Descripción morfológica de la superficie lingual de Platyrrhinus infuscus bajo microscopía electrónica de barrido

Abstract

This study describes the morphology of the tongue surface of Platyrrhinus infuscus from images obtained by scanning electron microscopy. The tissue was taken from a specimen in the collection of the Natural History Museum of the Francisco José de Caldas District University. Types of papillae were identified once within the 4 general classes recognized in the literature (circumvallate, fungiform in the shape of a triangle, circle and cusp, conical and filiform, giant tricuspid and bicuspid, horny, strictly filiform, finger-like, and bifid). The papillae present in the root zone are oriented laterally while the apex papillae are arranged towards the median zone of the lingual body. The topographic distributions of the papillae account for the path of food, the first papillae in contact with fleshy fruits, allow food fixation during the flight from their microstructures (mechanical papillae); keratinized papillae are associated with fruit retention and swallowing, while the posterior region with the presence of circumvallate and fungiform papillae describes an area with greater perception and sensitivity.