ovipositor
nounUK /ˌɒvɪˈpɒzɪtə/
US /ˌoʊvɪˈpɑːzɪtər/
A special tube that some female insects and fish use to lay their eggs.
The female cricket uses her ovipositor to place eggs deep in the soil.
RELATED WORDS
OTHER MEANINGS
2. A pointed structure at the rear of some female insects used to insert eggs into plants or other surfaces.
The wasp's sharp ovipositor can pierce the bark of a tree.
3. The egg-laying organ of certain fish, such as the bitterling.
The bitterling's ovipositor grows long during the breeding season.
4. Any anatomical structure adapted for depositing eggs.
Scientists studied the ovipositor of the fossil insect to learn how it reproduced.