Author:
Matsuda Haruna,Hamano Tatsuo,Nagasawa Kazuya
Abstract
Hypermastus tokunagai is a eulimid gastropod infecting the sand dollar Scaphechinus mirabilis. The eulimid is easily detached from the host and thus regarded as a temporary parasite. In this study, the growth and reproductive cycle of H. tokunagai were investigated using specimens collected from S. mirabilis in the western Seto Inland Sea, Japan. Newly recruited individuals of H. tokunagai appeared in early autumn and grew rapidly, while growth was retarded from mid-autumn to winter months. A second rapid growth occurred the following summer. Based on the growth pattern, the life span of H. tokunagai was estimated to be more than 20 months. This longer life span compared to other eulimids could be due to the accessibility and population stability of its host S. mirabilis. Maturation of H. tokunagai occurred within a short period in the summer, and was synchronized with the second growth phase. Hypermastus tokunagai showed size dimorphism between sexes and an investigation on change in shell shape with growth revealed that this characteristic can be attributed to the female's acquisition of a larger shell within a short time during its maturation period.
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Reference34 articles.
1. A generic revision of the family Eulimidae (Gastropoda: Prosobranchia);Warén;Journal of Molluscan Studies,1984a
2. Contributions to the anatomy and biology of Echineulima n. g. (Prosobranchia: Eulimidae), parasitic on sea urchins;Lützen;Videnskabelige Meddelelser fra Dansk Naturhistorisk Forening,1975
3. Studies on the host parasite relationship between the parasitic prosobranch
Thyca crystallina
and the asteroid starfish
Linckia laevigata
4. Hermaphroditism in molluscs
Cited by
7 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献