The innervation of the male copulatory organ of spiders (Araneae) – a comparative analysis

Frontiers in Zoology

Lenka Sentenská¹  Tim M. Dederichs²  Gabriele Uhl²  Peter Michalik²  Carsten H. G. Müller²  Elisabeth Lipke³ 

[1] Department of Botany and Zoology, Masaryk University;Department of General and Systematic Zoology, Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald;German Air Force Center of Aerospace Medicine;

关键词: Copulation;    Intromittent organ;    Sexual selection;    Bulb nerve;    Sensory organ;    Pedipalp;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12983-019-0337-6

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Abstract Background Nervous tissue is an inherent component of the many specialized genital structures for transferring sperm directly into the female’s body. However, the male copulatory organ of spiders was considered a puzzling exception. Based on the recent discovery of nervous tissue in the pedipalps of two distantly related spider species, we investigated representatives of all major groups across the spider tree of life for the presence of palpal nerves. We used a correlative approach that combined histology, micro-computed tomography and electron microscopy. Results We show that the copulatory organ is innervated in all species investigated. There is a sensory organ at the base of the sperm transferring sclerite in several taxa and nervous tissue occurs close to the glandular tissue of the spermophor, where sperm are stored before transfer. Conclusions The innervation of the copulatory organ by the bulb nerve and associated efferent fibers is part of the ground pattern of spiders. Our findings pave the way for unraveling the sensory interaction of genitalia during mating and for the still enigmatic mode of uptake and release of sperm from the male copulatory organ.

【 授权许可】

Unknown