Comparative morphology of the spermatheca in Megalopodidae (Coleoptera, Chrysomeloidea)

The spermatheca is an organ that stores and maintains viability of sperm until fertilization. It has an important role in copulation and oviposition, and it is highly informative in species delimitation. Here, we present a comparative study of the spermathecal morphology in the coleopteran family Me...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inZooKeys no. 720; pp. 47 - 64
Main Authors Rodríguez-Mirón, Geovanni M, Zaragoza-Caballero, Santiago, López-Pérez, Sara
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers 11.12.2017
Subjects
Chrysomeloidea
Comparative analysis
Identification and classification
Physiological aspects
spermatheca
Palophaginae
Zeugophorinae
flagellum
taxonomic significance
Female genitalia
Megalopodinae
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The spermatheca is an organ that stores and maintains viability of sperm until fertilization. It has an important role in copulation and oviposition, and it is highly informative in species delimitation. Here, we present a comparative study of the spermathecal morphology in the coleopteran family Megalopodidae. The spermathecae of 34 species, representing 13 genera and all three subfamilies, were studied. Illustrations are newly provided for all species, except in 14 cases in which illustrations were reproduced from previously published literature. Our results show that each subfamily of Megalopodidae can be effectively differentiated based on the particular spermathecal anatomy. In addition, the spermathecal anatomy presents a range of variation within each subfamily, useful for diagnosing species and, in some cases, identifying groups of genera. For instance, the "American group" is thus recognized in this study.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
Academic editor: M. Schmitt
ISSN:1313-2989
1313-2970
DOI:10.3897/zookeys.720.14088