• 12 parts
  • Checked October 2026

Autonomic Plexuses Diagram

Tap each patch of net to name a plexus, first in the chest, then in the abdomen and pelvis.

Autonomic Plexuses Diagram

Name Date

Tap any part to read, rename or leave it out

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Vagus nerve
  2. Sympathetic trunk
  3. Cardiac plexus
  4. Pulmonary plexus
  5. Esophageal plexus
  6. Celiac plexus (solar plexus)
  7. Superior mesenteric plexus
  8. Abdominal aortic plexus
  9. Superior hypogastric plexus
  10. Inferior hypogastric plexus (pelvic plexus)
  11. Greater splanchnic nerve
  12. Pelvic splanchnic nerves

Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the sympathetic division, one pathway at a time

All 12 parts on the diagram

Show the list

Chest 5

  1. Vagus nerve The tenth cranial nerve, one on each side. It brings parasympathetic fibers to the plexuses of the chest and abdomen.
  2. Sympathetic trunk A chain of ganglia down each side of the spine.
  3. Cardiac plexus A network of sympathetic and vagus fibers that supplies the heart.
  4. Pulmonary plexus A network at the root of each lung.
  5. Esophageal plexus A network round the esophagus, formed mainly by the two vagus nerves.

Abdomen, pelvis 7

  1. Celiac plexus (solar plexus) A network round the root of the celiac trunk. It holds the two celiac ganglia.
  2. Superior mesenteric plexus A continuation of the celiac plexus round the superior mesenteric artery.
  3. Abdominal aortic plexus A network on the front and sides of the abdominal aorta.
  4. Superior hypogastric plexus A network just below the fork of the aorta.
  5. Inferior hypogastric plexus (pelvic plexus) A network on each side of the rectum, deep in the pelvis.
  6. Greater splanchnic nerve A nerve from the thoracic sympathetic trunk. It passes through the diaphragm to end in the celiac ganglion.
  7. Pelvic splanchnic nerves Nerves from the sacral spinal nerves S2 to S4. They carry parasympathetic fibers to the inferior hypogastric plexus.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-10-01 in at least two of these. (1) Henry Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body (1918), The Great Plexuses of the Sympathetic System, The Thoracic Portion of the Sympathetic System and The Vagus Nerve, https://www.bartleby.com/lit-hub/anatomy-of-the-human-body/1f-the-great-plexuses-of-the-sympathetic-system/. (2) Kenhub, Autonomic nervous system, Celiac plexus, Superior hypogastric plexus, Inferior hypogastric plexus, Vagus nerve and Innervation of the heart, https://www.kenhub.com/en/library/anatomy/autonomic-nervous-system. (3) Wikipedia, English edition, Vagus nerve, Sympathetic trunk, Celiac plexus, Superior hypogastric plexus, Inferior hypogastric plexus, Thoracic splanchnic nerves and Pelvic splanchnic nerves, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celiac_plexus. (4) TeachMeAnatomy, The Vagus Nerve, https://teachmeanatomy.info/head/cranial-nerves/vagus-nerve-cn-x/. Detail lines are in our own words. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

An autonomic plexus is a web of nerve fibers where sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves meet before they reach an organ. The first drawing shows the plexuses of the chest; the second, those of the abdomen and pelvis.

Read the full guide

Chest first, then down the aorta

In the chest, numbers 1 and 2 are the nerves that feed the plexuses: the vagus nerve and the sympathetic trunk. Number 3 is the cardiac plexus under the arch of the aorta, 4 the pulmonary plexus at the root of each lung and 5 the esophageal plexus. Below the diaphragm, 6 to 9 run down the aorta: the celiac plexus, the superior mesenteric plexus, the abdominal aortic plexus and the superior hypogastric plexus. Number 10 is the inferior hypogastric plexus beside the rectum. Numbers 11 and 12 are the greater splanchnic nerve and the pelvic splanchnic nerves.

  • Most plexuses are named for what they supply or lie on: cardiac for the heart, pulmonary for the lungs, celiac and mesenteric for their arteries.
  • Superior hypogastric is single, on the midline below the fork of the aorta. Inferior hypogastric is paired, one each side.

Questions and answers

What are the autonomic plexuses?

Webs of autonomic nerve fibers in the trunk. In the chest they are the cardiac, pulmonary and esophageal plexuses. In the abdomen and pelvis they are the celiac, superior mesenteric, aortic, superior hypogastric and inferior hypogastric plexuses.

What is the solar plexus?

Another name for the celiac plexus, the web of fibers round the root of the celiac trunk at the top of the abdominal aorta. It holds the two celiac ganglia, where the greater splanchnic nerves end.

Which nerves feed the plexuses?

Sympathetic fibers come from the sympathetic trunks, in the abdomen by way of the splanchnic nerves. Parasympathetic fibers come from the vagus nerve in the chest and upper abdomen, and from the pelvic splanchnic nerves in the pelvis.

Is this the art labeling activity on the autonomic plexuses and ganglia?

No. That is the title of a publisher’s homework activity. These two drawings are our own and show the same plexuses and ganglia, so you can practice the names here. We have no answer key for any activity.

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