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The reticulum is the second chamber in the four-chamber alimentary canal of a
/ref> or ''kings-hood''. When cleaned and used for food, it is called "
The internal mucosa has a honeycomb shape. When looking at the reticulum with ultrasonography it is a crescent shaped structure with a smooth contour. raun, U., and D. Jacquat. 2011. Ultrasonography of the reticulum in 30 healthy Saanen goats. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica 53:19/ref> The reticulum is adjacent to the diaphragm, lungs, abomasum, rumen and liver. The heights of the reticular crests and depth of the structures vary across ruminant animal species.[Clauss, M., Hofmann, R. R., Streich, W. J., Fickel, J., and Hummel, J. 2009. Convergence in the macroscopic anatomy of the reticulum in wild ruminant species of different feeding types and a new resulting hypothesis on reticular function. Journal of Zoology. 281:26-38.] Grazing (behaviour), Grazing ruminants have higher crests than Browsing (herbivory), browsers
. However, general reticulum size is fairly constant across ruminants of differing body size and feeding type.
In a mature cow, the reticulum can hold around 5 gallons of liquid. The rumen and reticulum are very close in structure and function and can be considered as one organ. They are separated only by a muscular fold of tissue.
In immature ruminants a reticular groove is formed by the muscular fold of the reticulum. This allows milk to pass by the reticulorumen straight into the abomasum.
ruminant
Ruminants (suborder Ruminantia) are hoofed herbivorous grazing or browsing mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions. The ...
animal. Anatomically it is the smaller portion of the reticulorumen
The reticulorumen (; ) represents the first chamber in the alimentary canal of ruminant animals. It is composed of the rumen and reticulum. The reticulum differs from the rumen with regard to the texture of its lining. The rumen wall is covered in ...
along with the rumen
The rumen, also known as a paunch, is the largest stomach compartment in ruminants and the larger part of the reticulorumen, which is the first chamber in the alimentary canal of ruminant animals. The rumen's microbial favoring environment al ...
. Together these two compartments make up 84% of the volume of the total stomach.
The reticulum is colloquially referred to as the ''honeycomb'', ''bonnet,The Chambers Dictionary, Ninth Edition, Chambers Harrap Publishers, 2003/ref> or ''kings-hood''. When cleaned and used for food, it is called "
tripe
Tripe is a type of edible lining from the stomachs of various farm animals. Most tripe is from cattle, pigs and sheep.
Types of tripe
Beef tripe
Beef tripe is made from the muscle wall (the interior mucosal lining is removed) of a cow's st ...
".
Heavy or dense feed and foreign objects will settle here. It is the site of hardware disease
Hardware disease in livestock is traumatic puncture of the gastrointestinal tract with resultant spread of infection, caused by ingestion of a sharp, hard object, usually a piece of hardware (hence the name). These pieces of metal settle in ...
in cattle and because of the proximity to the heart this disease can be life-threatening.
Anatomy
The internal mucosa has a honeycomb shape. When looking at the reticulum with ultrasonography it is a crescent shaped structure with a smooth contour. raun, U., and D. Jacquat. 2011. Ultrasonography of the reticulum in 30 healthy Saanen goats. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica 53:19/ref> The reticulum is adjacent to the diaphragm, lungs, abomasum, rumen and liver. The heights of the reticular crests and depth of the structures vary across ruminant animal species.[Clauss, M., Hofmann, R. R., Streich, W. J., Fickel, J., and Hummel, J. 2009. Convergence in the macroscopic anatomy of the reticulum in wild ruminant species of different feeding types and a new resulting hypothesis on reticular function. Journal of Zoology. 281:26-38.] Grazing (behaviour), Grazing ruminants have higher crests than Browsing (herbivory), browsers
. However, general reticulum size is fairly constant across ruminants of differing body size and feeding type.
In a mature cow, the reticulum can hold around 5 gallons of liquid. The rumen and reticulum are very close in structure and function and can be considered as one organ. They are separated only by a muscular fold of tissue.
In immature ruminants a reticular groove is formed by the muscular fold of the reticulum. This allows milk to pass by the reticulorumen straight into the abomasum.
Role in digestion
The fluid contents of the reticulum play a role in particle separation. This is true both in domestic and wild ruminants. The separation takes place through biphasic contractions. In the first contraction there is sending large particles back into the rumen while the reticulo-omasal orifice allows the passage of finer particles. In the second contraction the reticulum contracts completely so the empty reticulum can refill with contents from the rumen. These contents are then sorted in the next biphasic contraction. The contractions occur in regular intervals. High density particles may settle into the honeycomb structures and can be found after death. It is during the contractions of the reticulum that sharp objects can penetrate the wall and make their way to the heart. Some ruminants, such as goats, also have monophasic contractions in addition to the biphasic contractions.See also
*Methanogens in digestive tract of ruminants Methanogens are a group of microorganisms that produce methane as a byproduct of their metabolism. They play an important role in the digestive system of ruminants. The digestive tract of ruminants contains four major parts: rumen, reticulum, omasum ...
References
{{Authority control Mammal anatomy Digestive system Ruminants