An aedeagus (plural aedeagi) is a reproductive organ of male insects through which they secrete sperm from the testes during copulation with a female insect. The sperm contains capsules called spermatophores, which contain the spermatozoa. In addition to the spermatophores, in some insect species the aedeagus also discharges a spermatophylax, which serves as a nutriment to the female. Orders See taxonomy Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species — more than all other animal groups combined [1]. Insects may be found in nearly all environments on the planet, although only a... The signifier sperm can refer to: (mass noun, from Greek sperma = seed) a substance which consists of spermatozoa and which is a component of semen (mass noun) semen itself (informally, count noun with plural sperm or sperms) a single spermatozoon (= sperm cell) sperma ceti (Latin ceti, genitive of cetus = whale... Human male anatomy The testicles, known medically as testes (singular testis), are the male generative glands in animals. ... A pair of lions copulating in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. ... A spermatophore is a capsule or mass created by males of various invertebrate species, containing spermatozoa and transferred in entirety to the female during sex. ... Schematic diagram of a sperm cell, showing the (1) acrosome, (2) cell membrane, (3) nucleus, (4) mitochondria, and (5) flagellum (tail) A sperm cell, or spermatozoon ( spermatozoa) (in Greek: sperm = semen and zoon = alive), is the haploid cell that is the male gamete. ... A spermatophylax is a gelatinous bolus (a kind of ball) which some male insects eject during copulation with females through their aedeagi together with spermatophores, and which functions as a nutritive addition for the female. ... The updated USDA food pyramid, published in 2005, is a general nutrition guide for recommended food consumption. ...

The aedeagus is part of the male's abdomen, which is the most caudal of the three segments of an insect. The pair of testes of the insect are connected to the aedeagus through the so-called genital ducts. The aedeagus is part of the male insect's phallus, which also includes in some species the valvae, which are paired organs which help the male hold on to the female during copulation. The abdomen is a part of the body. ... Human male anatomy The testicles, known medically as testes (singular testis), are the male generative glands in animals. ... Labeled picture of external human female reproductive anatomy. ...

During copulation, the aedeagus connects with the ovipore of a female. An ovipore is a pore-like sexual organ of a female insect that gets inseminated by the spermatophores ejected by the aedeagus of a male insect during copulation. ...

In males of most species of Lepidoptera (e.g. moths), the aedeagus has a sheath which is supported by an organ called the juxta, which is located between the aforementioned valvae. Superfamilies Butterflies Hesperioidea Papilionoidea Moths Acanthopteroctetoidea Alucitoidea Axioidea Bombycoidea Calliduloidea Choreutoidea Cossoidea Drepanoidea Epermenioidea Eriocranioidea Galacticoidea Gelechioidea Geometroidea Gracillarioidea Hedyloidea Hepialoidea Heterobathmioidea Hyblaeoidea Immoidea Incurvarioidea Lasiocampoidea Lophocoronoidea Micropterigoidea Mimallonoidea Mnesarchaeoidea Neopseustoidea Nepticuloidea Noctuoidea Palaephatoidea Pterophoroidea Pyraloidea Schreckensteinioidea Sesioidea Simaethistoidea Thyridoidea Tineoidea Tischerioidea Tortricoidea Urodoidea Whalleyanoidea Yponomeutoidea Zygaenoidea The order Lepidoptera... For the open source bibliographical software, see Juxta (software). ...

Occasionally the hard, chitinous part of the aedeagus is referred to as the 'prick'. In biology, chitin is one of the main components in the cell walls of fungi, the exoskeletons of insects and other arthropods, and in some other animals. ...