Premium
Defence glands in the giant spiny phasmid Extatosoma tiaratum
Author(s) -
STRONG L.
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
journal of entomology series a, general entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1365-3032
pISSN - 0047-2409
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3032.1975.tb00093.x
Subject(s) - biology , cuticle (hair) , anatomy , thorax (insect anatomy) , body surface , thin layer , secretion , layer (electronics) , endocrinology , chemistry , geometry , mathematics , organic chemistry
Adults of Extatosoma tiaratum liberate a strong smell when handled. The smell is associated with a colourless, volatile liquid which is apparently harmless to man. It is ejected on to the thorax of the insect, and on to the hands of the investigator, from a pair of tubercles located on the anterior border of the prothorax. The tubercles have a slit‐like aperture through which the secretion is sprayed on attack. The secretion is produced by two glands in the thorax, each comprising a pair of tubes which unite just beneath the tubercle. The tubes consist of a thick, glandular epithelium lined with a thin layer of cuticle; most of the gland is enveloped in a layer of muscle. The defence reaction is discussed in relation to that of other phasmids.