It consists of skeletal muscle covered with mucosa. On its dorsum are many exophytic structures (the papillae) that increase surface area and, more importantly, contain taste buds for gustatory sensation. These come in different types: filiform, fungiform, and circumvallate. Filiform and fungiform papillae are
small and cover the entire dorsal surface of the organ; circumvallate papillae are instead larger and only
located on the posterior dorsum, in semicircular arrangement.