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third instar spinneret

third instar spinneret

In the third instar larva of Manduca sexta, the spigot is shorter and not protruding from the “brushy” spinneret that may be used to spread saliva. A new study in Insect Systematics and Diversity models in new detail the caterpillar’s first instar silk-producing anatomy and subsequent loss of that capability as it molts to later instars. (Image courtesy of István Mikó, Ph.D.)

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