Structural organization of the copulation site in the medfly Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae) and...

The copulation site of the medfly Ceratitis capitata was investigated at anatomical and ultrastructural levels. It consists of the anterior vagina, with a ventral fertilization chamber and a dorsal insemination pocket into which the two spermathecal ducts open. The fertilization chamber is an organ comprised of a number of alveoli that in virgin females are filled with a filamentous secretion, whereas in mated females contain sperm bundles. Through study of the internal morphology of the aedeagus, its position in the anterior vagina, and the direct observation of sperm transfer and storage, we confirmed that sperm are ejaculated through two gonopores at the top of the distiphallus and another at the base of the genital rod. The sperm flow dorsally into the insemination pocket and ventrally into the fertilization chamber. During copulation, the two spermathecae and the fertilization chamber are progressively filled with spermatozoa.