The bizarre sex life of mayflies: Micro-CT scans reveal ins and outs of swarm Kamasutra

A new study on mayflies of the genus Ecdyonurus illustrates just how multifaceted and surprising reproductive behavior in nature can be. Entomologists at the State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart (SMNS), using state-of-the-art computed tomography, have analyzed the mating rituals of these insects in detail for the first time. The results reveal surprising mechanisms of specially adapted reproductive organs that enable the mayflies' acrobatic mating flight.