spare" functions under natural conditions. Based on phylogenetic information on earwigs, we discuss possible evolutionary scenarios for this genital peculiarity.
AB - Male animals in several groups have multiple intromittent organs that outnumber the corresponding female gonopore. In Dermaptera (earwigs), males of the family Anisolabididae have paired, elongated male intromittent organs (virgae), while females have a single sperm-storage organ (spermatheca). Several authors have assumed that one of the paired virgae is non-functional, because it points in the "wrong" direction. We investigated the mating success of handicapped males of Euborellia plebeja in which one of their paired virgae was removed experimentally. These handicapped males succeeded in inseminating a mate. Males with genital damage are found in the field, suggesting that the "spare" functions under natural conditions. Based on phylogenetic information on earwigs, we discuss possible evolutionary scenarios for this genital peculiarity.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0035195366&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0035195366&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s001140100259
DO - 10.1007/s001140100259
M3 - Article
C2 - 11771475
AN - SCOPUS:0035195366
SN - 0028-1042
VL - 88
SP - 468
EP - 471
JO - Naturwissenschaften
JF - Naturwissenschaften
IS - 11
ER -