The structure of the antennae of the Florida Queen butterfly, Danaus gilippus berenice (Cramer)

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Abstract
Interest in the structure of the antennae of the Florida Queen butterfly arises from the finding that a pheromone is active in their courtship. Light and electron microscopic techniques were used to study the sensilla on the antennae and three types of sensilla with perforated walls were identified. The most common of these are short, thin‐walled pegs which are distributed over most of the antennal surface. Long, curved, thin‐walled pegs occur in patches on the inner medial antennal surface. Multiple coeloconic sensilla are present having up to 50 pegs in one sensillum. On the outer 28 flagellar subsegments there are two such sensilla per subsegment. In addition there are on the antennae long, thick‐walled hairs which are mechanoreceptors and probably also contact chemoreceptors. Sunken pegs, the function of which is not known, occur on the antennae. Grooved sensilla were found with the electron microscope but could not be identified with the light microscope. There was no indication of sexual dimorphism in sensilla types or numbers on the antennae.