
2006
Photograph,
Blue-tipped Dancer Damselflies (Argia tibialis) male and female
mating, River Bend Park on the Potomac, Great Falls, Virginia
©
2007. Male Damselflies, like Dragonflies, have their sex organs at the
tip of the abdomen like most other insects. However, because the
males use the clasping organs, also at the tip of the abdomen to grasp the
female's thorax during mating, they first have to transfer a sperm packet
to secondary genitalia at the base of the abdomen from where the female
accepts the packet during mating. It is thought that this system of
mating evolved so that the male could protect his investment in the next
generation by greatly eliminating the chance that another male could mate
before the eggs have been laid. Indeed, Odonates, especially
damselflies are frequently seen in "tandem" throughout the egg
laying process, in addition to the period of actual mating.
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