THE RABBIT 285 



is joined with the seminiferous tubules of the testis by minute 

 vessels called the vasa efferentia. 



The female genital organs are the following : a pair of genital 

 glands called the ovaries, which produce the ova, or eggs ; a pair 

 of efferent ducts, which receive the ova and in which the young go 

 through their fetal development ; and the urogenital sinus. Each 

 efferent duct is composed of the Fallopian tube, the uterus, and 

 the vagina. 



The ovaries are small, bean-shaped bodies which lie a short 

 distance back of the kidneys, near the dorsal body wall ; each is 

 held in place by the ligamentum uteri, a mesentery which passes 

 from the uterus to the dorsal body wall and holds the ovary in 

 its folds. Examine the ovary with a hand lens and note the clear 

 white points which give its surface a granular appearance ; these 

 are the Graafian follicles, in each of which is an ovum. Corpora 

 lutea (follicles which have discharged their ova) may also be 

 present and will appear as red elevations. 



The anterior end of the efferent duct on each side is the 

 Fallopian tube, or oviduct. It is a narrow, convoluted tube, 

 with a very wide anterior end, called the ostium, which lies 

 directly in front of the ovary and embraces it with its fluted 

 border. The posterior end of the Fallopian tube is continuous 

 with the uterus. 



The uteri are a pair of thick-walled tubes extending from the 

 anterior end of the vagina. The vagina is a median organ which 

 extends from the two uteri to the urogenital sinus and lies beneath 

 the rectum, between it and the bladder. The urogenital sinus 

 is a short, wide tube which opens to the outside through the vulva, 

 immediately beneath the anus. Cut it open and note the opening 

 of the urethra and also that of the vagina into it ; extend the slit 

 to the anterior end of the vagina ^and observe the opening of each 

 uterus into it. Observe the folds of skin which surround the vulva ; 

 they are the labia majora. Note also the clitoris, a hard, rodlike 

 body, beneath the skin in the ventral wall of the sinus, homolo- 

 gous to the penis of the male. Free the rectum from the urogenital 

 sinus and note the rectal glands, two elongated bodies which lie 

 one on each side of the rectum at its hinder end. On each side of 



