Insect Reproductive Strategies

Aedeagus

Male external structure for sperm delivery.

Ovary

The organ that produces eggs inside female insects.

Ovarioles

Individual sacs where eggs develop in ovaries.

Spermatheca

Stores sperm in female insects after mating and releases sperm as mature eggs pass by on their way out of the female.

Oviposition

The process of laying eggs.

Accessory glands

Glands that produce secretions such as adhesives to hold eggs in place.

Micropyle

Minute holes in the egg chorion (shell) which allow for sperm to enter during fertilization.

Indirect fertilization

Insect reproduction that occurs when a male deposits sperm to a female outside of her body, usually as a spermatophore.

Spermatophore

An encapsulated package of sperm.

Nuptial gift

A physical resource such as a food item that a male provides to a female to enhance his mating success

Direct fertilization

A reproduction strategy that occurs when male genitals enter female reproductive tract and deposit sperm internally.

Sexual selection

A variation of natural selection, in which members of one sex of a species 'prefers' or selects for certain characteristics found in some members of the opposite species.

Oviparous

Egg laying strategy in which insects lay eggs with a tough chorion and enough yolk to provide the developing zygote with all the nutrition it needs to develop.

Ootheca

Purse-shaped pocket that provides eggs with protection.

Ovoviviparous

Female retains eggs inside the abdomen and gives birth to immatures, but offspring received all of their nourishment from inside egg with chorion.

Viviparous

Female retains the egg inside the abdomen and gives birth to live juvenile. Egg usually lacks chorion and has little yolk so the zygote receives most of its nutrition directly from its mother.

Stridulatory organ

Modifications in some insects that allow them to produce sound by scraping.

Stridulation

Sound production

Tympana

Sound-receiving organ of Orthoptera.

Bioluminescence

The ability to produce light by converting chemical energy to light energy.

Luciferin

The chemical which produces, when combined with light, ATP, and the enzyme luciferase, light in insects.

Luciferase

Enzyme used in bioluminescence.

Sexual dimorphism

Differences in physical characteristics between males and females of the same species.

Sperm competition

Competition between sperm of different males to fertilize eggs.

Sexual conflict

Characterized by contradicting optimal reproductive fitness strategies between sexes (male/female competition).

Sexually antagonistic coevolution

Coevolution of structures and behaviors in response to sexual conflict between males and females of a species, that strengthen their own fitness strategies, regardless of the effect on the opposite sex.

Parthenogenesis

Eggs are laid and mature without being fertilized, which usually results in female clones, as in aphids.