GROOMING BEHAVIOR IN DIPLURA 
(INSECTA: APTERYGOTA) 
By Barry D. Valentine and Michael J. Glorioso 
Departments of Zoology & Entomology respectively, 
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210 
Insect grooming studies are adding an important new dimension 
to knowledge of comparative behavior and evolution. Recent 
advances include an overview of a few selected movements of insects 
and myriopods (Jander, 1966), studies of the functional morphology 
of grooming structures (Hlavac, 1975), extensive reports about 
individual orders (Coleoptera: Valentine, 1973; Hymenoptera: Far- 
ish, 1972), quantitative studies at species levels (Chironomidae: 
Stoffer, in preparation; Drosophila: Lipps, 1973), and many less 
inclusive works. All such studies have difficulties which include the 
inability to know when an observed sequence is complete, the 
enormous number of potential taxa, the problem of generalizing 
about families and orders from small samples of individuals or 
species, and the absence of data from primitive or odd groups which 
may be critical for interpreting evolutionary sequences. The first 
three difficulties can be partially solved by increasing sample sizes 
and combining observations; however, the fourth can be solved only 
by availability. Grooming in the apterygote order Diplura is a good 
example because we can find only incomplete reports on one 
species. Recently, we have studied ten live specimens representing 
two families and three species; the data obtained provide an 
important picture of grooming behavior in one of the most primitive 
surviving orders of insects. Our observations greatly extend the 
limited discussion of grooming in the European japygid Dipljapyx 
humberti (Grassi, 1886) reported by Pages (1951, 1967). Data on 
Dipljapyx are incorporated here, but have not been verified by us. 
Initially we asked two questions: The first concerned whether a 
very primitive insect would enable us to observe a primitive 
grooming repertory; what we actually observed were primitive 
insects with grooming behavior beautifully tuned to a special and 
restricted environment. The second question concerned the effects 
*Manuscript received by the editor September 26, 1978. 
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