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Ultrastructure Of Spermatozoa From Domesticated Birds: Comparative Study Of Turkey, Chicken And Guinea Fowl, R. J. Thurston, R. A. Hess

Scanning Microscopy

Typical for non-passerine birds, the spermatozoa of the turkey, chicken and guinea fowl were vermiform with a maximum width of 0.5-0. 7μm and lengths of 90μm for chicken sperm, and 75-80μm for those of the turkey and guinea. An acrosome, nucleus, midpiece and flagellum could be distinguished by SEM.

The acrosomal cap projected over a perforatorium surrounded by granular material. At its base, the cap encircled apical projections of the nucleus. The nucleus consisted of dense chromatin, and formed a concave implantation fossa where it joined the midpiece of the tail. For turkey and chicken spermatozoa, the neck region of …

Anatomical Basis Of Sperm-Storage In The Avian Oviduct, M. R. Bakst

Scanning Microscopy

The anatomical basis of oviductal sperm-storage in the avian oviduct is the sperm-storage tubule (SST). In the turkey this is composed of a simple columnar epithelium characterized by a supranuclear vacuole, which possibly contains lipid material, and appears to differentiate from the oviductal surface epithelium prior to full sexual maturation. Turkey SST epithelium was periodic-acid Schiff-negative and failed to bind four of the five lectins examined. Only winged pea agglutinin, which has an affinity for fucose-containing glycosidic residues, bound to some individual SST epithelial cells. Short-term cultures of oviductal mucosae containing SST showed aggregates of sperm associated with the spaces …