A Text-book of Entomology: Including the Anatomy, Physiology, Embryology and Metamorphoses of Insects for Use in Agricultural and Technical Schools and Colleges as Well as by the Working EntomologistPackard, A. S. (Alpheus Spring)
Science
A Text-book of Entomology: Including the Anatomy, Physiology, Embryology and Metamorphoses of Insects for Use in Agricultural and Technical Schools and Colleges as Well as by the Working Entomologist
Packard, A. S. (Alpheus Spring)
Insects
=The penis.=—This is a single or double median style-like structure
either hollow and perforated, or solid, very variable in shape,
receiving the end of the ejaculatory duct. It is usually enclosed
between two lateral plates, the homologues perhaps of the inner pair of
sheaths of the ovipositor. In the Coleoptera, as in Carabidæ and
Melolonthidæ, the penis is a long chitinous tube, “retractile within the
abdomen on the under surface as far as the anterior segments.”
(Newport.) In the Hymenoptera, of which that of the saw-flies is a type,
Newport states that it “consists of a short valvular projectile organ,
covered externally by two pointed horny plates (_i_) clothed with soft
hairs.” Above these are two other irregular double-jointed plates (Fig.
202, _l_) surrounded at their base by a chitinous ring (_k_); they are
edged with prehensile hooked spines (_i_). Between these in the middle
line are two elongated muscular parts (_m_) which enclose the penis
(_h_), and which, like those in beetles, perhaps aid in dilating the
vulva of the female.
An examination of Figs. 203–207 will aid in understanding the various
modifications in beetles, etc., of this organ.
A general study of the anatomy and homologies of the male genital
armature, from a developmental point of view, together with a comparison
of them with the corresponding female organs, is still needed.
[Illustration:
FIG. 203.—End of abdomen situated under the anal lobes of _Hydrophilus
piceus_, drawn out, seen from the ventral side: 6, sternal region of
6th segment; 7, 8, 9, segments telescoped, when retracted, in 6th
segment; _zw_, membrane connecting 6th and 7th segments; _G_,
intromittent apparatus; _vl_, external lobes; _vlu_, inner lobes;
_pn_, penis.
]
[Illustration:
FIG. 204.—The same as in Fig. 203, seen from the side: 6, the free 6th
segment; 7–10, the four last, when at rest, retracted and telescoped
within the 6th segment, with the copulatory apparatus (_g_); _vl_,
outer, _vlu_, inner lobe; 10_s_, tergite of 10th segment; 10_i_,
sternite of the same; _an_, anal opening.
]
[Illustration:
FIG. 205.—Terminal parts of the male copulatory apparatus of
_Hydrophilus piceus_, torn apart: _vlu_, the two inner lodes; _pn_,
penis; _x_, membrane torn from under side of penis; _ej_,
ejaculatory duct; _os_, its opening on the under side of the penis,
directly under its tip. The muscles, tracheæ, and nerves are not
drawn.
]
=Velum penis.=—In the locusts (Acrydiidæ) the penis is concealed by a
convex plate, flap, or hood, free anteriorly and attached posteriorly
and on the sides to the ridge forming the upper edge of the tenth
sternite. When about to unite sexually, the tip of the abdomen is
depressed, the hood is drawn backward, uncovering the chitinous penis.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account