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Post by GlitterBug on Mar 23, 2008 19:11:11 GMT
The Giant East African Snail is a simultaneous hermaphrodite, meaning each individual has both testes and ovaries. This means it is capable of producing both sperm and ova. Instances of self fertilisation are rare, and only occur in low populations. Although both snails in a mating pair can simultaneously transfer both gametes to each other (bilateral mating), this is dependent on the size difference between the partners. Snails of a similar size will reproduce in this way, however 2 of differing sizes will mate unilaterally (one way), with the larger individual acting as a female. This is due to the comparative resource investment associated with the different genders. Like other land snails, they have intriguing mating behavior, including petting their heads and front parts against each other. Courtship can last up to half an hour, and the actual transfer of gametes can last for 2 hours. A female can store sperm within her body for up to 2 years. The number of eggs per clutch averages around 200. A snail would lay 5-6 clutches per year with a hatching viability of about 90%.
- Wiki
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