Genital evolution, sexual selection, and phylogeny of Argia damselflies

The New World damselfly genus Argia (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) contains 118 described species. It is relatively well-known taxonomically and has been the focus of considerable behavioral and ecological research focusing on its reproductive biology, but there has been little comparative study of the genus in a phylogenetic context. We present results of a phylogenetic analysis of the genus, and we examine the evolution of reproductive morphology across the genus. Our phylogenetic hypothesis is based on combined molecular and morphological evidence and multiple optimality criteria. We examine morphological evolution using the emerging technique of spherical harmonic analysis of 3-D reconstructions based on computer tomographic scans of relevant structures.