The post-ovarian genital complex in Anax guttatus (Burmeister) (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae)

It is situated in the mid-ventral region of the 8th abd. sternum, and is composed of a mid-anterior large bursa copulatrix, a mid-posterior tubular vagina and a pair of lateral elliptical spermathecae. These components are covered externally by the sternal and intrinsic muscles. A cuticular plate is embedded in the anterior region of the vagina and is connected to the seventh sternum by a pair of muscle bands. The spermathecae open into a bursa copulatrix through short spermathecal ducts anterodorsally. The bursa copulatrix contains a net-work of cuticular canals, and opens into the vagina through a distinct bursa communis. The spermatozoa dissociate from the spermiozeugma (Spermatodesms) and seminal fluid within the bursa copulatrix. The cuticular intima of the spermathecae is thin and lightly corrugated while that of the bursa copulatrix is thick and heavily folded. The cuticular intima of the lateral region of the vagina is thin but covered with overlapping dented scales. A pair of accessory sex glands are present in the 9th segment and open into the vagina. This is thought to be the first report of such glands in an anisopteran. – The eggs are elongate and cylindrical, with a complex micropylar apparatus. The egg-shell exhibits micromorphological modifications to cope with the endophytic mode of oviposition.