Comparative Spermatology of Protura and Its Significance on Proturan Systematics

A comparative study on the ultrastructure of the spermatozoa of 20 species of Protura belonging to 16 genera and 8 families was conducted. The most remarkable characteristics are the unexpected diversity of the spermatozoa, both in shape and fine structure. In general they can be grouped into two main categories: long flagellate spermatozoa and short aflagellate ones. Accordingly two sperm evolutionary lines of the spermatozoa were obtained: one trends towards the complicated acrosome structure and the increased number of axonemal doublets, and the other line is to shorten cell form and simplify sperm structure. The results indicate that the spermatozoa of Hesperentomon may be the primitive type, and the spermatozoa of Eosentomids probably represent the most evolved type. A sperm evolutionary tree was drawn according to the apomorphies of proturan spermatozoa. The phylogenetic position of Protura was also discussed.     

原尾虫系统发生新概念及其起源与分类地位的探讨

本文根据二十年来在我国发现的多种原尾虫、红华蚖等的胚后发育各阶段的特征,以及精子的超微结构等的研究进展,提出了原尾虫系统发生的新概念:无气管系统的类群是原尾虫中较为原始的,而有气管系统的古蚖和华蚖则是比较特化的类群。并根据这一概念,重新整理了世界上已知的53个属,草拟出原尾虫新的分类系统。同时还就原尾虫与昆虫之间的亲缘关系进行了讨论,并对其在节肢动物门中的分类地位也进行了初步探讨。     

A NEW IDEA ON PHYLOGENY OF PROTURA WITH APPROACH TO ITS ORIGIN AND SYSTEMATIC POSITION

Based on the faunal investigation of the Chinese Protura, the studies on the post-embryonicdevelopment of Sinentomon erythranum and the contemporary progress in work on ultrastruc-ture of spermatozoa of arthropods, the present paper puts forward a new idea on phylogenyof Protura, that is, group without tracheal system is the primitive group, while the group,cosentomids and sinentomids, with tracheal system, is a comparatively specialized group ofthe Protura. According to this new conception, a tentative phylogenetic arrangement of 53 known gen-era of the Protura is made. In addition, the relationship between the Insecta and Proturaas well as the systematic position of the Protura in the Phylum Arthropoda is also discussed.     

原尾虫比较精子学的研究及其在系统分类学上的重要意义

通过对8科、16属和20种原尾虫的精子,进行了超微结构观察和比较,发现其精子极富多样性,主要可分成具鞭毛的长形精子和无鞭毛的短形精子两大类,精子的演化趋势一类是顶体构造渐趋复杂,轴丝双微管的数目渐趋增多;另一类是精子的形状逐渐短缩,结构逐渐简化,经过比较和分析,确认夕蚖的精子是已知原尾虫各属中最为原始的,古蚖等属的精子是最为特化的类型,除根据精子的衍征制成系统演化树外,还就精子的形态讨论了原尾虫的系统分类地位。