The cloaca of Myxine glutinosa (Cyclostomata): a scanning electron microscopical and histochemical investigation.

The cloaca of Myxine glutinosa was examined by histochemical and scanning electron microscopical methods. No copulation organ could be found in Myxine and no detectable differences in the anatomy of the cloaca between male and female Myxine glutinosa. The anal gland which is the only gland in the cloacal region is situated between rectum and ductus coelomaticus. Like the lateral mucous glands in the epidermis it consists of large mucous gland cells, thread cells and undifferentiated cells. The cloacal epithelium neither develops a spatial separation by folds nor a ciliation is present in the caudal and dorsal part of the cloacal chamber. Therefore female and male myxinoides do not show any structures which would allow transportation of sperm into the abdominal cavity or out of it.