From: Courtship behaviour of Phlebotomus papatasi the sand fly vector of cutaneous leishmaniasis
 | Name of behaviour | Description |
---|---|---|
Male and female behaviours | ||
1 | Not courting | Sand fly stationary or moving around the arena, but not interacting with courtship partner. |
2 | Facing | Male and female stand facing, slightly adjacent to one other, approximately one body length apart. |
3 | Leg Rubbing | Sand fly appears to cross the tips of the front legs while rubbing them against one another. Contact may also be made with the mouth parts and antennae. |
4 | Touching | Sand fly touches partner, usually making contact with the tips of the legs or antennae. Females were also observed to touch the male abdomen at the start of courtship. |
5 | Stationary wing-flapping | Sand fly remains stationary while beating both wings simultaneously in a series of single flaps, rotating both wings forward in an arc up to a maximum of 70° from the abdomen. |
6 | Copulation | Male and female copulate facing in opposite directions, with the tips of the abdomen joined. Both male and female remain motionless throughout. |
Male-only behaviours | ||
7 | Abdomen bending | Male bends his abdomen to the left and right, swaying the genitalia in an arc between the rear legs. Often interspersed with brief displays of wing-flapping. |
8 | Approach-flapping | Male alternates between stepping towards the female and wing-flapping, often as a precursor to copulation. |
9 | Copulation attempt | Male bends abdomen forward towards the head before briefly taking off and attempting to make genital contact with the female. |