30 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. VIII, January, 1954 
Fig. 2. A small portion of the testis and proximal 
vas deferens showing results of toluidin blue immer- 
sion technique. a, Sacculi; b, undifferentiated sperma- 
togenic substance; c, moniliform portion; d, capsule 
of ampulla; e, distinct ampullae; /, thin wall of vas 
deferens. (15 X.) 
sacculi Open (Fig. 2d). The sacculi of different 
regions appear indistinguishable as to number 
and size. Both testes are enveloped by a 
delicate mesentery and penetrated by numer- 
ous blood vessels. 
The vas deferens (Fig. Ic) which emanates 
from the testis is an extremely small, highly 
coiled tube which, increasing in diameter dis- 
tally, finally emerges as a large tube (d) open- 
ing on the coxopodite of the fifth periopod. 
A hyaline line (e) traverses most of the length 
of the otherwise chalky, opaque tube, marking 
the position of the internal typhlosole (Fig. 
10^^). This hyaline line is prominent only in 
the distal enlarged portion (Fig. id). The 
DISCUSSION 
The testes (Fig. lb), when freed from over- 
lying tissues, resemble those of Panulirus peni- 
cillatus (Matthews, 1951: 360) in that they 
form an elongate H, the right and left sides 
joined by a transverse bridge {a) just posterior 
to the junction of the pyloric region of the 
stomach to the intestine. As in P. penicillatus, 
the testes lie contiguous to the digestive tract. 
Occasionally one, less frequently both, of the 
portions of the testes anterior to the bridge 
bifurcate, although the posterior region is 
unaltered. The dissecting microscope reveals 
the testis as a highly coiled, continuous, thin- 
walled tube into which innumerable small 
Fig. 3. A small portion of the vas deferens imme- 
diately distal to the region illustrated in Figure 2, 
showing results of toluidin blue immersion technique. 
a, Secretion which envelops the already encapsulated 
ampullae; b, sheath between successive ampullae. (15 X.) 
Fig. 4. Diagram of a small portion of the vas deferens 
immediately distal to the region illustrated in Figure 3, 
showing the results of immersion technique, a, Suc- 
cessive encapsulated ampullae; b, sheath surrounding 
encapsulated ampulla; b', ribbon-like sheath between 
successive ampullae; c, twisted, ribbon-like sheath. 
(15X.) 
numerous coils of the proximal portion are 
not constant either as to number or direction 
of their turns, as none of the vasa deferentia 
studied was identical. 
All regions of the vas deferens fail to exhibit 
muscular contractions and are quiescent even 
when exposed quickly. There were no inter- 
mittent contractions which are so character- 
istic of certain vasa deferentia. Whereas the 
persistent mobility of the vas deferens of 
Dardanus asper (Matthews, 1953: 258) may be 
related to its stamina, the apparent immobil- 
ity of the vas deferens of P. antarcticus may be 
related to its debility. The cessation of con- 
tractions in the altered, exposed vas deferens 
obscures the mechanical aspect of spermato- 
phoric development. Vital staining is there- 
