The Stylets of the Large Milkweed Bug, Oncopeltus Fasciatus (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae ,And Their Innervation!
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J. ENTO\1OL. Soc. BHI T. C()[ . lJ~ 111I A 73 119761. DE C 31. 1976 29 THE STYLETS OF THE LARGE MILKWEED BUG, ONCOPELTUS FASCIATUS (HEMIPTERA: LYGAEIDAE ,AND THEIR INNERVATION! A. R. FORBES Research Station. Agriculture Canada. Vancouver, British Columbia ABSTRACT Sections of the stylets of the large milkweed bug were examined in the electron microscope. They differ from those of 29 spp. of Homoptera studied earlier. in having: flanges on the maxillary stylets that engage grooves in the mandibular s tylets: three large and three small dendrites in the central duct within the mandibular stylets: and a large salivary canal. INTRODLCTIO\ mandibular sty lets are on the outside and the The large milkweed bug, Of/cope/Ill s maxillary stylets are on the inside. Except at fasciallis IDallasl, is a widely used research their bases, the maxillary sty lets are in animal since it is reasonably large and can be terlocked by a system of ridges and grooves. reared easily in the laboratory throughout the On the inner surface of each maxillary stylet year. I ts widespread usage prompted a review there are two wide concavities which together of published information on its morphology. form the food and t he salivary canals. The food physiology and behavior iFeir 19741. No in canal is anterior to and only slightly larger than formation on the structure of its sty lets is in the salivary canal. The bug inj ects sali va into cluded in this review, nor are there other repor· the milkweed seed by way of the salivary canal ts on their fine structure. The present paper a nd sucks the food material into the gut by way describes the stylets of this bug and compares of t he food canal. them with the st.vlets of some Hemiptera 1\-10re specific morphological details are as 1Suborder Homoptera I studied previously. follows: The maxillary styleLs are only slightly longer (5%1 than the mandibular stylets. The MATEltlALS A\D METHODS length of the styleLs, including the base is The large milkweed bugs were from colonies about 6 mm. The tip of each mandibular stylet maintained in the laboratory at the University has a series of transverse, barb·like teeth across of British Columbia. its outer face. A cross section of the whole The stylets were dissected from the bugs stylet bundle, about midway in the s hafts (Fig. and immediately fixed simultaneously for 1 hr. 11 shows t he interlocked maxillary sty lets with on ice in 2% osmium tetroxide and 4% t he food and sali vary canals between their ap· glutaraldehyde, both in 0.1 M cacodylate buf· posed inner surfaces. The stylet bundle is ap fer, washed in 0.1 M cacodylate buffer IpH 7) , proximately 26 micrometers in diameter, the post·fixed in 2% osmium tetroxide in the same food canal 9 micrometers in diameter and the buffer for l/ Z hr. dehydrated in ethanol, and em salivary canal 8 micrometers in diameter. The bedded in Epon 812 by the method of Luft salivary canal is thus only slightly smaller than 119611. The sections were cut with glass knives the food canal. The mechanism that interlocks on a Reichert Om U2 ultramicrotome. mounted t he maxillary stylets consists of three grooves in on grids wit h carbon·collodion supporting films the right maxillary stylet and two grooves and and stained with uranyl acetate and lead three flanged ridges in the left. The maxillary citrate. They were examined with Philips 200 or sty lets are not bilaterally symmetrical. There is 300 electron microscopes. a ridge with two fl a nges at the anterior margin of the outer surface of each maxillary stylet RESULTS AND DISCUSSION which fits into a groove on the inner surface of The piercing-sucking organs of the large each mandibular stylet. This produces a com milkweed bug consist of a pair each of man· pactly interlocked stylet bundle but the inter dibular and maxillary sty lets. Each stylet has locking mechanism is such that independent an enlarged base within the head capsule and movement upon one another is possible for each an elongated shaft mostly outside the head. Ex of t he four stylets. The body of each maxillary cept at the bases. the mandibular stylets en· stylet also contains a narrow central cavity velop the maxillary stylets closely, so that in a which often appears in sections as two cavities cross section of the stylet bundle (Fig . 11, the because of the apposition of parts of its walls. Each mandibular s tylet contains a central 'Contrihution \ 0. 390. H l' ~c a r ch Station. 6660 N. W. \l a rine Drin'. Va ncou\,pr. British Columbia, V6T 1 X:l. duct running from the base to near the tip. The 30 .J. E NTOMOL Soc. BIUT COLUMlJ lA 7311976). D t-:c. 31 .1976 cs Fig. 1 Electron mi crograph of a cross section of t he stylet b undle of O. fasciatlls in the proximal half of the s hafts. CC. cental cavity: CD. central duct: FdC. food canal: MdS. mandibula r 5t .v let: MxS. maxill a r·.v slyleL: SC. saliva ry canal. Fig. 2 E lectron microgr' aph of a section o f lh, l'( ·nlral d uel in a mandibular sty let of O. fascia tll s. There a re six dend rites in the central dueL. 1· .Jeh dend rite 10 ) co ntains ncurotubules I [\iT) and is S lit rounded by a cuticular s heath ICS) . J. ENTO\1()L Soc. Rill"!" C()I. U" II'I~ 73 119761 .0,·:(" 31. 1976 31 ,urn 3 } 1/ Fig. 3-5 Electron micrographs of sections of the centra l duct in the mandibular s tylets of O. fasc iatus. 3. midway, about three mm from the tip, showing fi ve dendrites in the duct 4. about two mm from the tip, showing four d endrites in t he duct and one (arrow) in t he wall of t he stylet. 5. at the stylet t ip, after t he central duct has bifurcated. The two bra nches of the cen tral duct are indicated by a rrows. central duct is approximately 2 by 6 micrometers whitefly, t he pear psylla, a nd the balsam woolly and contains six dendrites. All t he dendrites aphid all have a salivary canal which is much were traced from t he base of t he mandibular sty- s maller than t he food canal. These all suck let to midway along thestylet:bundle. The den- liquid plan t sap, so t hat presumably less sali va drites are of two types: t hree large dendrites is required when t hey feed . The body of each which a re usually near the centre of the duct maxillary stylet of the large milkweed bug con- and away from the walls: and t hree sma ller tains a large, narrow central cavity, which is dendrites us ually placed peripherally and clo se apparently empty: t he maxillary stylets of the to the wa ll (Fig. 2). About midway along the s ix-spotted leafhopper a lso have cavities but stylet bundle one of the small , periphera l den- t hese contain dendrites. There are ridges and drites leaves t he cent ral d uct and proceeds to grooves t hat in terlock t he maxillary with the the outs ide of the stylet and a receptor site. mandibular sty lets of t he large milkweed bug: leaving five dendrites in the central duct 1Fig . no such interlocking mechanism occurs in any 31. About I mm closer to t he tip. a nother of t he of the homopterous insects mentioned. The cen- sma ll . peripheral dendrites leaves the duct 1Pig. tral duct in t he mandibula r sty lets of t he large 41. leaving only 4 dendrites in the duct 1Pig. 4 1. milkweed bug contain six dentrites, t hree of The last s mall peripheral dendrite leaves t he whic h a re s ma ller and go to receptor s ites duct. about 1 mm further distad. leaving only proximad to t he t ip of the stylet and t hree of t he three la rge dendrites in t he duct. Close to which a re larger and reach t he stylet t ip : a ll of t he tip of the stylet. t he central duct bifurcates more t han 25 species of aphids examined have !Fig. 51: one branch conta ins two dendrites. the mandibular sty lets with two simila r dendrites other branch contains one. running to t hei r tips (Forbes 1969 & un- The sty lets of the large milkweed bug differ publishe d , Cha n & Forbes 1975) . The in some respects from those of t he Hemiptera greenhouse whitefly and the pear psylla also (Suborder Homoptera) previously studied by have two dentrites running to the stylet tips me (Forbes 1969 & 1972. Forbes & MuUick b ut the ba lsam woolly aphid has three. The s ix- 1970, Forbes & Raine 1973, Chan & Forbes spotted leafh opper's mandubular stylets have 1975). The salivary canal of t he large milkweed three dendrites which run to t heir tips or very bug is almost as large as the food canal, close to t hem. presumably because large amounts of sali va are The structure a nd function of t he sty lets of needed to soften t he somewhat dry food be fore other He miptera and the probable significa nce it can be sucked up the fo od canal: aphids.