Size Affects Mating on Feather Lice (IMAGE)

University of Utah

Size Affects Mating on Feather Lice

Caption

Body size includes how female and male feather lice (C. columbae) copulate (female on top, male on bottom in all photos.) Top row: Pairs of typically sized lice successfully copulate Second row: Relatively large males can copulate, but they make a strange S-shape. Bottom row: Females copulating with smaller males, a rarity, is forced into an arched shape to adapt.

Credit

Adapted from Villa et. al. PNAS. 2019

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