BIOL 401 Tutorial 1

Snail Behaviour and Physiology

43000 species encountered in many ecosystems

Have teeth radula
Can live up to 25 years more common 3-5 years
Poor visual can have different type of eyes
No hearing but can sense vibrations
Can breathe air and/or water can have primitive lungs (air sac) or gills
Some are hermaphrodites with love darts (dont self fertilize)
In mollusca conchifera pleistomollusca with bivalve
Eyes are not reverse to brain
Cutaneous breathing as well as pallial cavity (lung, often with siphon that
extends to the surface)
o Inhale raise pallial cavity to decrease pressure
o Exhale lower pallial cavity to increase pressure
Multifunction gills ion and osmolyte exchange, acid-base, waste excretion,
filter feeding
Lungs can often breathe water (two way)
2 chamber heart and open circulatory system
Haemolymph has haemocyanin (copper, green blue) without red blood cells
(has leukocytes)
Hydroskeleton to facilitate contraction and retraction movement
Locomotion uses muscular movement of foot
Polysaccharide slime both lubricates and adheres
Both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism live in less oxygenated
environments (wetlands and mud)
Aestivation in hot and dry environments low activity dormancy, triggered by
environment and not scheduled, triggered by hot and desiccated
environment
Radula breaks down food as carnivores, herbivores, scavengers and filter
feeders
Torsion to bring anus close to head
Feces and pseudo-feces eating to increase digestive efficiency
Torsion to bring anus close to, above mouth
Nitrogenous waste as ammonia via gills in water
Uric acid in air via feces and primary urine
Pericardial glands to secrete waste into haemolymph
Sex change in lifetime
Most have separate sexes but some hermaphrodite