Sexing Live Pupae and Adults of Two Wax Blooming Beetles,Colposcelis microderoides microderoidesandAnatolica polita borealis

Abstract

The wax blooming beetles Colposcelis microderoides microderoides Reitter and Anatolica polita borealis Kaszab (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) are small, flightless beetles living in the Guerbantonggut desert in the northwestern region of China. These beetles were recently found to have wax blooms, and their short life cycle and ease of rearing under laboratory conditions make them excellent models for advanced studies on desert adaptation. To date, dissection has been used for sex identification in these species, whereas a nondestructive method is needed for further studies on sexual dimorphism. Microscopic examinations of pupae and adults revealed distinct differences between the sexes in the 8th abdominal sternites, including the presence of a setose cleft in adult males that is not visible in females, in which the 8th sternite forms a single semicircular plate. The female pupae have a pair of tan papillae and a tan genital orifice, which are absent on the male 8th sternite. These two sexual characteristics can be used to sex live adults and pupae. These methods are simple, nondestructive, 100% accurate, and useful for sex differentiation of dead beetles and some other tenebrionid species (including some pests) in both the field and the laboratory.

Relative expression of microRNAs, apoptosis, and ultrastructure anomalies induced by gold nanoparticles in Trachyderma hispida (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

“…The specimens were sexed according to the median cleft on the 8 th abdominal sternites, which is present in males and absent in females [ 33 ]. One hundred and eighty adult females with an average weight of 1.60 ± 0.2 g were divided into nine groups (20 per group).…”

A novel method for sexing live adult Alphitobius diaperinus

“…For example, a distinct notch in the 8th sternite of males was noted to be absent in females of Luprops tristis Fabricius (Vinod et al, 2008). Likewise, adult males and females of Colposcelis microderoides microderoides Reitter and Anatolica polita borealis Kaszab can be distinguished based on differences of the 8th sternite, as in males this is clearly split by a setose median cleft whereas the median cleft is not observed in females (Wang et al, 2013).…”

“…Extrusion of genitalia can be achieved by squeezing the abdomen, but this usually results in the injury or death of the beetles (Vinod et al, 2008). Adults of some tenebrionid species can be sex‐identified by differences in the 8th abdominal segment (Vinod et al, 2008; Wang et al, 2013, 2015), and the size variation in external structures may be used to differentiate by sex.…”

Mating compatibility and offspring traits evaluation among different strains of Tenebrio molitor

“…In this bioassay, the parameters that were evaluated were adult survival, egg production and hatching rate. At first, a stereoscope (Stereomicroscope Leica MZ12, Spach Optics Inc, NY, United States) was used to separate the female and male pupae based on the differences in abdominal appendages (Arena and Defagó 2020 ; Wang et al 2013 ). After sex determination, female and male pupae were kept separately until adult emergence.…”