Gonopod mechanics in Centrobolus Cook (Spirobolida: Trigoniulidae) II. Images

Abstract

Gonopod mechanics were described for four species of millipedes in the genus Centrobolus and are now figured using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with the aim to show the mechanism of sperm competition. Structures of sperm displacement include projections on a moveable telopodite and tips on a distal process (opisthomerite). Three significant contact zones between the male and female genitalia were recognized: (1) distal telopodite of the coleopod and the vulva, (2) phallopod and the bursa, (3) sternite and legs of the female.