Size-assortative copulation in the simultaneously hermaphroditic pond snail Radix auricularia (Gastropoda: Pulmonata)

Abstract

To better understand the importance of body size in hermaphroditic mating, we studied the mating behaviour of the pond snail Radix auricularia. This simultaneous hermaphrodite exhibits a positive correlation between body size and egg production and provides weak evidence for size-assortative mating. In addition to this mating pattern, the partner performing the male role was significantly smaller than the mounted partner, performing the female role. In this study, two laboratory experiments were done to test whether body size has (1) an effect on mate choice of the sperm donor, and (2) poses mechanical constraints. These snails did not display physical limitation in mating with a much larger or smaller partner. In the mate choice experiment, we found no evidence for significant preferences for large partners. Therefore, mate choice of sperm donor and mechanical constraints are not likely to contribute to the formation of size-assortatively mating pairs in this species, which contributes to understanding about how these processes work in hermaphrodites.

An Annotated Draft Genome for Radix auricularia (Gastropoda, Mollusca)

“…Members of the genus are simultaneously hermaphroditic (Jarne and Delay 1990; Yu et al. 2016) and both outcrossing and self-fertilization occur (Jarne and Delay 1990; Jarne and Charlesworth 1993; Wiehn et al. 2002).…”

An annotated draft genome for Radix auricularia (Gastropoda, Mollusca)

“…This is mainly due to weak morphological differentiation and enormous environmental plasticity across species (Pfenninger et al 2006). Members of the genus are simultaneously hermaphroditic (Jarne and Delay 1990;Yu et al 2016) and both outcrossing and self-fertilization occur (Jarne and Delay 1990;Jarne and Charlesworth 1993;Wiehn et al 2002). The genus Radix is studied in many different fields, including parasitology (Huň ová et al 2012), evolutionary development (Tills et al 2011), developmental plasticity (Rundle et al 2011), ecotoxicology (Hallgren et al 2012), climate change (Pfenninger et al 2011), local adaptation (Quintela et al 2014;Johansson et al 2016), hybridization (Patel et al 2015) and biodiversity (Albrecht et al 2012).…”