Reproductive system of gastropods
The reproductive system of gastropods varies greatly from one group to another within this very large and diverse taxonomic class of animals. Their reproductive strategies also vary greatly.
Marine gastropods mating.
A stack of the protandrous species Crepidula fornicata: the small individual at the extreme lower left is currently a male, the other individuals are large enough to have become female
Head of a mating Helix pomatia showing the everted penis (P), and the dart sac (S) in the process of shooting a love dart (D).
Head of Helix pomatia after mating with everted vagina (V) and penis (P).
Gastropods, commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda.
Gastropoda
Cepaea nemoralis: a European pulmonate land snail, which has been introduced to many other countries
The shell of Zonitoides nitidus, a small land snail, has dextral coiling, which is typical (but not universal) of gastropod shells.
The upper pair of tentacles on the head of Helix pomatia have eye spots, but the main sensory organs of the snail are sensory receptors for olfaction, situated in the epithelium of the tentacles.
