The Functional Significance of Chiral Genitalia: Patterns of Asymmetry, Functional Morphology and Mating Success in the Praying Mantis Ciulfina baldersoni

Holwell, Gregory I.; Казакова, О.В.; Evans, Felicity A.; O’Hanlon, James C.; Barry, Katherine L.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0128755

Cited by 16 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…The normal (dextral) orientation of the phallic asymmetry is as in Figs 10–11, 13 (see also Klass 1997: figs 3, 24, 31, 38). However, a few mantodean genera (e.g., Ciulfina Giglio-Tos, 1915, Haania Saussure, 1871) include species with a side-reversed asymmetry, i.e., the phallic organs are mirror-imaged compared to those of other mantodeans (sinistral orientation), or species where both dextral and sinistral males occur (e.g., Balderson 1978, Anisyutkin and Gorochov 2004, Holwell et al 2007, 2015). In cases of a sinistral orientation, the terms for left and right structures of the phallic organs must also be applied in a side-reversed way.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Manual of praying mantis morphology, nomenclature, and practices (Insecta, Mantodea)

Brannoch¹,

Frank²,

Rivera³

et al. 2017

109

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This study provides a comprehensive review of historical morphological nomenclature used for praying mantis (Mantodea) morphology, which includes citations, original use, and assignment of homology. All referenced structures across historical works correspond to a proposed standard term for use in all subsequent works pertaining to praying mantis morphology and systematics. The new standards are presented with a verbal description in a glossary as well as indicated on illustrations and images. In the vast majority of cases, originally used terms were adopted as the new standard. In addition, historical morphological topographical homology conjectures are considered with discussion on modern interpretations. A new standardized formulation to present foreleg femoral and tibial spines is proposed for clarity based on previous works. In addition, descriptions for methods of collection, curation, genital complex dissection, and labeling are provided to aid in the proper preservation and storage of specimens for longevity and ease of study. Due to the lack of consistent linear morphometric measurement practices in the literature, we have proposed a series of measurements for taxonomic and morphological research. These measurements are presented with figures to provide visual aids with homologous landmarks to ensure compatibility and comparability across the Order. Finally, our proposed method of pinning mantises is presented with a photographical example as well as a video tutorial available at http://mantodearesearch.com.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Manual of praying mantis morphology, nomenclature, and practices (Insecta, Mantodea)

Brannoch¹,

Frank²,

Rivera³

et al. 2017

109

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“…Thus, males approaching them from another side will have an advantage. However, to our knowledge, no study has demonstrated this type of frequency‐dependent selection for insect courtship behaviour and genital interactions (but see Holwell, Kazakova, Evans, O'Hanlon, & Barry (), for a possible case).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Fitness advantages of the biased use of paired laterally symmetrical penises in an insect

Kamimura

Yang

Lee

2019

J of Evolutionary Biology

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The evolution of laterality, that is the biased use of laterally paired, morphologically symmetrical organs, has attracted the interest of researchers from a variety of disciplines. It is, however, difficult to quantify the fitness benefits of laterality because many organs, such as human hands, possess multimodal functions. Males of the earwig Labidura riparia (Insecta: Dermaptera: Labiduridae) have morphologically similar laterally paired penises, only one of which is used for inseminating the female during a single copulation bout, and thus provide a rare opportunity to address how selection pressure may shape the evolution of population‐level laterality. Our population studies revealed that in 10 populations, located at 2.23–43.3° north, the right penis is predominantly used for copulating (88.6%). A damaged penis was found in 23% of rare left‐handers, suggesting that the left penis can function as a spare when the right one is damaged. By pairing L. riparia females with surgically manipulated males, we found that males forced to use the right penis outperformed left‐handed males in copulation (the probability of establishing genital coupling during the 1‐hr observation period: odds ratio [OR] of 3.50) and insemination (probability of transferring a detectable amount of sperm: OR of 2.94). This right‐handed advantage may be due to the coiled morphology of the sperm storage organ with a right‐facing opening. Thus, female genital morphology may play a significant role in the evolution of handedness and may have acted as a driving force to reduce penis number in related taxa.

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“…Male mantises have genitalia consisting of three phallic parts, the dorsal and ventral components of the left coplex and the right phallomere (Holwell et al. ; fig. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The male twists his abdomen one way or the other; sinistral males twist to the left and dextral to the right (Holwell et al. ). Such male‐dominated positions require abdominal twisting, flexing and asymmetric contact between male and female genitalia.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unique set of copulatory organs in mantises: Concealed female genital opening and extremely asymmetric male genitalia

Hashimoto

Suzuki

Hayashi

2016

Entomological Science

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Several insects exhibit strong asymmetry in male genital shape, but the functions of this asymmetry is unknown. In the four species of the family Mantidae belonging to the genera Tenodera, Statilia and Hierodula, male genitalia consist of a more complex left‐side lobe, with two well‐pointed sclerotized processes, the apical process (paa) and the distal process (pda). Female genitalia are symmetric, and the genital opening (gonopore) is concealed by placement of the ovipositor (ovi) into the subgenital plate (sgp). Mating with experimental males, in which either paa or pda was cut, demonstrated that paa is essential for successful copulation. By fluorescence detection of the surface of females mated with males in which the paa was coated with fine fluorescent beads, the paa attachment site was determined to be the left edge of the female sgp. This finding suggests that copulation begins with exposure of the female gonopore by the male hooking the paa to the sgp and unfastening the ovi from the sgp, as associated with other parts of the male genitalia. The extremely asymmetric male genitalia also determine their mating posture. The male, mounting the female, bends his abdomen from the right side of his mate to attach his paa to her sgp. We found no antisymmetry in male genitalia, and never observed reversal (leftward) abdominal bending by the males. This was the fixed mating posture, even in virgin males, suggesting its innateness.

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The Functional Significance of Chiral Genitalia: Patterns of Asymmetry, Functional Morphology and Mating Success in the Praying Mantis Ciulfina baldersoni

Cited by 16 publications

References 29 publications

Manual of praying mantis morphology, nomenclature, and practices (Insecta, Mantodea)

Manual of praying mantis morphology, nomenclature, and practices (Insecta, Mantodea)

Fitness advantages of the biased use of paired laterally symmetrical penises in an insect

Unique set of copulatory organs in mantises: Concealed female genital opening and extremely asymmetric male genitalia

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