Sexual phases in the gastropod Crucibulum spinosum

This species represents a typical example of protandric consecutive sexuality, the male phase becoming functional at a very early age, when the body has reached a length of only 3 to 7 mm. Those males which become functional earliest usually seek the association of older individuals in the female phase; others, maturing later, are more likely to remain solitary. Mated males have accentuated masculine characteristics and retain the male phase longer than solitary individuals or those that are isolated experimentally. Unfavorable environmental conditions postpone or prevent functional sexuality and terminate the male phase promptly without inaugurating the female phase. The influence of the female in accentuating the sexuality of the male is thought to be due to stimuli received by the latter through sense organs in tentacles and penis and mediated by the nervous system through hormonal secretions. Termination of the male phase and transition to the functional female are comparable to metamorphosis from the immature to the mature condition in other animals and, like metamorphosis, the primary (male) sexual phase can be abbreviated or prolonged experimentally, but the sequence cannot be reversed.