Morphology of the reproductive system and spermatophore of Litopenaeus vannamei, the Pacific white shrimp

Abstract

In order to advance in the knowledge of the male reproductive system of Litopanaeus vannamei, the anatomical description of its reproductive system in sexually mature animals was performed. Animals were obtained from a Mexican shrimp hatchery, located in Sinaloa, Mexico. To describe the anatomy, a) 8 male reproductive systems were removed; b) 10 spermatophores compounds were extracted from naturally inseminated females; and c) 40 sperm sacs derived from the right and the left ampulla were manually extracted. In general, the reproductive system was found similar to the observed in other species of the genus Penaeus. However, differences in the shape of the testes and of the terminal ampulla that are characteristic of this species were observed. An area located between the anterior vas deferens and the middle duct, known in other species as blind pouch, was observed. The compound spermatophore is a structure that has been described anatomically, although when freshly extracted it is difficult to observe because the type of substances that compose it and because of the morphological changes introduced when it contacts water. In each sperm sac of the spermatophore, sperm chamber is located from its medial to its distal part, with the highest concentration of sperm in the distal region.