The Structure and Musculature of the Secondary Male Genitalia of the Odonata and the Functional Significance of the Muscle Disposition1

Abstract

Fourteen species of Odonata, representing several families of both tine Zygoptera and the Anisoptera, were examined. The secondary male genitalia, situated on the venter of the second and third abdominal segments, include the penis, the penis sheath, the vesicle, the lamina, the lamina batilliformis (in Zygoptera only), 2 pairs of hamules, and the frame. These parts are described and compared. The lamina, the anterior hamules, and the frame are provided with paired muscles whose disposition is described and figured. The penis is not directly provided with a muscle, but its erection is aided by those of the vesicle in the Anisoptera, and by 2 pairs of muscles of the frame in the Zygoptera. The identity of the various parts of the genitalia is established on the basis of comparative study and the data available on other members of the Odonata.