Figure 1 in The feeding apparatus of ants: an overview of structure and function

Figure 1. Micro-computed tomography (µCT)-based 3D reconstructions of the ant feeding apparatus (Leptomyrmex unicolor), illustrating our current ideas of mouthpart movements. (a) Sagittal section through the head (position of section marked on upper right), highlighting the most likely path of food. Red arrows for solid food, cyan for fluids. Solids are first gripped and processed by the mandibles before transport into the oral cavity by labium and maxillae. Larger particles are filtered at the mouth opening (upper left insert) and stored in the infrabuccal pouch. Hairs of mouth filter not visible in rendering, indicated by drawing. Smaller particles and possibly pre-digested substrate from the pouch pass the filter and are taken up by the sucking pump. Fluids are licked up by the glossa and directly pass the filter. Some prominent movements based mostly on Paul et al. [30,31] are indicated by black arrows: galea is moved up and down, glossa is extended and retracted, whole maxillolabial complex can be rotated outwards or inwards, sucking pump can be extended and compressed. (b) Mouthparts in oblique side view. Maxillolabial complex is partly extended, the galea overhangs the labium. (c) Frontal view of mouthparts with mandibles cut at the base and left maxilla transparent. Sidewards arrows indicate potential outwards movement of maxilla, but maxillolabial fusion likely restricts this direction. Colours: beige: maxillae; blue: membranes of the oral cavity; brown: labrum; dark brown: labium; green: sucking pump; grey: head capsule; purple: salivary duct; turquoise: hypopharynx.