Question

Explain the male reproductive system of cockroach.

Answer 1

Cockroaches are unisexual animals and exhibit sexual dimorphism.

The male reproductive system of the cockroach contains the following parts:

1. Testes: Cockroaches have a pair of testicles located on the lateral sides of the 4th to 6th abdominal segment. Testes are prominent in young and get reduced in adults.
2. Vas-deferens: It is two fine ducts that arise from each testis and opens into ejaculatory ducts via the seminal vesicle.
3. Utricular Gland(Mushroom gland): The junction of vas deferens and ejaculatory duct is surrounded by this gland that is lying in the 6th-7th abdominal segment.
4. Ejaculatory duct: The base of the utricular gland leads to the ejaculatory duct that opens to the outside by the male genital pore that is lying close to the ventral phallomere.
5. Phallomeres or External genitalia or Male gonapophyses: It is a chitinous structure that surrounds the male gonophore.
6. Seminal vesicles: It stores the sperm in the form of spermatophores that are discharged during copulation.