Independent origins of female penis and its coevolution with male vagina in cave insects (Psocodea: Prionoglarididae).

ABSTRACT: The cave-dwelling psocid tribe Sensitibillini (Afrotrogla, Neotrogla and Sensitibilla) is of special morphological and evolutionary interest because of its possession of reversed copulatory organs: i.e. females of Afrotrogla and Neotrogla have a penis-like organ. The female penis structure is highly variable among taxa, as is the case of the male penis in animals with normal copulatory organs. Here, we present the first molecular phylogeny of Sensitibillini and analyse the evolutionary pattern of their genitalia. Afrotrogla and Neotrogla did not form a monophyletic clade, and their female penis structures are significantly different, suggesting two independent origins of the female penis within Sensitibillini. In Neotrogla, the specie

SUBMITTER: Yoshizawa K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6283922 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature