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1 January 2013 Do Micro Snails Follow Conspecific Mucous Trails? Experiments with Vallonia excentrica (Pulmonata: Valloniidae)
Cooper T. Johnson, Timothy A. Pearce
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Abstract

We examined whether the terrestrial micro snail Vallonia excentrica Sterki, 1893 detects and follows conspecific mucous trails. A trail-layer snail moved on a transparent 5×5 cm plastic sheet to establish a mucous trail then was removed. A trail-follower snail of the same species was allowed to move on the same plastic sheet. Of 30 trials, 24 trail-followers encountered the laid trail. We compared with null models the distance that the trail-follower trail was coincident with the laid trail, and the turning angle of the trail-follower trail upon meeting the laid trail, to determine that V. excentrica follows conspecific mucous trails more, and showed sharper turning angles upon meeting a trail, than expected by the null model.

Cooper T. Johnson and Timothy A. Pearce "Do Micro Snails Follow Conspecific Mucous Trails? Experiments with Vallonia excentrica (Pulmonata: Valloniidae)," American Malacological Bulletin 31(1), 51-55, (1 January 2013). https://doi.org/10.4003/006.031.0116
Received: 30 June 2012; Accepted: 1 November 2012; Published: 1 January 2013
KEYWORDS
mucus
null model
trail-following
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