THE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM OF CLOUDED APOLLOS (PARNASSIUS MNEMOSYNE)

Abstract

Sexual conflict refers to the evolutionary struggle between males and females over reproductive resources and strategies. One manifestation of this conflict is mate-guarding, a behaviour observed in many species where males actively prevent other males from accessing a female to ensure their paternity. This protective behaviour is driven by the male's motivation to maximise its reproductive success and minimise the risk of females mating multiple times. In some species, mating plugs add another layer to the sexual conflict dynamics. Mating plugs are structures or substances deposited by males in the female reproductive tract to impede the access of rival males, reducing the likelihood of sperm competition. This adaptation serves as a form of postcopulatory mate guarding, ensuring that the male's genetic material has a better chance of successfully fertilising the eggs. Males of many insects, including butterflies, produce mate-guarding devices, such as mating plugs, to prolong guarding and prevent future female matings in the male's absence. In most Lepidoptera, internal plugs are common, while in two butterfly families, large external devices, called sphragides, evolved independently. The lack of, or incomplete sphragis in a few mated females were reported in sphragis-bearing species.