Sperm ultrastructure was studied in two Atlantic species of bivalve mollusks
Geukensia demissa and
Modiolus modiolus (Mytilidae). These spermatozoa have a classic structure common for species with external fertilization: the head of the spermatozoon of
G. demissa and
M. modiolus consists of an acrosome, including an acrosomal vesicle and periacrosomal material, a nucleus, and a middle part with two mutually perpendicular centrioles, surrounded by a ring of spherical mitochondria. The spermatozoa of
G. demissa and
M. modiolus differ in the general shape and size of the head (
M. modiolus, 5.8 × 4

m;
G. demissa, 4.2 × 2.5

m), as well as the structure of the acrosome and the number of mitochondria (
M. modiolus, 8–12;
G. demissa, 5–6). The spermatozoa of the Atlantic species
M. modiolus and
M. modiolus (
M. kurilensis) from the Sea of Japan are close in ultrastructure, but differ in the number of mitochondria. This could possibly be a reason to consider
M. modiolus from the Sea of Japan as a separate subspecies,
M. modiolus kurilensis. In ultrastructure, the spermatozoa of
G. demissa differ significantly from the spermatozoa of
M. modiolus, but are similar to the spermatozoa of species of the genus
Brachidontes.
spermatozoon - ultrastructure - bivalve mollusks - Mytilidae