Hi everyone,
this is not the spearhead of a proud Maasai warrior, but the ovipositor of a small Cicada.
Using this toothed spearhead, the female cicada cuts a slit in woody tissue of a tree or shrub and provide a conduit for eggs to move from the reproductive tract into the wound of the branch.
The evolutionary roads sometimes are incredible!
Toni
Cicada ovipositor
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Cicada ovipositor
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- iconoclastica
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Re: Cicada ovipositor
... and it works like an electric jigsaw, driven by specific muscles ...
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- rjlittlefield
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Re: Cicada ovipositor
That looks exactly like the mechanism used by bee & wasp stingers to penetrate hide. It may be the same anatomy, just tweaked a little.
--Rik
--Rik
Re: Cicada ovipositor
Yes, Rik..this is a textbook case of convergent evolution!rjlittlefield wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 10:32 pmThat looks exactly like the mechanism used by bee & wasp stingers to penetrate hide. It may be the same anatomy, just tweaked a little.
--Rik
Re: Cicada ovipositor
Interesting.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing.
- MarkSturtevant
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Re: Cicada ovipositor
That is really cool! Also the ovipositor of giant Ichneumon wasps which they use to drill very deep in wood.
Stingers evolved from ovipositors, so that their serrations are a 'primitive' trait.
Stingers evolved from ovipositors, so that their serrations are a 'primitive' trait.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters
Dept. of Still Waters
Re: Cicada ovipositor
Nice picture and very interesting info.
Re: Cicada ovipositor
Recent research has also shown that the apex of the Cicada ovipositor is strongly reinforced by numerous inorganic elements (P, Ca, Si, Mg, Na, Fe, Zn, Mn and others) ... an evolutive solution that rivals with best chromium-vanadium tools!!!
Re: Cicada ovipositor
Thank you for your appreciation!