A secondary copulatory structure in a female insect: a clasp for a nuptial meal?

Abstract.

Secondary copulatory structures are well-known in male dragonflies and spiders. Here I report a secondary copulatory organ in female ground weta, Hemiandrus pallitarsis (Ensifera, Orthoptera – crickets and allies). The organ, located on the underside of the abdomen, appears to secure the male's genitalia during the transfer of a spermatophylax nuptial meal to this location, an area quite separate from the female's primary copulatory structures, where the sperm ampulla is attached.