Colour polymorphism in female Coenagrion puella: differences in egg shape (Odonata: Coenagrionidae)

Colour polymorphism in female Coenagrion puella: differences in egg shape (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) 00

Gerrit Joopa, Aline Gillenb, Dirk Johannes Mikolajewskib

  1. Institut für Zoologie, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany
  2. laboratory for Aquatic Ecology , Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium

International Journal of Odonatology, Volume 10, Issue 1, Pages 71-80, 2007

https://doi.org/10.1080/13887890.2007.9748290

Published: 1 April 2007 (Received: 4 January 2007, Accepted: 2 February 2007)

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Abstract

The maintenance of female colour polymorphism in coenagrionids is still an open issue. Here we ask if the three different female morphs of Coenagrion puella represent different reproductive traits in terms of clutch and egg size. Therefore clutch size and egg morphometry of the three female colour morphs were examined. We found that female colour morphs did not differ in clutch or egg size. However, we also found that the female morphs differ in egg shape, with the intermediate morph having more elongated eggs compared to the hetero- and and romorphic females. Our results are discussed in terms of potential different preferences in oviposition substrate.

Keywords: Odonata, dragonfly, egg size, egg shape, oviposition substrate, reproductive strategies, colour polymorphism, Coenagrion puella, Zygoptera

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