Ultrastructure and motility of the spermatozoa of Polypedates leucomystax (Amphibia, Anura, Rhacophoridae)†

Sperm morphology is thought to be shaped by evolutionary pressure from the fertilization environment. Rhacophoridae (Amphibia, Anura) include both foam-nesting and nonfoam-nesting species and exhibit a variety of sperm morphologies. Here, we examine the sperm morphology and motility of a foam-nesting Rhacophoridae frog, Polypedates leucomystax. Their spermatozoa have a sickle-shaped head and a thick tail containing two axonemes with their doublet microtubule ones (Db1s) facing one another. These two axonemes are surrounded by hundreds of satellite microtubules that form a hexagonal lattice structure. The spermatozoa move spirally by directly converting their tail movements into propulsion force, similar to the movement of the sickle-shaped spermatozoa of Xenopus laevis. By comparing the spermatozoa of P. leucomystax to those of other foam-nesting Rhacophoridae frogs, Rhacophorus and Chiromantis, and to the nonfoam-nesting Rhacophoridae frog, Buergeria buergeri, we found the following: (i) Spermatozoa of foam-nesting Rhacophoridae share common morphological features, a pair of axonemes and crystallized satellite microtubules. (ii) Spermatozoa of nonfoam-nesting Rhacophoridae do not exhibit these features. (iii) Sperm motility in foam-nesting Rhacophoridae is adapted to viscous environments. (iv) A diversity of sperm morphology and motility exists even among foam-nesting Rhacophoridae frogs. (v) The spermatozoa of Rhacophorus are more adapted to the foam nest than the spermatozoa of Polypedates. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc