spermatheca

{{Short description|Insect female reproductive organ}}

File:Spermathek Acanthoscurria geniculata.jpg (Brazilian Giant White Knee Tarantula)]]

File:Parasite170028-fig20 Illustrated guide of Phlebotominae (Diptera, Psychodidae).png (Diptera, Psychodidae)]]

File:Female Tarantula Molt.png

The spermatheca (pronounced {{IPAc-en|s|p|ɚ|m|ə|ˈ|θ|iː|k|ə}} {{plural form}}: spermathecae {{IPAc-en|s|p|ɚ|m|ə|ˈ|θ|iː|s|iː}}), also called receptaculum seminis ({{plural form}}: receptacula seminis), is an organ of the female reproductive tract in insects, e.g. ants, bees,Tales V. Pascini, and Gustavo F. Martins. 2017. "The insect spermatheca: an overview". ZOOLOGY [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.zool.2016.12.001 doi.org] some molluscs, Oligochaeta worms and certain other invertebrates and vertebrates.David M. Sever, Cynthia K. Tait, Lowell V. Diller, and Laura Burkholder. 2004. Ultrastructure of the Annual Cycle of Female Sperm Storage in Spermathecae of the Torrent Salamander Rhyacotriton variegatus (Amphibia: Rhyacotritonidae). JOURNAL OF MORPHOLOGY 261:1–17 Its purpose is to receive and store sperm from the male or, in the case of hermaphrodites, the male component of the body. Spermathecae can sometimes be the site of fertilisation when the oocytes are sufficiently developed.Jan A. Pechenick. Biology of the Invertebrates. New York: McGraw Hill, 2005

Some species of animal have multiple spermathecae. For example, certain species of earthworms have four pairs of spermathecae—one pair each in the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th segments. The spermathecae receive and store the spermatozoa of another earthworm during copulation.Jan A. Pechenik. Biology of the Invertebrates. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010, pg. 322 They are lined with epithelium and are variable in shape: some are thin, heavily coiled tubes, while others are vague outpocketings from the main reproductive tract. It is one of the many variations in sexual reproduction.

The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has two spermathecae, one at the end of each gonad.{{Cite journal |title = On the control of oocyte meiotic maturation and ovulation in Caenorhabditis elegans. |journal = Dev. Biol. |doi = 10.1006/dbio.1998.9109 |pmid = 9882501 |volume=205 |issue = 1 |year=1999 |pages=111–28 |last1 = McCarter |first1 = J |last2 = Bartlett |first2 = B |last3 = Dang |first3 = T |last4 = Schedl |first4 = T |doi-access = free }} The C. elegans spermatheca is made up of 24 smooth muscle-like cells that form a stretchable tubular structure.{{Cite web |url = http://www.wormatlas.org/hermaphrodite/somatic%20gonad/Images/somaticfig8leg.htm |title = WormAtlas}} Actin filaments line the spermatheca in a circumferential manner. The C. elegans spermatheca is used as a model to study mechanotransduction.{{Cite journal |title = FLN-1/Filamin is required for maintenance of actin and exit of fertilized oocytes from the spermatheca in C. elegans |journal = Developmental Biology |date = 2010-11-15 |pmc = 2957521 |pmid = 20707996 |pages = 247–257 |volume = 347 |issue = 2 |doi = 10.1016/j.ydbio.2010.08.005 |first1 = Ismar |last1 = Kovacevic |first2 = Erin J. |last2 = Cram}}{{Cite journal |title = Transient Membrane Localization of SPV-1 Drives Cyclical Actomyosin Contractions in the C. elegans Spermatheca|journal = Current Biology |issn = 0960-9822 |pmid = 25532891 |pages = 141–151 |volume = 25 |issue = 2 |doi = 10.1016/j.cub.2014.11.033 |first1 = Pei Yi |last1 = Tan |first2 = Ronen |last2 = Zaid el-Bar |year=2015 |doi-access = free|bibcode = 2015CBio...25..141T }}

An apiculturist may examine the spermatheca of a dead queen bee to find out whether it had received sperm from a male.{{cite web |url=http://www.glenn-apiaries.com/sperm.html |title=Diagnosis of failing queens by inspecting the spermatheca |access-date=May 17, 2012}} In many species of stingless bees, especially Melipona bicolor, the queen lays her eggs during the provisioning and oviposition process and the spermatheca fertilizes the egg as it passes along the oviduct. The haplo-diploid system of sex determination makes it possible for the queen to choose the sex of the egg.Koedam, D., et al. "The Behaviour Of Laying Workers And The Morphology And Viability Of Their Eggs In Melipona Bicolor Bicolor." Physiological Entomology 26.3 (2001): 254-259. Academic Search Premier. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.