Homing behaviour of the giant African snail,Achatina fulica (Ferussac) (Gastropoda; Pulmonata) |
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Authors: | Kiyonori Tomiyama |
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Affiliation: | (1) Department of Biology, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Minami-osawa 1-1, Hachioji-shi, 192-03 Tokyo, Japan;(2) Present address: Laboratory of Wildlife Conservation, The National Institute for Environmental Studies, Onogawa 16-2, 305 Tsukuba-shi, Japan |
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Abstract: | Homing ability ofAchatina fulica was studied in the field by mark-recapture experiments. Snails hid in resting sites in the day and crept out in the rain or at night. Young adults dispersed for longer distance than old adults. Old adults seldom changed resting sites, while young adults changed them left almost every day. It was only young adults that the study site or came in from other areas. In transfer experiments, old adults returned to the initial resting sites in 5 days. These results suggest that old adults have a homing ability, while young adults do not show it clearly. The homing ability ofA. fulica is age-dependent. These differences may be related to the maturation pattern of the reproductive organ. |
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