In the world of snails, the outcome of their “coming together” is that both parties can “carry young“. Being a “hermaphrodite“, snails typically exchange sperm when they “get close“. If one snail is unwilling to exchange sperm, the interaction halts immediately.
According to a recent report published in the journal Current Biology by expert Nils Anthens from the University of Tübingen, snails engage in this covert negotiation for very practical reasons.
As a “hermaphrodite” species, a snail can be either female or male. However, due to the complexity and difficulty of sperm production, snail sperm is quite precious. Based on a theory established over 20 years ago that snails typically exchange sperm with one another, researchers suggest that in the realm of “reproduction“, snails tend to lean more towards the female role. Thus, if one of the two snails refuses to release sperm, the other snail will immediately cease interaction, embodying the saying “no pay, no play“.
The experiment involved more than 200 snails from a tropical marine species. In a group of 50 snails, researchers inhibited sperm production, meaning these 50 snails could still engage in “the act“, but were incapable of “ejaculating” in the final stages. When these 50 snails were paired with normal snails (not restricted in sperm production), the healthy snails often stopped and refused to continue “the journey“.
This behavior reinforces the hypothesis (established 20 years ago) that hermaphroditic snails require a sperm exchange for reproduction, adhering to a fundamental natural principle: If it’s not mutual, then it won’t happen (meaning the stone rolls, the lead must roll back).
