Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How do single-pore and multipore sensilla differ in arthropods?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Chemoreception
Animals, such as this pine grosbeak, use chemoreception to respond to chemicals that can be tasted and smelled in their environments. Many of these chemicals affect behaviors such as food preference and defense.
In arthropods, chemosensory cells are housed in specialized hairlike structures called sensilla. These structures allow chemicals to reach the receptor cell dendrites through pores in the cuticle, and they are categorized into two primary types based on their pore structure and function:1
- Uniporous sensilla: These structures feature a single pore, typically 0.15–2 μm in diameter, located at the tip of the hair. They are primarily associated with the sense of taste and are often found on feeding appendages or the legs, where they facilitate contact chemoreception.1
- Multiporous sensilla: These structures contain many small pores, approximately 10 nm in diameter, scattered across the surface of the hair. They are associated with the sense of olfaction and are typically found on specialized structures like the antennae of insects or the antennules of crustaceans. Because they are designed to detect molecules in low concentrations, they often occur in very large numbers to increase the surface area available for chemical contact.1