Reproductive behaviour of Odonata: the history of a mystery

Reproductive behaviour of Odonata: the history of a mystery 00

Philip S. Corbet^a

I.C.A.P.B., University of Edinburgh, Scotland, U.K.

International Journal of Odonatology, Volume 6, Issue 2, Pages 185-193, 2003

https://doi.org/10.1080/13887890.2003.9748386

Published: 1 January 2003 (Received: 24 April 2003, Accepted: 16 July 2003)

Abstract

The main, externally visible components of odonate reproductive behaviour were known from published accounts for about 300 years before sperm displacement during copulation was first described. The latter discovery, revealed by Jonathan Waage in 1979, revolutionised the interpretation of odonate reproductive behaviour, allowing it for the first time to be interpreted convincingly in the context of sexual selection and the evolution of mating systems. This insight has been a prerequisite for elegant, ongoing work on mechanisms of sperm displacement and sperm precedence in Odonata.

Keywords: Odonata, dragonfly, reproductive behaviour, sperm displacement, history

Issue section: Article

Vol. 6 I. 2

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Reproductive behaviour of Odonata: the history of a mystery