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The female reproductive tract of Grallipeza sp. A (Diptera: Micropezidae)—large ventral receptacle substitutes for spermathecae convergently in small and widely separated dipteran clades

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Abstract

The internal female reproductive tract of a Neotropical species of stilt-legged fly (Diptera: Micropezidae: Grallipeza sp. A) is described and illustrated with microphotography. Special emphasis is given to the massively enlarged sclerotized tubular ventral receptacle and an almost complete reduction of the spermathecal capsules, suggesting that sperm storage has been shifted from the spermathecae to the ventral receptacle. This constitutes a remarkable convergence with analogous developments in other dipteran taxa. The published information on the internal female reproductive tract of other Micropezidae is reviewed, and the evolutionary history of the condition in Grallipeza sp. A is reconstructed and related to evolutionary processes likely involving sperm competition and cryptic female choice. The presence of paired accessory glands in Grallipeza sp. A is confirmed.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Wayne N. Mathis for his collegial supervision and cooperation during years of dipterological studies and for taking me to Tiputini Biodiversity Station. Stephen A. Marshall helped with the identifications and provided information on the systematic placement of the yet undescribed species. He and William G. Eberhard provided valuable and much appreciated comments on earlier versions of the manuscript.

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  1. SNSB—Zoologische Staatssammlung München, Münchhausenstr 21, 81247, München, Germany

    Marion Kotrba

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  1. Marion Kotrba
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Correspondence to Marion Kotrba.

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Kotrba, M. The female reproductive tract of Grallipeza sp. A (Diptera: Micropezidae)—large ventral receptacle substitutes for spermathecae convergently in small and widely separated dipteran clades. Org Divers Evol 16, 525–532 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13127-016-0267-5

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