Our observations show that spermatozoa of the Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata and of Dacus oleae and Dacus dorsalis are capable of swimming backwards as well as forwards, and that they can change direction abruptly. The preferred direction is backwards, observed in spermatozoa obtained from the male genitalia. Forwards swimming spermatozoa were frequently seen in the spermatheca and close to the eggs. The change in swimming direction appears to be effected solely by a change in the direction of bend propagation, with no significant change in other waveform parameters. In vitro reactivated spermatozoa swim forwards only and require a minimum free Ca++ concentration of about 10(-6) M for movement. A switching of wave propagation from one direction to the other under control of intracellular free Ca++ concentration is suggested. Perhaps the backwards movement allows easier delivery of spermatozoa from the common envelope embedding the heads in the male apparatus, and assures a more efficient movement of the sperm towards the egg, especially given the enormous relative length of the head. The forwards movement is favoured in order to orient the sperm for penetration of the micropile.