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Wing membrane thickness, allometric scaling and wing interference patterns in damselflies : a target of sexual selection?

Li, Meng LU orcid ; Tsuboi, Masahito LU ; Runemark, Anna LU ; Svensson, Erik I. LU orcid and Brydegaard, Mikkel LU (2026) In Evolutionary Ecology 40(4).
Abstract

Damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera) have evolved highly developed visual systems for mate recognition, flight and prey detection. Wing Interference Patterns (WIPs), which are colors generated by thin-film interference in the wing membrane, could function as visual signals and play a role in sexual selection. Because the color of these signals depends on membrane thickness, a potential conflict exists between changes in wing area and the need to maintain a consistent signal. We examined how wing membrane thickness scales with wing area in two damselfly species, Ischnura elegans and Enallagma cyathigerum. Using hyperspectral imaging, we found that while wing area was highly variable, membrane thickness showed low intraspecific variability.... (More)

Damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera) have evolved highly developed visual systems for mate recognition, flight and prey detection. Wing Interference Patterns (WIPs), which are colors generated by thin-film interference in the wing membrane, could function as visual signals and play a role in sexual selection. Because the color of these signals depends on membrane thickness, a potential conflict exists between changes in wing area and the need to maintain a consistent signal. We examined how wing membrane thickness scales with wing area in two damselfly species, Ischnura elegans and Enallagma cyathigerum. Using hyperspectral imaging, we found that while wing area was highly variable, membrane thickness showed low intraspecific variability. We found no evidence for any significant correlation between wing thickness and wing area or any support for sexual selection operating on these traits. Low intraspecific variation of the membrane thickness results in a consistent Wing Interference Signal (WIS), which is useful for species identification with remote sensing approaches.

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author
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Hyperspectral imaging, Odonata, Thin-film interference, Wing membrane, Zygoptera
in
Evolutionary Ecology
volume
40
issue
4
article number
48
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:105045542818
ISSN
0269-7653
DOI
10.1007/s10682-026-10411-5
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2026.
id
7ed2e99a-7779-4c77-8a9d-31870a3c87ab
date added to LUP
2026-08-27 15:11:51
date last changed
2026-08-31 11:22:05
@article{7ed2e99a-7779-4c77-8a9d-31870a3c87ab,
  abstract     = {{<p>Damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera) have evolved highly developed visual systems for mate recognition, flight and prey detection. Wing Interference Patterns (WIPs), which are colors generated by thin-film interference in the wing membrane, could function as visual signals and play a role in sexual selection. Because the color of these signals depends on membrane thickness, a potential conflict exists between changes in wing area and the need to maintain a consistent signal. We examined how wing membrane thickness scales with wing area in two damselfly species, Ischnura elegans and Enallagma cyathigerum. Using hyperspectral imaging, we found that while wing area was highly variable, membrane thickness showed low intraspecific variability. We found no evidence for any significant correlation between wing thickness and wing area or any support for sexual selection operating on these traits. Low intraspecific variation of the membrane thickness results in a consistent Wing Interference Signal (WIS), which is useful for species identification with remote sensing approaches.</p>}},
  author       = {{Li, Meng and Tsuboi, Masahito and Runemark, Anna and Svensson, Erik I. and Brydegaard, Mikkel}},
  issn         = {{0269-7653}},
  keywords     = {{Hyperspectral imaging; Odonata; Thin-film interference; Wing membrane; Zygoptera}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Evolutionary Ecology}},
  title        = {{Wing membrane thickness, allometric scaling and wing interference patterns in damselflies : a target of sexual selection?}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10682-026-10411-5}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s10682-026-10411-5}},
  volume       = {{40}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}