Open AccessWhy pygmy snails lay giant eggs: the kiwi syndrome
Author(s) -
Julían Mónge-Nájera
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
revista de biología tropical
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.305
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 2215-2075
pISSN - 0034-7744
DOI - 10.15517/rbt.v0i1.43811
Subject(s) - kiwi , fecundity , predation , hatchling , biology , ecology , zoology , natural selection , selection (genetic algorithm) , population , hatching , demography , artificial intelligence , sociology , computer science
Some minute land snails lay disproportionally large eggs, and the reason is unknown. A possibility is the “Kiwi Syndrome”, in which natural selection pressures associated with low egg predation, heavy predation of the young, and a minimal viable size for hatchlings, force small females to invest in relatively large offspring at the cost of reduced fecundity.