Eggshell Structure of the Predator Harpactor angulosus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae)

2012 ◽  
Vol 105 (6) ◽  
pp. 896-901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiago G. Pikart ◽  
Gabriely K. Souza ◽  
Terezinha V. Zanuncio ◽  
José C. Zanuncio ◽  
José E. Serrão
Keyword(s):  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Minoru Moriyama ◽  
Kouji Yasuyama ◽  
Hideharu Numata

AbstractInsect eggshells must meet various demands of developing embryos. These demands sometimes conflict with each other; therefore, there are tradeoffs between eggshell properties, such as robustness and permeability. To meet these conflicting demands, particular eggshell structures have evolved in diverse insect species. Here, we report a rare eggshell structure found in the eggshell of a cicada, Cryptotympana facialis. This species has a prolonged egg period with embryonic diapause and a trait of humidity-inducible hatching, which would impose severe demands on the eggshell. We found that in eggs of this species, unlike many other insect eggs, a dedicated cleavage site, known as a hatching line, was formed not in the chorion but in the serosal cuticle. The hatching line was composed of a fine furrow accompanied by ridges on both sides. This furrow-ridge structure formed in the terminal phase of embryogenesis through the partial degradation of an initially thick and nearly flat cuticle layer. We showed that the permeability of the eggshell was low in the diapause stage, when the cuticle was thick, and increased with degradation of the serosal cuticle. We also demonstrated that the force required to cleave the eggshell was reduced after the formation of the hatching line. These results suggest that the establishment of the hatching line on the serosal cuticle enables flexible modification of eggshell properties during embryogenesis, and we predict that it is an adaptation to maximize the protective role of the shell during the long egg period while reducing the barrier to emerging nymphs at the time of hatching.


Zoology ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 111 (6) ◽  
pp. 494-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ola Karlsson ◽  
Clas Lilja

1998 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 139 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. Girling ◽  
A. Cree ◽  
L. J. Guillette, Jr

Oviducal structure was analysed in vitellogenic females from four species of gekkonid lizard exhibiting variation in parity mode and eggshell structure: Hemidactylus turcicus (oviparous) which produces a hard, calcareous eggshell; Saltuarius wyberba (oviparous) which produces a soft, parchment-like eggshell; and Hoplodactylus maculatus and Hoplodactylus duvaucelii (both viviparous). Oviducts were analysed by light, scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy. The uterus exhibited differences among species that were directly attributable to parity mode. H. turcicus and S. wyberba (oviparous) had numerous uterine shell glands; H. maculatus and H. duvaucelii(viviparous) had very few. The uterus also exhibited differences between the two oviparous species (H. turcicusand S. wyberba) which may be related to the type of eggshell produced. Variations were noted in the staining properties of the uterine glandular and epithelial cells. The structure of the infundibulum, uterine tube, isthmus and vagina also differed among species, but differences could not be directly related to parity mode or eggshell structure. Instead, the differences may be related to how prepared the oviduct is for ovulation in individuals analysed from the different species. This study confirms, in the Gekkonidae, aspects of oviducal structure that have been associated with parity mode in other squamate taxa.


2010 ◽  
Vol 271 (11) ◽  
pp. 1342-1351 ◽  
Author(s):  
James R. Stewart ◽  
Ashley N. Mathieson ◽  
Tom W. Ecay ◽  
Jacquie F. Herbert ◽  
Scott L. Parker ◽  
...  

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 1215-1222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura R. Stein ◽  
Alexander V. Badyaev

2008 ◽  
Vol 189 (1-4) ◽  
pp. 38-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y.-C. Chien ◽  
M.T. Hincke ◽  
M.D. McKee
Keyword(s):  

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