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Reproductive system

honey bee, reproductive system

Reproductive system of honey bee queen.
Odl - oviduct
Ov - ovary
Spt - spermatheca
Vag - vagina


Workers usually have three or four ovarioles Ovarian development in Apis mellifera worker bees,
Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata
, Volume 13, Number 4, p.377–394, (1970)
[1]. The ovaries are more often functional (with developed oocytes) in workers with higher number of ovarioles Ovarian development in Apis mellifera worker bees,
Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata
, Volume 13, Number 4, p.377–394, (1970)
[1]. Workers with developed ovaries inhibit ovary activation in other workers Ovarian development in Apis mellifera worker bees,
Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata
, Volume 13, Number 4, p.377–394, (1970)
[1].
See also Comparative anatomy of male genital organs in the genus Apis,
Apidologie
, Volume 22, p.539-522, (1991)
[2]Fertilization in the honey-bee, I. The male sexual organs: their histological structure and physiological functioning,
J. Exp. Zool.
, Volume 31, p.225-265, (1920)
[3]An evolutionary approach to mating behaviour and drone copulatory organs in Apis,
Apidologie
, Volume 22, p.581-590, (1991)
[4].